11 June 2025

Rotary Children’s Fun Day

A day of joy and laughter

Woking Rotary Club proudly supports Rotary GB&I and Kids in Mind to create unforgettable experiences for children in need.

Woking Rotary Club is delighted to have been part of the 2025 Rotary Children’s Fun Day, a heartwarming event organised by Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland (Rotary GB&I) in collaboration with Kids in Mind. On 11th June 2025, this annual event brought joy to over 25,000 children from disadvantaged backgrounds, offering them a day of fun and adventure.

over the top on the children's small inflatable slide

Creating Lasting Memories

Rotary clubs across the UK work tirelessly to make this day possible, with nearly 2,500 Rotarians volunteering their time. Children facing challenges—whether due to poverty, life-limiting conditions, or domestic violence—will have the chance to escape their worries at over 100 venues, from theme parks to theatres, creating memories that will last a lifetime.

Why it Matters

This event is more than just a day out; it’s a lifeline for many of the UK’s most vulnerable children. The fun-filled experiences help build happier, healthier childhoods, offering these young people a chance to thrive in nurturing environments.

The Power of Rotary

For over 30 years, Rotary has been committed to giving disadvantaged and disabled children opportunities to explore, have fun, and experience new adventures. In 2025, Rotary aimed to reach another 30,000 children, continuing to spread hope and joy across the country.

12 October 2025

Swimathon, and on, and on, and on…

18 years and counting.

This year you'll be making a splash for some great causes

The money raised from the 2025 Swimathon will be shared between a number of local charities supported by Woking Rotary Club including, amongst others, Woking & Sam Beare Hospices and Woking Community First Responders.

“Now in its 18th year this annual event has raised over £220,000 for local charities”

Terry Smith

The Woking Rotary Swimathon returns this October — ten hours, six lanes, and hundreds of swimmers diving in to raise money for local causes.

From school teams to local businesses, from groups of friends to solo swimmers, everyone’s welcome to take part — swimming in teams of six for an hour, side by side with others making a difference. Every length helps.

For the 17th year Trident Honda Ottershaw are sponsoring the event and we are grateful for their continued support.

How to get involved

Joining in is simple!

Find five or six friends, family or colleagues to form a team. (If none of your friends swim, no problem. We’ll slot you into a team of other solo swimmers.)
The organiser completes a team entry form by clicking on the link below. If you are entering more than one team, complete a separate form for each team. If you are a ‘solo’ swimmer, you’re the organiser of ‘team you’.
Once your team is registered, details of how to make the most of your sponsorship efforts will be sent to to the team organiser to share with the rest of the team members.
What are you waiting for? Dive in! The water’s lovely.

FAQs

Our Swimathon 2025 is a fun event organised by Woking Rotary Club to raise money for charitable causes.

Everyone! Local charities get money to help with their important work, whilst the teams of swimmers have lots of fun trying to swim as many lengths as possible whilst raising as much sponsorship money as possible.

This year’s charities include: Woking & Sam Beare Hospices, and Woking First Responders, along with other local charities supported by the Rotary Club of Woking Benevolent Fund (“RCWBF”).

Any confident swimmer who is at least 8 years old, so teams representing many local schools (pupils, staff and parents take part, plus teams from Rotary clubs, youth groups, health clubs, shops, charities, offices, police, paramedics, families, businesses, fire crew, nurses and doctors, friends, scouts and guides, cubs, and swimming clubs.

All team members who take part will be awarded a commemorative medal.

Organising an event such as this takes significant resources. We always try to keep our costs to a minimum. Volunteers do all the work but inevitably there are expenses. For the 17th successive year, Trident Honda is the main sponsor of the Swimathon and is meeting a substantial share of these costs. But this still leaves a large sum to find, and we very much welcome other sponsorship for the event, either corporate or individual.

You and your team will not only raise vital funds for local charities but will have lots of fun being part of a great day.

We have teams from schools, youth groups, families, work colleagues, sports clubs, local businesses, charities and groups of friends. Everyone is made very welcome, and we hope they all leave with a great sense of achievement. Teams are usually made up of six swimmers, but this can vary.

All swimmers must be safe in deep water, but because you only swim one length at a time you don’t have to be especially strong. You will be in the water for 55 minutes, but you will be resting at the end of your lane between lengths. The whole team may swim about 100 lengths in total, but if one of you is much stronger than the others, you might swim more lengths than your team mates. Taking part is what really matters.

The activity within the Pool building is under the supervision and control of the Pool management at all times.

We welcome children taking part. The minimum age for swimmers is eight years at the time of the event and every team member must be confident swimming in deep water. Children less than sixteen years old need the consent of their parents or guardians. In the case of School Teams, this may be arranged through the school, if the Woking Rotary Club agrees in advance.

Information and documents for the event, including entry and sponsorship forms, are available here on this website. Entry and sponsorship enquiries should be made to Terry Smith on 01483 762832 or at terry.smith@rotarywoking.co.uk