Matt Read, a Yeovil-born Leonardo manager who started his career as an apprentice, is preparing to swim the English Channel this September. The Early Careers Training Manager at Leonardo will take part in a relay swim to raise money for Swim Tayka, a charity that teaches children water safety and drowning prevention skills.
From apprentice to training manager
Read attended Buckler's Mead School before studying engineering at Yeovil College alongside his Leonardo apprenticeship. He later earned a Mechanical Engineering degree at Plymouth University and now mentors graduates, apprentices, and placement students at Leonardo.
"Swimming has given me so much over the years," Read said. "Supporting Swim Tayka is an opportunity to help children develop skills that could one day save their lives while giving them confidence in their own abilities."
Intense training and jellyfish encounters
Read has spent months preparing at Vobster Quay and Lyme Bay, training up to five times weekly. His regime recently included a compulsory two-hour cold-water trial in North Wales.
"We're not allowed to wear wetsuits during the Channel swim, so I've had plenty of encounters with jellyfish this summer," he said. "You learn to treat the stings like nettle stings – acknowledge them and keep going."
Fundraising goal and community impact
Read aims to raise £1,800 to support Swim Tayka's community education programmes for children aged four to 14. The sessions teach confidence, floating, treading water, and navigating unpredictable currents in lakes, rivers, and coastal areas.
"Whether it's the English Channel or a local beach, water is unpredictable," Read said. "Even with all the training, I always remember the RNLI's 'Float to Live' guidance. If you ever get into trouble, fight the instinct to thrash around. Lean back, control your breathing and float. That is the kind of livesaving awareness we are trying to build with Swim Tayka, because knowing how to stay calm in the water is the first step to survival."
The swim squad is scheduled to depart from Dover during a tidal window between September 4 and 8.
