Farleigh & District Swimming Club
Founded in 1933, the Farleigh & District Swimming Club is believed to be the oldest river swimming club in the world. This is a recreational summer club. There are no events. It is 4 miles west of Trowbridge, Wilts, on the A366. BA2 7RS. Grid Reference: ST 805577. Turn into the field on the corner by the club sign. This is on the Trowbridge side of the two stone bridges. The Club is a member of RALSA (River & Lake Swimming Association), where a database of other swimming locations is available.
The Club will open as soon as it gets a bit warmer. Ring 01225 752253
Membership. The Club is only open during the summer. This usually means from after silage (approx late April) May to mid September, but if there is warm weather outside of this period then the Club is usually opened up. Cows are put into the Club fields in winter. They may ignore swimmers, but they have been known to chase swimmers into the river! Club Membership Collectors are usually only on duty on warm sunny days when people are likely to want to swim. You can then join on site. If not you can join at the farm (Follow the "Cream Teas" sign.) which is 800 yards up the A366 towards Trowbridge. Alternatively you can join by post by sending a cheque (made out to the Farleigh & District Swimming Club) together with a completed Membership Application Form (printed out from the pdf available below) and a stamped addressed return envelope to Rob Fryer, 39 Portway, Warminster, BA12 8QQ. A Membership Card will then be returned to you. Membership is by Calendar year, and the 2012 membership cards will not be available until late March, so it is best to apply at or after that time. Membership for 2012 is: Families (up to 6) £20, Adult £10. Membership is open to everyone except those under 12. There is no waiting list. Please read the Safety Notice which is printed on the back of both the Application Forms and the Membership Cards.
Occasional visitors. Payment of membership subs can be made by instalments of £1 per adult and 50p per child on each visit, until the Instalment total of £30 per Family or £15 per Adult is reached. If you only come once or twice you will not have completed your membership payments. This does not matter. The Club does not expect you to pay the difference.
Membership of the Club offers free parking in the first field and picnicking and/or swimming from the second. The river is about 8ft deep, but you can walk in from above the (slippery) weir. Do not swim if the river is in spate (brown water). There are two ladders. There are no life-guards so you should always swim with company and be able to provide safety cover for your group.
Dogs are not allowed. This is because of hygiene. just as they are banned from playing fields and most popular beaches in summer. Please tidy up and take any litter home. Thanks.
News The re-dedication service for our War Memorial, which was retreived from the river bed, was held on 16th September 2012. About 100 people attended including the Mayors of Trowbridge and Bradford, the Royal British Legion and the Air Cadets from Trowbridge, the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, The Garrison RSM from Warminster, and number of serving personnel from 21st Signal Regt, many members of RAFA and of course many Club members both past and present. The names of the fallen 12 were read out by 12 Club members. The memorial plaque has been erected at Stowford Manor Farm, not at the swimming club. H2O link: http://archive.aweber.com/h2open/A4k4I/h/Swimming_to_remember.htm
New Club T-shirts and Polo shirts embroidered in full colour can now be ordered from Rob Fryer. They are both 100% cotton (best for hot weather). T-shirts ref CD05 £10, Polo Shirts £15. See www.Ralawise.com for details of the quality. It is assumed that you will collect from Rob in the summer or at the Working Party on 23rd March at 10am. However if you want your's posted please add £4 and send a cheque made out to Farleigh & District Swimming Club at Rob's address on the Home page. The club will be ordering Forest Green for stock, but if you order in advance you can have any colour listed.
CLUB RULES - to follow