A group of swimmers have got together to save the North West's only surviving public open-air swimming pool.

The art deco Grange Lido opened in 1932 and is the only surviving seaside lido which is one of just four in England.

The lido closed its doors in the early nineties and was listed as an important heritage asset becoming Grade II listed in 2011. The Save Grange Lido group has got together to try and fully restore the 50m long-course swimming pool to make it an iconic cultural, community and heritage destination.

Four friends, Ian, Ali, Amy and Catherine, who met whilst swimming at the Save Grange Lido weekly Wednesday night swim at Fell Foot, have now decided to raise £2,000 to help with its restoration.

Working as a relay team of four, the team will swim the English Channel using support boat Sea Leopard, between September 14 and 20 - tide and Weather permitting. Crossings can take anything between 12-16 hours with tides potentially making the swim a lot longer and harder

Ian, 53, a senior manager at BAE said: "We're going to be swimming in tricky conditions, partly in the dark, and may have to swim amongst jellyfish, debris and shipping containers - after swimming for a while that can actually break up the boredom.

"We have been training hard in all weathers and conditions in places such as Earnse Bay, Cleveleys and elsewhere and we will be doing a dry run from a boat in Windermere beforehand."

The Westmorland Gazette: 53-year-old Ian Bury is also health and safety trained to help in the water

The friends are all seasoned swimmers. Amy Favieres. 38, plans to do a solo Channel swim next year. Catherine Atkinson, 40, swam in the World Ice Swimming Championships earlier this year. She's currently in Canada and intends to compete in a 10km Sea swim race whilst there. Ali Harker, 50 has lots of open Water swimming experience along with Ian who has swam all his life.

They all share a passion for swimming and believe Grange Lido is very much needed.

Ian added: "Swimming is a life skill and if you think of the costs on the NHS, this can help with mental health, socialising and exercise - it can help with all of that.

"There her has been a lot of increased interest in open water swimming in recent year. There is open water at Coniston and Windermere but it's never as safe as a pool. 

"Grange Lido is a community asset that would enrich people's lives in many ways."

To donate to save Grange Lido, visit the Crowdfunding page.