Olympic Medallist Gail Emms Launches Make a Splash at Heathland School

Thursday 20 October 2011 at 14:39

The Mayor of London's Make a Splash mobile pool at Heathland School in Harrow was given the official seal of approval yesterday by Olympic Silver Medallist Gail Emms.

 

 

With partner Nathan Robertson, Emms memorably reached the final of the mixed doubles final in Athens in 2004, Great Britain's best ever performance in Olympic badminton. She was on hand to deliver a special assembly to the children about her career and the inspirational power of sport.

 

 

Emms said:“It is important that all children have an opportunity to participate in sport, so it is fantastic that the school now has its own pool to teach the children to swim.

 

 

“The children are having a great time learning to swim in this pool, and I also want to encourage the local community to make the most of the Make a Splash pool while it’s here at Heathland School.”

 

 

Make a Splash, which is part of the Mayor of London’s Sporting Legacy Programme, is designed to ensure a lasting legacy from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Total Swimming, which manages and delivers the programme, will be taking the Make a Splash mobile pool to eight more locations across London by 2013.

 

 

The programme at Heathland School is aiming to teach around 1,000 local children to swim, and will deliver hundreds of lessons over the three month period.

 

 

It is hoped that this will help local children achieve the National Curriculum target of learning to swim 25m unaided by the time they leave primary school.

 

 

One in five children in the England leave primary school without being able to swim, and this statistic can rise to four in five in communities with limited access to a pool.

 

 

Out of school hours, the pool is open to the wider community, with a programme of lessons and activities aimed at getting more people in the local area active and enjoying swimming. Sessions cost just £2 each and the programme of activities is available on the Make a Splash website.

 

 

Head Teacher of Heathland School, Chris Spruce, said: ‘This is a fantastic opportunity for our children and our community. It is building confidence and self esteem in all aspects of school life.’

 

 

Further information about the Make a Splash programme, including timetables and booking details for the project at Heathland School, can be found by clicking here.