Accessible sailing expands at Snettisham

Snettisham Beach Sailing Club are holding a press launch and invite everyone down to view their new Accessible Sailing facilities on Monday, 9th September at 2.00pm.

Accessible sailing is about inclusion and can accommodate a variety of needs, including physical disabilities, learning difficulties, hearing and sight loss but it is more than that - it allows those who can no longer launch and recover their own boats to continue sailing and it provides a communal activity to address isolation for people of any age and background. It also offers an opportunity to learn a new skill in a communal environment. If you are a member or organiser of a group, or an individual, and you think you might benefit from the facilities then this is a chance to find out what they have to offer and how you can get involved.

The club have already invested over £27,000 in improving their accessible facilities - having bought two Hansa 303 dinghies, installed a wheelchair-accessible pontoon and hoist and are in the process of building a wheelchair pathway to improve access to the pontoon.

They have already received a grant from Sport England for 50% of the cost of a new adapted Wayfarer dinghy and are currently Crowdfunding (crowdfunder.co.uk/p/snetbeachsailability) for the remaining 50% - and are asking for help to raise the remainder.

The club are also recruiting volunteers to support the Accessible Sailing programme. You don’t need to be a sailor as there are plenty of opportunities on shore as well as on the water. As a volunteer you will need to be DBS checked and you will receive training in disability awareness, hoist use and manual handling as part of the induction process. If you wish to improve your skills the club also offer free first aid training, sail training to RYA level 1/2 and Powerboat qualifications.

Hoist in operation

The Accessible Sailing sessions are planned for Friday afternoons next year, with taster sessions for potential users, also on Friday afternoons, in September and early October of this year. Weather permitting on the day, they will have the Hansa dinghies and a Wayfarer available so you can not only see the boats in action but also have an opportunity to get on the water (specialist equipment will be supplied, other than that just wear something that you wouldn't mind getting wet).

If you’d like to find out more information about Accessible Sailing or Snettisham Beach Sailing Club please contact Adrian Tebbut at commodore.sbsc@gmail.com or visit their website at https://www.snetbeach.co.uk .Adrian can also be contacted on 01553 631697 or 07530 046139 .