A SWIMMING club has received vital funding to help it stay afloat.

Durham City Aquatics applied for a £600 grant as part of Swimathon Foundation’s Covid-19 Relief Fund, announced last month, to pay coaches and sustain club finances in the coming months.

The club was established in 1861 and is the second oldest club in England.

It has a diverse membership of 158, catering for both able bodied and para swimmers and ordinarily would host a number of fundraisers and swimming galas each year to fund sessions, coaching and support their members.

Calum MacGregor, head coach of Durham City Aquatics, said: “It’s fantastic news, it’s really going to help the club move forward after the Covid-19 and continue to help all of the members and provide water polo and swimming alike and helps the club stay alive.

“Every little helps and we are all very grateful that we got the grant and it’s going to help considerably towards getting the club back on track.

“Myself and my colleague have both been furloughed, and the clubs added in the additional 20 percent to give us a full wage.

“So, they’ve committed to the coaches and it’s time for the coaches to commit to the club when we go back and show everyone how grateful we are.

“As we are a reasonably sized club and we’ve got quite a bit of overheads being one of the biggest clubs. So it helps a great deal.”

This week Swimathon Foundation announced £50,000 worth of grants had been awarded to over one hundred swimming clubs, swimming schools and independent aquatic organisations.

The foundation was overwhelmed by the number of applications received and took the decision to boost its original commitment of £30,000 to £50,000 to cover the grants for small swimming and aquatic organisations who have suffered short-term financial hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Anthony Kendall, the foundation’s chairman, said: “In these difficult times for all swimming organisations, the Swimathon Foundation has been determined to play its part in supporting those smaller, local groups that are the foundation of swimming participation in the UK.

“We have been taken aback by the number of people who need help during these unprecedented times and that is why we have increased our overall donation to £50,000. Swimming is a vital community activity and we are proud to play our part.”