Sponsored Charity Swim for Ace

Jacques recently received a letter from Little Britain star's Matt Lucas and David Walliams congratulating him on his charity swim

Click here to read Jacques' letter

Jacques Andrew of Wembury, lived up to his ambition to swim in the cold sea off Brixham on Christmas morning to raise funds for Access to Community Education (ACE), a charity that supports physically disabled adults who attend Brixham College Adult & Community Learning Centre.

He was supported by friends and family who met on the ‘hard’ by Brixham breakwater where Shaun Hubbard inflated his dingy and took Ben, Jacques’s six year old brother, aboard. Soon about 50 people assembled to watch him enter the water at 11 am, many of whom were people on holiday who had heard about the event and wanted to support him. One man tipped a pocketful of money into the collecting tin.

At 11am Jacques walked confidently into the sea wearing a wet suit donated by the Alder wetsuit company. He swam out towards the Brixham Lifeboat and then turned heading for the outer reaches of the Marina. All the assembled supporters were amazed when he kept going and going! He had said earlier on an interview on Radio Devon that he aimed to be in the sea for 15 minutes and he succeeded, despite the cold temperatures.

Jacques swam an estimated 250 metres, cheered on by spectators. When he reached his goal he climbed into the safety boat and was brought back to land, but jumped in again to do a final swim ashore where he was greeted by applause and cheers.

Maggie Dodd, ACE Treasurer who has a disabled son, Bruce, brought hot mulled wine for all to enjoy, although Jacques warmed up with a steaming mug of hot chocolate.

Liam, Jade and Korin Hubbard collected from the spectators raising another £59, increasing the expected total to almost £1,000. This will be used to purchase a Braille machine to help the visually impaired members of ACE read text in their classes.

Jacques has previously swum 5,000 metres in just under 3 hours. His Mum, Samantha Andrew said "He wanted to do something that he could be proud of, and he has excelled himself today!"

Chris Wardley, Chair of ACE who came to cheer him on said "He is a very special boy, helping us rather than sitting at home opening presents. We hope his school will let him come over to present the cheque when we have collected all the money from supporters."

Donations can be given by popping into Popes, The Coffee Shop and No 11 in Brixham. Or call Chris Wardley on 01803 859364 or the Adult and Community Learning Centre on 01803 853302.