Taunton Prep School pupils complete courageous English Channel swim

A group of 13 pupils aged 12 and 13 from Taunton Prep School have successfully completed a relay swim of the English Channel swimming through the night against strong tides, waves, high winds, sea sickness and swarms of compass jellyfish.

Following two years of training led by Taunton Prep School’s Headmaster, Ed Burnett, and Head of Geography and the school’s Long Distance Swimming Club lead coach, Hamish McCarthy, the children braved the seas on 27th August 2024 in honour of The Barnaby Webber Foundation. The team, known as the Channel Titans, have so far raised £13,500 for the charity with donations still coming in.

The Teams were delighted to have completed the 21-mile swim, with the Red Team completing their swim in 14 hours and 40 minutes, and the Pink Team finishing in 15 hours and 1 minute. The students individually swam an hour at a time with all swimming twice and some swimming three times.

Ed Burnett, Head of Taunton Prep School, said: “The English Channel is known as the 'Everest of swimming' and the mindset, ambition and teamwork needed to complete it requires something special.

“As our 12- and 13-year-old pupils have shown over the last two years, hard work and commitment builds the courage to succeed. I am very proud of them for the work they have put in and I am delighted that they have completed their Everest.”

The Year 8 pupils began their training in Autumn 2022 when they were just 11 years old. Following many early morning training sessions in the school’s pools, they moved to the sea at Lyme Regis and Burgh Island last summer. Pool training resumed in Autumn 2023 coupled with acclimatisation training at Wiveliscombe outdoor pool where frost sometimes covered the ground around the pool during the winter.

April 2024 saw the group add 11 degrees Celsius water at Clevedon Marine Lake to their training schedule, with open sea swims becoming the norm in May. Since then, the team has trained in the sea at Lyme Regis, Beer, Anstey’s Cove and Torbay, and have completed the Plymouth Breakwater Swim.

The Channel Titans have also undergone plenty of English Channel specific training using a boat and conducting several night swims and relay swims in preparation.

Taunton School has now seen ten teams of students swim the English Channel since 2016, raising more than £93,500 for various local organisations and charities.

The group’s chosen charity this year is The Barnaby Webber Foundation, a charity set up in the name of former Taunton School student, Barnaby Webber, who tragically lost his life in the 2023 Nottingham attacks. The foundation aims to support young people aged 18 and under who are facing life challenges. The foundation will also support grassroots cricket clubs through the provision of essential equipment to encourage more children to get involved in playing cricket.

Found out more about Taunton Prep School by visiting https://www.tauntonschool.co.uk/prep/ and visit https://www.justgiving.com/page/taunton-school-long-distance-swimming-club-1721301628827 to support the team by donating to The Barnaby Webber Foundation.