Newark swimathon charity challenge raises money for The Gambia

A 24-hour swim will raise money for an overseas children’s charity.

Jackie Butler, who owns JSB Swims on Beacon Hill Road, Newark, with her son Simon Greenfield, will again host a charity challenge to raise money for New Life Children’s Centre in The Gambia.

Their goal is to provide children in the local community with full-time quality education, which they wouldn’t otherwise receive.

Jackie said: "We have done 24-hour swims pre lockdown. but it has been a while and we wanted to start fundraising again.

"We want to swim as far as we can, and the goal is to swim down River Gambia and mark our progress if you like.

"Last time, we managed 40 miles in total between all of our swimmers."

Jackie praised the work of the children's charity and said it was vital to provide support.

"They have already built two schools in The Gambia and are looking to build a third one — the work they do doesn't stop," she said.

"It is a brilliant local charity that supports a very poor part of Africa.

"In the past we have raised a heck of a lot of money, around £2,000.

"We don't want to put pressure on people to raise the same amount, but we want to celebrate what we have done and swim further and raise more this time if we can."

Forty swimmers will take on the challenge with two in the pool at any time, including swimming through the night.

The pool is 7.5m in length and 4m in width, making for a lot of turns.

The event starts on Friday, April 16.

To get involved or to find out more on how to donate, email jsbswim1@gmail.com