BOSSS COVID Relief Fund

Aim

Providing opportunities for the kids of Stockton and the surrounding areas to swim competitively on a county, regional and national basis.

BOSSS

For almost 25 years Borough Of Stockton Swim Scheme has provided children within the local area the opportunity to be part of a community based scheme, training to compete with the best swimmers from around the country. We operate independently out of Splash, Thornaby and Billingham Forum pools. We have an amazing army of volunteers who keep this swimming community afloat. 

The Scheme has 70 members who train over 20 hours a week, both swimmers and parents/carers benefit greatly from this. We pride ourselves in our dedication and commitment, which not only produces results in swimming rankings but also contributes to the heart of the community. 

All swimmers are mentored individually, by their coach and/or the volunteers, to help manage the time commitments of school, training and socialising with friends. Learning to train and work as part of a team is vital to success in the pool and in later life. We value the balance of ensuring the swimmers enjoy their training, set personal goals but also feel comfortable and confident in discussing any challenges along the way.

The Impact of Covid-19

BOSSS, like many other clubs, has been significantly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and needs support and help to get back up and running as quickly as possible when the pools reopen,

The club runs a number of competitions and fund raising events across the year to generate income. We have been unable to do this. The scheme relies on these funds to maintain, purchase and replace new equipment as well as supporting the development of the volunteers and coaches, to obtain qualifications and to attend competitions and development camps.

What are we doing whilst the pools are closed?

Since the closure during the national lockdowns, the swimmers have been continuing with their land based programmes which includes Pilates, High Intensity Training, core exercises and cardio sessions. Zoom meetings have been in place to help support the swimmer’s health and wellbeing, including mental health. Some fun activities such as holding a bake off, inspirational talks by Olympic swimmers, quizzes and motivational calls from the coaches, have all helped to keep the members engaged. 

The swimmers remain committed and have been working hard to maintain their fitness. Unlike other sports, however, they cannot replicate the pool!

At the point of lockdown in December 2020, the swimmers were preparing to start competing via the virtual competition ‘Level X’ with some of our swimmers hoping to qualify again for the Olympic trials.

As we cannot run our usual competitions, which raises vital funds every year for the club and helps keep our fees at an accessible level, the club has lost over £20,000 in revenue. We will be applying for extra funding from Sport England which means, should are application be approved, we could receive up to £10,000 from them but we need your help to reach our target in order to secure this!

Who will you be helping?

BOSSS will be extremely grateful for any donations received, it will help us to continue supporting the group of motivated, committed and talented young swimmers who are the future of our sport

Crowd Funding is important to us as Crowdfunder and Sport England have teamed up to make match funding available to help the sport and physical activity sector through this ongoing coronavirus crisis. We have applied for match funding and if we are successful in meeting our target, Sport England will contribute to our cause and double your donations. This would really help our club.

Our funding target is £20,000, so please share our page with everyone you can. We will be applying for extra funding from Sport England which means, should are application be approved, we could receive up to £10,000 from them but we need your help to reach our target in order to secure this!

We really appreciate any contribution you can make to ensure BOSSS continues to have a future for our swimmers, volunteers, coaches and the local community.

This project successfully funded on 12th March 2021