Hi, my name is Ross Harding and I am trying to raise some much needed funds for my local pre-school. The pre-school is a charity that is run on donations, fundraising and grants, as with all charities they need help. The money I am raising will all go to getting new supplies, paying for the work that needs to be done and finishing the nature area to make the children's first learning experience an even more fantastic one.

This charity is close to my heart as its our local pre-school which my daughter currently attends.

My 10km swim is on Saturday 24th August at Box End Park in Bedford (part of the mass start swim series: http://www.galeforce-events.com/swimming-events/mass-start-swim-series/). I have been doing open water swims for a few years now but the longest distance I have completed so far has been 5km (which was last year) and only once so far, so this 10km distance will be a huge challenge for me!

The lake up at Box End Park is very nice and very big but has many challenges; they have ducks and swans and last year in the summer there was lots of plants/weed in the lake, so my legs and arms got caught up a fair bit! Last year quite a few of the regular 10km swimmers didn't complete the distance, so I'm really hoping I can make it!

With your support and generous donations to raise money for St Michael's pre-school will give me the extra push to complete the full 10 Km!