Bolton-le-Sands mum to swim Solent for charity

A mum will swim one of the busiest shipping lanes in Europe to raise awareness of Motor Neurone Disease.
Helen Harvey, from Bolton-le-Sands will be swimming the Solent in aid of charity.Helen Harvey, from Bolton-le-Sands will be swimming the Solent in aid of charity.
Helen Harvey, from Bolton-le-Sands will be swimming the Solent in aid of charity.

Helen Harvey, from Bolton-le-Sands, will brave the choppy waters of the Solent, the strait that separates the Isle of Wight from the mainland of England on July 18.

The avid swimmer will be taking on the gruelling challenge to fundraise for the Ian Pratt Foundation, which raises awareness of Motor Neurone Disease.

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“I am quite scared, I am not going to say I feel well prepared, I think I know it is going to be hard work,” said Helen.

“I do wake up at night thinking about it but I also think I have got an opportunity to do something special.”

Helen, a children’s therapist, has never swam in the sea but has been training for the challenge for more than eight months at Capernwray Dive Centre, with support also from Ceri Smith, of The Aquatic Body.

Only 40 swimmers have qualified to undertake the swim.

“Sometimes you can swim for quite a while and don’t go anywhere,” said Helen, a mum-of-two.

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“I wanted to improve my swimming, and do it for charity. I wanted to do something that scared me and challenged me.”

The 41-year-old will take on the Solent, swimming just over three miles and has raised nearly £500 so far.

To donate and find out more about Helen’s journey visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/helen-harvey-supercalifragilisticexpialidocious1.