Susie Scoop June 2022
Hi everyone,
I hope everyone is ready for the season! I know that there will be lots of instructors returning from University for some summer holiday activity, so don’t forget that you may need to schedule in some instructor refreshes.
Helping promote your Open days
There is bumper interest in sailing at the moment, and if you wish to capitalise on this and grow your membership, then running an Open day is an ideal way to raise awareness of your club, its activities and attract newcomers.
We can help support your Open days through the RYA Discover Sailing initiative. Discover Sailing is a way for clubs to access promotional help from the RYA. If you are running an Open style event do let us know through the Discover Sailing area on the website and we will help promote your event. And remember, we are supporting these events at any time of the season and it doesn’t just have to be a stand along Open day. For example, perhaps you have an upcoming regatta which includes a taster style session.
Sign up here and discover all the resources available including listing your event on the RYA website and promotion on RYA South social media, all designed to help attract newcomers to your club.
RYA Club Membership Census is now open!
An email has now been sent to the club contact / previous person who completed last year’s census. We would like all clubs to please respond to the census as close as possible to the date that you completed it last year, and before the deadline which is Sunday 15 August. Please do email me if you can not find your email.
We’ve reduced the number of questions to make it simpler and easier for you to complete. It is really important that we receive this data to help us monitor the health of our clubs, tailor programmes of support and shape bids for future funding. It will also importantly help us measure inclusivity and progress as we emerge from the pandemic.
Women in sailing
I think it is so important to raise awareness to other females and young girls about the opportunities and just what is out there in our sport - so I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who took part in World Sailing’s Steering The Course festival. It was great to see such a wide variety of female roles and experiences promoted across our region, the country and world-wide.
We are looking to build a new network of local ambassadors for women in boating. If you – or anyone in your club, centre or boating organisation – is passionate about encouraging more women and girls into boating then I want to hear from you.
This network is for allies of women in sailing and is open to everyone – males and females. Interested? Do you have ideas that you’d love to share? Then sign up and join this dynamic network here.
The 2022 Women’s Open Keelboat Championship takes place on 12 – 17 July at the Royal Southern Yacht Club. This is the UK’s only all-female open keelboat championship, and is designed for women to get out on the water and enjoy competitive racing with like-minded sailors and grow in confidence. Whilst onshore activities include a Friday night welcome, Saturday party and live music, food and drink, and charity raffle, ending with Sunday’s prize giving. More details can be found here.
Regional Junior Championships
The British Youth Sailing South & South West Regional Junior Championships have just taken place. I watched many young windsurfers having a blast at Oxford Sailing Club and the dinghy sailors all did fantastically well with windy conditions at WPNSA, with the OnBoard fleet supported by Andrew Simpson Centre. Do check out the photos on our Facebook page.
Regional Training Groups applications now open
There will be parents (and perhaps some clubs!) that are not familiar with what the RTG is. To give it it’s full name – the British Youth Sailing Regional Training Group - ultimate goal is to encourage more young sailors to take up and stay in the sport. It does this by placing an emphasis on regional and club racing which is delivered by expert RYA coaches for all recognised junior classes. In essence, it is a great way for junior sailors to step up from racing at their club and meet like-minded sailors from each RYA region.
More information can be found here and applications can be submitted here
OnBoard and John Merricks Sailing Trust close Monday 20 June!
A reminder that applications are still open. Nominate a deserving young person from your club or centre here.
SAVE THE DATE - Affiliated Clubs Conference - 12th November
It’s time to put the Affiliated Clubs Conference in your calendar!
It will be great to get everyone together, refresh and learn all about the new strategy which we want to work with clubs together on. I would like to see every affiliated club in the South attend. It’s free. There’s a free lunch. Loads of parking and great public transport links to the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton. This is the major event of the year – you don’t want to miss it!
The day will focus on meeting the needs of your club and members. Whether they are newcomers or those who have been members for a number of years. We will in particular look at participation pathways and volunteering as well as diversity, equality & inclusion.
Are we reflective of our communities? By increasing who we are relating to we can increase our market and potential members. But also by looking at our members and by looking in depth of what they require, we can reduce churn and members leaving. So come along to the day and discover all about how this people centric approach can help your club.
Funding support tool
If your club has found funding that you are looking to apply to but unsure as to how to apply and access it - or are looking to find the right funding partner - then our new community funding support area will be able to help.
The web page which can be found here includes advice about preparing for applications we well as information about how to apply for the latest round of the 'The Together Fund' which is open for non-profit organisations and OnBoard and Sailability venues.
We are happy to support applications and give national governing support – we just need to be made aware of them. If you have found suitable funding then do please let me know.
U19 Match Racing Championships
Youth sailors are invited to sign up for the RYA Under-19 Match Racing Championship taking place over the weekend of 9-10 July at London's Queen Mary Sailing Club.
British Keelboat Sailing is inviting entries from mixed teams of four or five sailors to take part in an exciting weekend of short course match racing aboard a fleet of rigged and ready RS21 keelboats. It will include coaching and onboard mentoring, making it a great opportunity for both novice and more experienced match racers to develop their skills.
Open to sailors aged between 14-years-old and under 19, the aim is to inspire the next generation of match racers and bridge the gap into keelboat and match racing for youth sailors who may be more familiar with dinghy racing. Entry costs £440 per team. Enter here.
Always here to help
As always, I am here to provide help, support and guidance. If there are any new projects or ideas that you would like to discuss then please do get in touch – be this a simple email, a chat on the phone and I am also happy to visit your club.
Until next time,
Susie