Less than 10 years into scuba, Tessa De Weghe is Diving Officer and Training Officer of a forward-thinking new dive club. Interview by Kristina Pedder
Advanced Diver and Open Water Instructor Tessa De Weghe is proud to be one of the founders of a new BSAC branch. Wigan Scuba Divers came into being in early 2024 and Tessa took on the roles of Diving Officer and Training Officer. Tessa is a full-time volunteer, with BSAC and with the NHS, including at vaccination centres.
One of the most rewarding aspects has been growing the club from just 11 members to 32 in less than a year, she says. “I’ve especially enjoyed organising events with other local branches; bringing divers together is incredibly rewarding.” They go on underwater Easter egg hunts and underwater Halloween pumpkin hunts together.
I was curious to know when Tessa got into diving. “I started scuba diving in February 2016,” she says. “I wasn’t a strong swimmer and didn’t even like water, so I wasn’t sure it was for me.
FACT FILE
Name: Tessa De Weghe
Job titles: Member of the North West Region’s instructor team, club Diving Officer and Training Officer
Area covered: North West
First dive: 8 May 2016
“One of my earliest diving memories is the moment my initial nerves turned into an ‘I’m really enjoying this’ feeling. Once I gained confidence in my skills, that was the turning point and then I truly fell in love with diving.
SKILLS TIP
Learn to clear your mask by smiling – no hands needed. Smiling slightly can create just enough of a gap to let water escape while exhaling through your nose. This is useful when teaching, as it helps maintain control without breaking form or interrupting buoyancy. Plus, it’s a fun and stress-free way to show students that mask clearing doesn’t have to be a struggle.
“I love how everything slows down underwater; the sound of my breathing and rising bubbles is incredibly calming,” she says.
FAVOURITE KIT
My Aqualung Favola dive mask is my window to the underwater world. They’re so good, I own three. A well-fitting mask makes all the difference. If a mask doesn’t fit properly, it leaks and turns a dive into a frustrating experience.
Tessa describes every dive being like opening a Kinder Surprise Egg [the children’s chocolates with a tiny toy inside each one]. “You never know what marine life you’ll discover on any dive. It’s always an adventure, whether exploring new sites or retrieving a dropped phone from a lake.”
But what made diving more than just a hobby, Tessa says, was becoming a part of its community. “It’s not just something I do; it’s become a part of who I am,” she exclaims.
A keen diver for some nine years now, Tessa has done around 850 and she logs every single one. “I believe keeping a log sets a great example for newer divers,” she says. “Even after so many dives, I still find it useful to look back on previous experiences. Logging dives also makes it easier to share information with other divers.”
Like many BSAC divers, most of Tessa’s dives are done in the UK, but she’s had the opportunity to explore overseas, including visiting Barbados, Mauritius, and Cape Verde. Her favourite spot, though, has to be the Red Sea, she says, as it’s unbeatable for its abundance of marine life.
Tessa is an Open Water and Diving for All Instructor and says she’s honoured to be part of the North West regional team. It turns out she was encouraged to become an instructor because people felt she had a natural ability to comfort nervous trainees.
I wonder what her favourite course is to teach. “Definitely the early diver training courses; Discovery Diver or Ocean Diver,” she replies. “I enjoy teaching all courses, but these bring the most rewarding moments. Seeing a trainee’s reaction when they master a skill that they thought was impossible, or experience their first glimpse of fish or underwater attraction, is priceless. Those moments, when everything clicks and their confidence grows, are what make me drive home with a huge smile on my face."
“Volunteering has always made me happy, so teaching felt like the perfect way to give back and pay it forward. Being from Belgium, my pronunciation of some terms can be amusing, and I’m not afraid to use that to make theory lessons fun. It also helps me simplify explanations, making learning more accessible for everyone.”
Accessibility of diving to all is an important part of Wigan Scuba Divers’ philosophy. The club’s promise is to “sea” to it that diving becomes a welcoming world full of fun to explore, in which you will discover a whole new you.
So, what advice does Tessa offer to her newly qualified divers? Keep diving, she says. “Don’t be afraid to ask questions, dive with different buddies, everyone has their own way of doing things.
“Steal the aspects that help you and leave the rest for someone else. Most importantly, have fun and enjoy every dive.” It certainly seems like Tessa does.
Article ‘’The power of positive diving’ by Kristina Pedder first published in SCUBA magazine, Issue 156 June 2025.
