Into The Blue
Making a Difference Together
As part of our Social Values Initiative, we're proud to support Into the Blue, an inspiring cancer charity that helps people living with and beyond cancer rebuild confidence, connection and wellbeing through supported open-water experiences and a unique community of support.
Why Into The Blue?
A cancer diagnosis can change everything.
Into the Blue creates a safe, welcoming space where people can reconnect with themselves, discover new strength and become part of a community that truly understands their journey. Participants regularly describe the experience as life-changing and transformational.
Their values of resilience, confidence, support and personal growth closely mirror our own.
A Personal Connection
Our CEO, David Bogart, became a trustee of Into the Blue in 2025 after seeing first-hand the difference the charity makes to people's lives. His involvement reflects our company belief that businesses should play an active role in supporting the communities they serve.
When Cold Water Becomes a Warm Community
When someone is diagnosed with cancer, their world often narrows. Routines are lost. Confidence fades. The body and mind become battlegrounds. But for a growing number of people, therapy starts somewhere unexpected: in the sea.
Into the Blue is a cold-water swimming programme that offers more than just a bracing dip. Run by Ellie, an NHS oncology counsellor, it is a lifeline for people dealing with cancer. With warmth, wisdom and care, Ellie has worked to build a programme where vulnerability meets resilience, and strangers become a shoal.
More Than a Swim
Participants are welcomed regardless of background, diagnosis or confidence in the water. Some haven't swum since childhood. Others have lost their nerve during treatment. Every course begins with gentle, guided introductions and ends with real transformation - physical, emotional and social.
Into the Blue is not about fitness, competition or bravado. It is about connection. Ellie describes it as a place where people come to rediscover themselves - not in spite of their cancer, but with it. It is not just eight weeks of learning to swim in the cold. It is about learning how to float again, in every sense of the word.
Quietly Growing Something Big
It is Ellie’s background in trauma counselling and cancer care that shapes every element of the 8-week course. Each session is carefully planned to ensure both physical safety and emotional support. From breathwork and mindfulness on the beach, to safety briefings and post-swim warm drinks, every detail is intentional. A qualified lifeguard and volunteer supports the group each week. But so do the participants themselves. As Ellie says:
"Cold water brings people to life. But it is the group that helps them to live."
The result is powerful: many continue swimming weekly, travelling for hours to stay connected. They've formed "The Whole Shoal" and stay connected on WhatsApp, organising their own dips, as well as sharing resources. What begins as therapy becomes community.
The Bigger Picture
Our CEO David, who had his own cancer diagnosis recently, credits Into the Blue with helping him rebuild both mentally and physically.- With their help and support through his cancer journey, it really did change his life. He says:
"Into the Blue helped me adapt to my cancer and discover what I could still do. Which, it turns out, was much more than I feared."
More Than Sponsorship
Our partnership is about more than just financial support.
It's about raising awareness of an extraordinary charity, helping more people access its programmes and creating lasting positive impact in our local community.
Ellie has been running Into the Blue alongside her NHS role. Her dream is to expand the programme to other areas in a way that stays true to its roots: therapeutic, inclusive and community-led.
Moving Forward
But any charity work always brings pressure. More participants mean more sessions, more kit, more funding and more emotional labour. Skilltec is proud to be working with Ellie and by supporting Into the Blue, we're helping individuals rebuild confidence, rediscover what's possible and reconnect with life.
If cancer has touched your life and you think cold water swimming could help, we would love to connect you to the group. Together, we can help more people affected by cancer find strength, hope and community when they need it most.
Into the Blue is not a charity that shouts. But the waves it makes are real. And with the right support, we at Skilltec hope that those waves can reach further....