UPDATED:  29th November 2023

Open water swimming in Wimbledon Park Lake:  Objections and concerns from Merton Watersports and responses from Swimbledon team

Practical concerns

1. One of the main issues is that the group needed to provide a comparable named and identified venue, with a contact name and email address for us to talk through the safety concerns and look at how these can be mitigated. The comparable venues need to be of a similar size of usable water in an urban public park setting with very high footfall. In addition, the venue needs to have shallow water (roughly less than 2m throughout, most of our lake is much less than this).

RESPONSE: Swimbledon already connected Christine Parlose to 3 separate contacts in 2019/20 who launched open water swims in venues with comparable challenges.  No single venue is identical to another - but we found multiple venues which shared traits with Wimbledon Park Lake notably:  open water swims in Parks with high footfall and easy access to the Lake, e.g. King Lear, Beckenham  (it is not all high fence guarded!), Frensham, Heron Lake.  No single Lake or Park are carbon copies of others - safety assessments need to be conducted on a case by case basis.

2. What about marker buoys for swimming? This also needs to be an active watersports centre operating on the same water including sailing, windsurfing, powerboating and paddlesports, (buoys are moved around on a daily basis and there is no way of leaving a permanent marked course in the position you left it.  
3. Since the Swimbledon group first proposed this, the lake has undergone a permanent water level reduction as part of the reservoir repair works meaning some parts of the lake are less than 20cm deep which would be unsuitable for swimming too.

RESPONSES: The diagram below shows a 450m swim route which has been swum before and since the works and in which the water is deep enough 1.5 m or greater.  Many open water swimming venues run a simple system with inflatable boys which can be distributed and withdrawn from the swim route before and after the swim - probably taking 15 minutes each side to set out.  There are protocols for doing this and ensuring the buoys are placed in as close to the same position as possible each time.  Training can of course be provided to staff or community volunteers doing this.

Safety

4. Risks of fishing tackle to swimmers? (much deeper water would allow any discarded fishing gear to sink out of harms way) and if fishing gear gets tangled up on marker buoys. How do they prevent swimmers coming into contact with potentially dangerous discarded fishing tackle?  

RESPONSE: Low to no risk.  Children in dinghies are regularly encouraged to jump in the Lake both from their boats and from the Lakeside by the Water Sports team - as a local parent I know and have seen this in the spring and summer months!  The risk toi swimmers is lower because the fishing areas are away from the proposed swim route and the swim route could be more easily monitored.

5. Other issues include how does the Swimbledon group propose to prevent copycat swimming outside of designated times, telling people not to swim is not in itself a suitable deterrent, they have not stated how they would prevent swimming out of club sessions. The most commonly accepted measure at other venues is the 6 foot high gated fence, this is not a suitable option at Wimbledon Park.

RESPONSE: Copycat issues occur at most during the Tennis fortnight when campers can on occasion get a little merry and decide to jump in the Lake!  News and FOI requests show this.  Open water swimming would be conducted at most twice per week from May - Oct (typical months for water temperature and light) and from a time 0600 - 0800 when Park footfall is minimal thereby mitigating against copycat swimming.

6. “The Swimbledon group have stated how many of their volunteers have undergone the specific training to be able to operate their sessions safely, in all of their paperwork received there appears to be an expectation of a large input of both staff time, access and resources from the Watersports Centre, this is not currently a viable option.”

RESPONSE: Inaccurate  - we have not stated this.  Our business plan (Section 3.0 stated:  We have a commitment from recognised open water swim safety organisations that they will train Swimbleon volunteers (and Merton Watersports staff if they so wish) and will only seek the cost of this to be returned once the initiative is generating income, pay per swim model / again in the business plan.

7. Throughout all of the research we have done the Watersports Centre does not believe that Open Water Swimming can safely be delivered in the lake whilst considering all of the factors raised above.

Section 3.0 of the business plan: SH2OUT and Swim Safety have, to date, provided a preliminary Assessment of the Lake - both have replied that they see it as an “excellent” venue for conducting safe open water swimming. They have agreed in principle to provide full risk assessment on a cost recovery basis, subject to the successful implementation of Swimbledon in 2020.  Their respective fees for risk assessment services and for appropriate staff / volunteer training should equate to no more than £1,500 (subject to a full statement of work being outlined).  This is of course 2 years old. I imagine the fee will now be a little higher.  Swimbledon’s team is confident it can secure agreement for this to be refreshed on a cost recovery basis  - but perhaps Merton should fund this independently to address the continued concerns raised by the Watersports Centre. And by paying and conducting this assessment independently these objections can be put to rest?

8. Without a high fence around the lake it is not possible to prevent access out of hours, the high footfall of lake edge walkers means we are unable to guarantee that any specific areas are free from dangerous debris such as broken bottles. With fishing permitted throughout the lake there is no area designated to be free of discarded fishing lines and hooks. The Swimbledon group has not demonstrated appropriate mitigations for the issues presented or how to manage and deploy suitably qualified staff or how to operate safe sessions and limit access to the water out of hours.

RESPONSE: Open water swimming should / will only occur in the designated area outlined in the plan and at the early morning times suggested so these issues are a moot point. What risk mitigations for broken bottles and other debris  are carried out for the children who are encouraged to jump in the Lake when participating in watersports activities? Any independent risk assessment can propose measures and would most likely involve a much closer, more detailed review of the proposed swim route to tackle debris.  Regular water testing would also be carried out by Swimbledon which is for other Lake users a win too - the water quality of the Lake is in everyone's interests.  The fishing community were supportive of that aspect and it .  

9. Of course, the ambition to be London’s Borough of Sport is about getting more people in Merton more active, however the health and safety of our community will always be the number one priority. I would however welcome a discussion with any group who can provide robust mitigations against the issues highlighted above and previously and do feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss this further yourself.”

RESPONSE: Swimbledon’s team is delighted Merton is re-engaging to explore the potential for open water swimming in WImbledon. In the next 25 years GLA predicts a 19% growth in population of age groups most likely to want to use swimming facilities (5-20 year olds and 50 years +) The independent advice we received is to initially run organised open water swims with safety staff and protocols on hand for those >16 years of age (e.g as per Shepperton Lake which former Merton leisure officer Christine Parsloe visited).  Swimming is multigenerational.  It provides excellent cardio exercise to strengthen the heart, lungs, and circulatory system, while also helping to improve mental health by reducing stress and anxiety through the release of endorphins. Swimming in open water lakes, rivers, and oceans also allows people to connect with nature and enjoy the beauty of the outdoors. Open water swimming can be a great deal more accessible, affordable (less expensive than other watersports activities!) and serve to unlock greater well being for the communities of  Wandsworth and Merton.

Updated 9th October 2019: Open water swimming in Wimbledon Park Lake:  considerations and concerns

We understand there are many concerns, questions and potential objections to open water swimming in the lake.  Over the last month we have taken as much time as available (we are volunteers!) to listen and engage with existing Lake stakeholders.  We welcome further consultation but the below summarises the most frequent concerns raised:

1. Water quality: We have tested the water and it is well inside the EU bathing directive acceptable limits for swimming (tested June 2nd with Swim Safety Labs^[1]) no worse than many other open water swimming locations e.g. Serpentine, Shepperton Lake, Hampstead Ponds.  2014 water tests we also shared - these too would have  all passed EU bathing standards).  Human guinea pigs: after two swims nobody in our team has been ill!  
2. Wildlife: What about the ducks and bird life? Open water swimming is incredibly peaceful and non invasive. There are countless examples across the UK where birdlife exists in harmony with open water swimming. Serpentine and Henleaze lake are two great open water swimming Lakes which, like Wimbledon Park Lake, are home to migrating birds. Migrations happen in April and September when the lake would be closed to open water swimming anyway. What about the fish and eels? A large dinghy  / a safety boat with a propeller affects these more than a wetsuited swimmer.  Eels largely congregate around the boundaries and manmade structures around the Lake anyway.
3. Silt and weed. How will swimmers deal with the weed and silt - is the Lake swimmable? In the same way the watersports club does for dinghies. Currently the weed is being hacked back by the watersports club.  The silt / weed issues need addressing in part for many groups.  We would propose to work with the watersports club to work out the best swim route to follow the deepest lines of the Lake. Our recent test swims found good stretches of water.  2 x swims having taken place we know and have tested a viable route of 450 metres long
4. How will this be paid for? Merton watersports team are already at capacity and the council has no more money! A blended club subscription and a pay per swim model will more than pay for itself and support covering the costs of temporary staffing, safety, equipment and the times for when this is needed. We have had many people come forward who are qualified to provide such water and open water swim safety expertise.  Our proposed model would pay for them and make a return to the water sports club - nobody will be out of pocket on time or money. This can generate income and revenues for Merton be reinvested back into the future of the lake.  Swim Wimbledon will happily discuss in more detail it’s proposed model for this.
5. Is there a risk recreational swimming might become the expected norm if the Lake is used for open water swims? How can we make this safe and only ensure only secured open water swimming operates at set times?   It is a public lake and as such people could (if they wanted to ) swim at any time. Educating and informing people about safe open water swimming and having an appropriate system for park entry and induction / signup will prevent this as will working with the watersports team to secure a designated open water swim route / area.
6. Park security and access. The Park can’t be opened early enough for this! Certain groups already have access and their own keys. British Military Fitness (BMF) and Friends of Wimbledon Park (FoWP) and environmental staff / volunteers have access to the park in earlier hours. The same model can operate for us
7. We have no experience of running open water swims. Don’t worry the Outdoor Swimming society have a lot and have experience of working with local government (e.g. Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham) to make this work.  Swim Wimbledon is staffed by experienced volunteers who also have an open invitation from the owner/manager of Shepperton to take Merton to see their ‘safety first’ super organised open water swim model in action and learn from approach their team take.
8. Swimming will interfere with other watersports on the lake!   Not the case!  Open water swimming can occur early mornings when sailing is not taking place / and or a cordoned off separate area could potentially also be open for swimming away from sailing areas - the Lake is big enough!
9. Swimmers will lead to unnecessary traffic in the area / to the Park The area is well served by many modes of public transport - most open water swimmers are generally active and will probably cycle or walk anyway!  

If you think we have missed any issues please email us at swimwimbledon@infonation.io