A PUB chain with venues in York is supporting a national anti-drowning campaign.

Nicholsons runs the Cross Keys in Goodramgate, Harkers in St Helens Square, the Old White Swan in Goodramgate and the Punch Bowl in Stonegate, which are among seven of the chain's pubs to support the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's Respect The Water campaign.

The campaign aims to raise awareness of the potential risks of being on or near water, and equip people with the skills and knowledge to keep themselves and others safe when in or near water - particularly relevant following the number of deaths in York's rivers in recent years.

Staff at the pubs are giving staff water safety advice to share with customers, and running additional fundraising and awareness activities, and are part of a larger national campaign which aims to raise £28,000 for the RNLI.

Annette Middleton, marketing manager for Mitchells and Butlers, Nicholson’s parent company, said: "Pubs are a thoroughly British institution, part of the very fabric of our culture, and we see the RNLI charity in exactly the same way.

"At Nicholson’s we place great emphasis on the safety of our customers, but supporting the RNLI gives us an opportunity to go beyond our customers and hopefully educate a wider audience about the potential dangers of water."

Ross MacLeod, coastal safety manager from RNLI, said: "Through our Respect the Water campaign we’re trying to change people’s behaviours to make them think about safety and take steps to safeguard themselves and others. It goes without saying our lifeboats will always launch to someone who is in distress - as a search and rescue organisation that will never change.

"But the phrase “prevention is better than cure” rings true, and it is fantastic that such a popular chain as Nicholson’s has agreed to support us in spreading those safety messages."