SWIMMING safety sessions have been cancelled because lifeguards were unavailable.

Today and tomorrow's free Swim Safe lessons for youngsters at Dovercourt Bay Beach have been cancelled as no lifeguard was able to run the sessions.

The sessions have been running since July 30.

An RNLI spokesman said: "At this time, we have to prioritise our lifeguards’ key role of working to keep people safe on our lifeguarded beaches.

"Unfortunately, due to limited resources, that’s lead to the cancellation of some Swim Safe sessions.

"Everyone who had booked on to a cancelled session has been offered a place on one of the later sessions at Dovercourt or Frinton, and we’ve been really pleased with the uptake of places on those later sessions."

The programme is funded by Harwich Haven Authority and is available for youngsters between seven and 14 years old who can swim 25 metres unaided.

The sessions are focused on teaching children about open water safety, how to stay safe and what to do if they get into difficulty.