A COFFEE shop owner from Radcliffe is making waves as a charity swimming champion.

David Collins completed the Great Manchester Swim for the fourth time last weekend, and has collected more than £3,000 for a number of charities in that time.

The 30-year-old, who runs Marie's Coffee Shop with his mum, Marie, was among the hundreds of participants who took the dive into Salford Quays for the mile-long swim on Saturday.

Mr Collins, of Lever Street, said: "I have done this for the last four years now and each year I like to raise money for a cancer charity.

"We have a lot of people coming through the shop who have lost someone to cancer, so people are always willing to give generously.

"This year, we have collected about £900 for Bury Hospice and The Christie Hospital, but over the four swims I have done the total is more than £3,000."

As well as putting out collection boxes at his Blackburn Street cafe, Mr Collins has been sponsored by friends and local businesses.

And, having rekindled his love of the sport, he is now planning to take on the Great North Swim next year as well.

He added: "After doing this for a while now, I'm now thinking about doing the Great North Swim at Lake Windermere as another challenge that can help me raise some more money.

"I used to be a big swimmer when I was younger, so I first started four years ago as a way of getting back into it.

"Everyone hears about the Great Manchester Run but the swim is something a bit different and doesn't seem to get mentioned as much.

"Thankfully, the water was okay this year. Last year it was really choppy because we had a big storm, so this was a lot better."