Swim England in running for two gongs at Covid Response Awards

Swim England has been shortlisted as a finalist at a national awards ceremony which aims to pay tribute to the ‘resilience and resourcefulness’ of organisations during the coronavirus pandemic.

The recognised national governing body for all aquatic sports is up for two gongs at the Covid Response Awards.

It is among eight finalists for the Best Communications During Covid-19 and one of seven organisations bidding to win the Best Membership or Fan Engagement During Covid-19 prize.

The winners will be announced during a ceremony at the Kia Oval, London, on Thursday 25 November.

Swim England created a wide-range of video and written content to ensure athletes had training plans and nutritional advice – while it also launched the #OpenOurPools campaign which gained more than 55,000 signatures on a petition to the Government in the space of a week.

Jane Nickerson, Swim England chief executive, said she was thrilled the hard work to keep members engaged had been noticed.

“The response to keep our members, clubs, volunteers, swim schools, teachers and coaches fully engaged at a time when pools were shut was absolutely amazing,” said Jane.

“Not only did we ensure that there was enough new content to keep our members’ fitness levels up when they were unable to train in the water, we also led the fight to get pools reopened.

Phenomenal team effort

“I’m so proud of the #OpenOurPools campaign and the way we responded to the news that facilities would stay closed as the first lockdown restrictions were starting to ease.

“It was a phenomenal team effort and I’m delighted to see that has been recognised with these award nominations.”

The Covid Response Awards aim to ‘salute and pay tribute to the resilience, resourcefulness and tenacity that have been the hallmark of corporate and non-commercial organisations response to the Covid-19 pandemic’.

They also ‘acknowledge the efforts put in by teams to achieve the previously unthinkable’.

Swim England is up against Aspen Healthcare, CardMedic, Chelsea Football Club, Hotwire and Zoom, The LTA, National Hair & Beauty Federation and The Social Element for the Best Communications During Covid-19 award.

Also in the running for the Best Membership of Fan Engagement During Covid-19 alongside Swim England are Chelsea Football Club, Funky Voices, Federation of Small Businesses, INFLOW Network, National Hair & Beauty Federation and Scottish Ballet.

To find out more about the Covid Response Awards, click here.