The air temperature may have been frightful, but that didn’t stop scuba divers from across the South West descending on Vobster Quay in Somerset on Sunday 14 December for their delightful annual charity fundraiser.
Over 85 very festive scuba divers donned Santa suits to take to the chilly waters of the lake for a sponsored scuba dive in aid of charity.
After the sun rose on an unseasonally sunny morning, scuba divers assembled en masse at the open water diving venue near Mells to participate in Vobster Quay’s annual Vobster Santas charity diving event. Despite the chilly 9 degrees C water, there was no shortage of smiles and festive cheer as divers climbed into their red pantaloons and strapped on their fluffy white beards for a mass scuba dive like no other. The diving Santas hit the water at 10am sharp and the lake was soon awash with diving Santas of all shapes and sizes!
Of course, it wasn’t just about festive cheer – the event also raised some serious cash for charity. This year’s Vobster Santas raised almost £3,000 shared between two very deserving charities – the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and Help For Heroes. Volunteers from both charities turned up to support the event with both the RNLI’s Stormy Stan and Help For Heroes’ very own Navy Hero Bear mascots making a very welcome appearance.
“We’re thrilled that so many Santas, reindeer, elves and even a scuba diving Grinch joined us for what has become one of our favourite events of the year. Since the event’s inception in 2007, we’ve raised well over £50,000 for charity and we’re thrilled to have extended that total even further this year. Both the RNLI and Help For Heroes are charities very close to our hearts and Vobster Santas is a great opportunity for us to show them just how much we love and value what they do,” commented Vobster Quay owner, Amy Stanton.
Plans are already afoot for the event to return in 2026.
Photo credit: Jason Brown / bardophotographic.co.uk
