Cold water swimming is growing in popularity amongst women, but more support is needed to make many wild swimming sites in the UK safer and more accessible, new research shows.

The research, led by UCL and co-authored by the University of Plymouth, explored the habits of women who enjoy cold water swimming. 

Publishing in Women’s Health, the team surveyed 1,114 women in the UK aged 16 to 80 years old in 2022 and found that most women who participated in wild swimming usually did so in the sea (64.4%) and the majority (89%) swam all year around. 

The women surveyed stated that they swam for longer in the summer, with the most common length of time being 30–60 minutes (48.2%).