Specific charity partners are nominated for each event (and sometimes are able to provide entries) but no restrictions are in place around fund-raising.

On 14 September 2008,[citation needed] the first Great North Swim took place, which attracted over 2,200 swimmers of all ages and abilities,[1] including five of the six Olympic Open Water Medalists: David Davies,[2] Cassandra Patten,[3] Maarten van der Weijden,[4] Keri-anne Payne[5] and Thomas Lurz.

The next year, after the success of the inaugural Great North Swim, the series was expanded to 4 events: This time around, the Great North Swim attracted a record 6,000 participants[7] and up to 20,000 spectators, including Andy Burnham,[8] Steve McFadden,[9] and other Olympic champions.

Richard Leafe - the Lake District National Park Authority chief later pledged to fix the water quality issues.

[11] The Great Scottish swim of 2012 was planned to take place in Strathclyde Park, but also cancelled due to poor water quality leading up to the event, which was compounded by the heavy rainfall which pushed bacteria levels above the safe limit.

The backup venue also had unacceptable water quality due to naturally occurring blue-green algae.

The swim went smoothly, with director Alex Jackson estimating that 30,000 people visited the event site over the weekend.