Keeping the magic with new Mates

A group of volunteers have completed a new course aimed at creating training and development pathways for our volunteers and to start producing our own Mates for sailing trips. This is why it matters.

Five volunteers are gathered together on a yacht, with one young man at the helm and the four others bunched together in front of him, smiling at the camera and tumbling over each other, while one is holding up the peace sign with her fingers

In Bigger Impact, Brighter Futures – Our Ambitions For 2023-2025, we said we would Keep The Magic by investing in specific, role-appropriate training and development across our whole team.

By taking part in RYA Watch Leader courses, three groups of volunteers have developed their sailing skills and will take part in future adventures as Mates, making more Crew Leader spaces available so more young people have the chance to potentially come back and volunteer on trips themselves in the future.

Mates assist the Skipper with the safe operation of the yacht and ensure the safety of the crew and young people on board. They also contribute to young people rediscovering what they are capable of by helping them learn new sailing skills.

This training is part of our commitment to give volunteers opportunities to learn new skills and take part in new experiences, which in turn will benefit their CVs and applications in their professional lives.

By developing and diversifying our pool of volunteers in this way, we will become more representative of the hundreds of young people we support each year, ensuring we keep the magic alive for them and continue to build belonging for everyone.

Krissi Cartright-Riley, Volunteer & Team Development Manager, said: “Having volunteers with a broad range of skills on board is key to us having a positive impact on young people. Volunteers with sailing skills are integral to keeping young people safe, and being able to offer the RYA Watch Leader course means we can develop those skills in existing volunteers who already understand our trips and young people. This is a great asset to our sailing adventures going forward.”

The training took place between 19 October and 1 November from our bases in East Cowes and Largs, and was delivered by our long-term skippers Becky and Andy.

A big thanks goes to the Royal Yachting Association and UK Sail Training for helping us arrange and deliver the RYA Watch Leader courses.