A 91-year-old former headmaster has spoken of the importance of the Barbican and Yearsley pools in the fight to keep children learning swimming.

Norman Henderson: pictured in 1969

Norman Henderson, who lives in Clifton, York, put swimming at the top of the priority list for the children he supervised during his career.

In 1950 at Scarcroft School Mr Henderson and his staff managed to get 80 per cent of the pupils trained sufficiently to swim a length of the old St George's swimming pool in York.

He said: "We thought that we had to teach the children to swim because of safety with the two rivers - the Ouse and the Foss.

"If the baths are not being visited now then we have got to do something about it."

Mr Henderson treasures the photograph of the Scarcroft schoolchildren who pulled off the feat in 1950. He said: "It just shows the interest there was then in swimming.

"Maybe schools go to swimming pools less now, some even have their own. But maybe it's because they are more on the edge of town now and need to use a bus to get to pools.

"We could just walk to the baths from the school."

Mr Henderson said he thought swimming was as valid as ever and that having pools like the Barbican and Yearsley were vital to keep children learning the sport.

"More and more people go to the beach for their holidays. They don't want to just sit on the beach, they want to go in the sea too."

If you wish to support the Evening Press Save Our Swim Campaign to protect both the Barbican and Yearsley Pools please write to us at: Evening Press Newsdesk, 76-86 Walmgate, York, YO1 9YN, or e-mail us at: newsdesk@ycp.co.uk

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