Huge Melksham effort to back Sport Relief

RESIDENTS, businesses and schools in the town are all mounting a huge effort to support this year’s Sport Relief charity drive.

Sport Relief, which will take place between Friday 21st and Sunday 23rd March, runs every two years, alternating with Comic Relief. Launched in 2002, it has raised over £150million to help vulnerable people in both the UK and the world’s poorest countries.

To help support Sport Relief, the people of Melksham are putting on a whole host of fundraising events including a swimathon at Melksham Blue Pool.

Prior to Sport Relief weekend Melksham Neighbourhood Policing Team will be will be taking part in a 8-hour pool challenge against Canberra Youth Centre to help raise money for Sport Relief.

For the day an extra pool table will be drafted in so more games can be played, meaning more money can be raised.

Local businesses have donated a trophy, food, drinks and confectionary for all the willing participants on the day to keep the energy levels up. The winning team will be presented with a trophy  by the Crime Commissioner  who has also donated medals for all the young people taking part.

If you want to support this challenge then please contact  the youth development co-ordinator, Mark Holden, at Canberra on Spa Road.

The Melksham Swimathon takes place on 21st-23rd March with the event, which has been popular with local swimmers for a number of years, offering participants a choice of  1.5km, 2.5km or 5km individual distances. If you’re more of a team swimmer, you could also form a relay squad to tackle the 1.5km and 5km distances.

Melksham Blue Pool’s duty manager Jamie Higdon said, “We have hosted the swim for over five years and last year’s event raised over £2,500 for Marie Curie cancer care and Sport Relief. We are looking to better that this year and are wanting as many people as possible to get involved and make this year the best yet.”

Swimathon was established in 1986, and is a nationwide swimming challenge that encourages swimmers up and down the UK to swim a variety of challenge distances at their local pool and raise money for charity. Over the past 27 years of Swimathon, more than half a million swimmers have taken part, raising over £40million for charitable causes.

To enter, go online to www.swimathon.org and register at Melksham Blue Pool.

Schools will also be taking part with a range of fundraising ideas taking place.

Aloeric Primary School will have a staff verses pupils charity netball match on Wednesday 19th March with parents also welcome to join in. The following day they have a sponsored hula-hoop, skipping, scoot ride and bike ride.

On Friday 21st March the actual day of Sport Relief the pupils will be asked to come in as their favourite sports stars.