On the crest of a wave at city's top dive school.

DIVE school director Martin Ainsworth can see the tide turning - and his business is benefiting from a growing interest in the oceans. As director of east Hull-based Above and Below UK Ltd, Mr. Ainsworth has seen the public's passion for diving take a significant upturn in recent years.

And following a link-up with Hull's multi-million pound tourist attraction The Deep last year, his business is riding on the crest of a wave.

Whether it be running classes for beginners at the weekend, organising dives around the coasts for experienced divers, maintaining equipment for divers at The Deep, or even training people to the highest level of professional dive instructors, Martins life is spent in or around the water. And importantly, that's where he likes to be.

To call him a diving enthusiast is a major understatement.

Diving is his passion, a passion that he is passing on to those who are members of his dive school. The link-up with Hull's submarium last October saw the launch of The Deep Dive School. Although Above and Below had been running classes for a number of years, it was the link-up with the visitor attraction which enabled Martin to raise the centre's profile and its credibility.

Now, with more than 150 members, the business is running smoothly and Martin has ambitions of spreading it across the country. As an official Professional Association of Diving Instructors course director, Martin is qualified to the very highest level. It is Martins expertise that has given the school an advantage over many others, as it is rated a five-star Instructor Development Centre.

He said, "With me being a fully qualified course director it enables us to teach instructor courses, which is particularly special for Hull. We have five-star Instructor Development Centre instructor courses, so it allows us to help people make a career from diving, whether that be from teaching diving or using the skills for a particular job".

Having taught from home for a couple of years, Martin now takes classes at The Deep visitor attraction itself. However, any starters worried about diving in with the sharks can think again. All beginners are introduced gently to life in the water, at local swimming pools. Martin said, "When we start to teach people about diving we start in a swimming pool because it is an environment people feel comfortable in. We generally start in a very shallow water, but people always enjoy it because it is something they have never experienced before. The big moment for people is taking that first breath under water. It's a life changing experience".

Mr. Ainsworth has clearly been delighted with the link-up with The Deep. He said "It was the ideal partnership for ourselves and The Deep. We trained the divers who work there, and some are on our courses now. We also look after and maintain the equipment used at the centre. They get our expertise, and we get the powerful branding that comes with the centre. The fact that we are in partnership with The Deep brought extra credibility to the school".

With the number of people using the centre increasing rapidly this year, Martin and his wife Sharon have brought another first to the city. They are now providing the fist accepted degree course in dive training at the University of Hull. The module is available to first year students and is aimed at those who anticipate diving skills may be needed in their chosen career or if it will assist other areas of their study. It consists of taught lectures, knowledge reviews, practical skills training in a pool and actual open water dives.

It was hoped that around 12 people would sign-up, but the course attracted almost 50 students. Martin said "We were delighted it proved so popular, It has been running since September and it has gone very well. The students appear to be enjoying it, which is great to see". Now Martin is keen to continue spreading the word. He would like to see diving considered a normal everyday sporting activity in the future. He is keen to dispel the misconception that diving is a dangerous and expensive sport.

He said "Diving isn't dangerous if you respect the water and the surroundings you are in. There are misconceptions that you have to be super-fit, and that simply isn't true". My aim is to get more people to give it a try. It isn't expensive. People can come to one of our scuba-diver taster sessions for just £10. For around £250 you can learn to dive. That's a lifetime qualification."