Passing the 10-yard test at St Clements

Passing the 10-yard test at St Clements

Pat Hanks recalls getting to the bathing place at St Clements and taking a swimming test there.

23 July 2023

Pat: Now to get to St Clements, you had to go from Headington to the bottom of Headington Hill, a little way along Marston Road just past St Clements Church, and then there’s a little lane goes down the back. Well, you could get there before you went to that lane – you could get across the field to it. And that was nice.

And they said, well, they were only taking children who could swim. And I thought that was funny. Well, we learnt down at Long Bridges, we’d splashed about and had rings and things. So who could swim? I put up my hand, being cocky, and said I could swim. When we got there, why they only wanted swimmers was because they were taking tests! We were taking the 10 yard tests. And they had a little bridge, and you had to jump off this little bridge and swim to a chain they had. I can always[?] remember a chain across the river. So, I could see what the others doing. I jumped and I did what they were doing and I [laughing] passed the 10 yard test! But that set me on – oh, I loved swimming, then. And I swam for school when I went to Central. Yes, that was lovely.