TWO fundraisers have braved ten cold water swims to raise money for a dementia charity they set up themselves.

Former Holyrood Academy student Laura Corrick, 30, and Ali Turnbull, 34, took on ten cold water swims last month as part of a yearlong fundraising campaign for Remembering Not to Forget, which they launched after both had relatives diagnosed with dementia.

Some of the swims were held on Lake Windermere and Brighton beach, in three unheated outdoor pools, in two swimming ponds on Hampstead Heath in London and in the Serpentine in Hyde Park and the pair decided to brave the cold without wetsuits.

Laura, from Chard, said: “The swims were horrible, the water was so cold, and you would start getting pins and needles.”

The swims were just one of ten monthly challenges the pair will carry out, including a London to Paris cycle ride at Easter, a 2km swim of the River Thames in June, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in August, and plans to break a world record for the most high fives in a vertical tunnel.

They have raised £4,500 of their £10,000 target, which their charity will split between the Alzheimer’s Society, BRACE at Frenchay Hospital in Bristol, and nearby causes such as Bracken House and memory cafe events across Chard and Ilminster.

Former Chard Hockey Club player Laura, and Ali, from Wiveliscombe, met through playing hockey and now both work in London.

The pair, who set up the charity in December last year, said: “We both have close family members with dementia and wanted to do something to combat this cruel disease.

“We’re really excited about the challenges ahead and have been overwhelmed by people’s generosity so far.”