Southsea campaigner who completed Dip a Day Challenge in aid of Surfers Against Sewage wants to feel 'safe' in the water

Chantelle Wyatt, from Southsea, swam once a day throughout the month of October to support the Surfers Against Sewage campaign, demanding an end to sewage discharge into UK bathing waters by the year 2030.

Chantelle, a scuba diving instructor, lives minutes away from the seafront and was joined by friends, family and even strangers in her fight for the right to have a safe and clean environment to swim and teach in.

She said: ‘The challenge felt personal to me. I want to fight the fight to help take care of my local community. I value it and I want it to last. People protect what they love, and I am really in love with Southsea. Sadly because of the issues we are having with Southern Water, the water quality has declined, and we ocean users have seen that happen and are seeing it get worse every day.

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While the weather over the month was turbulent, Chantelle, 37, is keen to get her message across and thankful for all the support.

‘I hope that people think more about why the sea is so special. It’s a great place to spend time recreationally but it’s also important for us to survive. I want our marine species to thrive and our marine protected areas to replenish. Most of all I want to feel safe in the water. I am guided and motivated by good friends like Sarah Shreeve who work tirelessly to try to stop sewage filtering, being dumped into our seas,’ adds Chantelle.

Sarah Shreeve, an active sea swimmer who co-founded the environmental group Stop The Sewage Southsea along with Rachel Whitfield, is backing Chantelle in her drive for cleaner waters.

She said: ‘It’s something very close to my heart as well as Chantelle’s which is one of the things we have hugely in common.

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Our goal at Stop the Sewage Southsea is to keep drawing attention to how awful it is that Southern Water continue to pump raw sewage into our beautiful marine environment. We’re so proud of Chantelle for doing something so full on! As a year-round swimmer I know how hard it can be, she’ll have experienced first-hand what it’s like getting in the sea immediately after a sewage dump. She’s taken a really bold and brave step to keep that attention high.’

In July, keen sea swimmers Sarah and co-founder Rachel swam from Lymington to the Isle of Wight, raising £1,700 for Surfers Against Sewage.

‘We saw wet wipes; I’ve found sanitary products on the beach. I don’t want to ever stop swimming, but it’s like using a toilet on a train. You’re still going to go to the loo because it’s something you need to do, but that doesn’t absolve me of my right to complain that it’s a complete state and someone needs to clean it,’ added Sarah.

Chantelle and Sarah will ‘continue to fight for change’ and say they won’t stop pushing for Southern Water to cease raw sewage discharge into our local waters.

‘I hope to take on more challenges and to encourage people to take them on with me,’ said Chantelle.

Chantelle has thanked the following Southsea people who got involved with the challenge

Leila Kemp, 38

Theo Kemp, 9

Mia Kemp, 7

Sam Larkin, 43

Austin Larkin, 4

Arthur Larkin, 9

Graham Larkin, 41

Rhys Edwards, 38

Tina Pitman, 62

Radoslaw Krol, 52