ROY Castle Lung Cancer Foundation has launched a brand new swimming badge, backed by Olympic legend Sharron Davies, to encourage families in Stroud to keep their lungs healthy during the summer holidays.

In order to complete the badge, individuals or groups must swim a mile over the course of a month, either in one go or over multiple swims.

Once the mile is completed, participants will receive their swimming badge and a certificate in recognition of their hard work.

The Swim a Mile in a Month Challenge Badge is completely free to take part in, and any money raised through sponsorship will go towards research and providing support to those living with Lung Cancer.

Former Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies MBE is supporting the campaign, she said: “"As a swimmer, my lungs are obviously vital to my performance in the pool, which is just one of the reasons why I am supporting this campaign.”

“I was shocked to discover that lung cancer kills more women than any other cancer yet, despite this, there is very little research into this dreadful disease. The more people who get swimming, the more money we can raise for more research to find a cure'.

Emma Newnes, community fundraiser at Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation, added: “We have launched the swimming badge to encourage the Stroud community to keep active during the six weeks holiday, have fun and raise funds for vital lung cancer research.

“We are the only charity in the UK wholly dedicated to defeating lung cancer, despite the fact that it is the biggest cancer killer in the UK, claiming the lives of more people than breast and bowel cancer combined.”

To take part in Swim a Mile in a Month and get your badge, simply visit roycastle.org/swim