Nearly 5,000 youngsters take up free swimming (From Your Local Guardian)

Nearly 5,000 youngsters take up free swimming in Wandsworth

4:04pm Wednesday 13th June 2012 in Wandsworth By Alexandra Rucki

Nearly 5,000 teenagers and young people took up a free swimming offer at Wandsworth leisure centres last week as part of the diamond jubilee celebrations.

DC Leisure, the private company that manages Wandsworth’s four indoor swimming pools, agreed to waive their usual charges for swimmers aged under-16 during last week’s half term break.

The rule change meant meant that 4,907 young people took to the water at the Latchmere leisure centre in Battersea and also at Balham, Tooting and Putney leisure centres, as part of the borough’s royal celebrations.

Latchmere was the most popular pool with nearly 2,500 visits over the course of the school holiday.

The council’s leisure spokesman Councillor Jonathan Cook said: "This was a very generous offer from DC Leisure and I am delighted that so many thousands of young people took advantage of this great initiative.

"The borough certainly marked the Royal milestone in style with the most street parties in London, and probably the most swims."

Managers at DC Leisure estimate that attendances by under-16s were up by around 40 per cent on a normal spring half term holiday.