Susie's Scoop May 2020

Hi everyone,

Firstly, letme start by saying that I hope you and your families remain safe and wellas we continue to live under lockdown. There are many changes that this bringsto our way of life, and of course the implications this brings to our clubs andcentres. During this month�s blog I am going to outline all the different RYA avenuesthat you can access for help, support, guidance and advice through-out thischallenging time.�

I would also like to take this opportunity re-assure you that the RYA is working extremely hard to represent its members,individuals and affiliates alike�during this unprecedented time. In response to the many concernsraised by our members following marina closures, we have written to key Government Ministers�seeking definitiveguidance that�provides a practical way forward to give owners immediateaccess to their boats whilst respecting current measures to control COVID-19.� �

With all sports now beginning toconsider recovery, our plans are now well advanced on our �return to boatingstrategy� in collaboration with the Sport and Recreation Alliance and theirrepresentations to Cabinet Office, as well as the Department for Digital,Culture, Media & Sport. We are lookingforward to supporting a safe and appropriate return to the water and we will begetting the message over that there is a very strong case for boating to be oneof the first activities that could be resumed safely within any necessaryparameters for social distancing.

This of course can only happen once we start to see a relaxation of thecurrent restrictions and so we must continue to follow guidance for now as Boris urged us to do on Monday (27th April). Please keep an eye on the dedicated go-to area on the RYA website, containing all the latest Covid-19 related information which we continue to update as the situation develops. You can find it can here.

Financialsupport for Clubs and Centres

The RYA isoffering guidance and advice to clubs and centres to help assist with emergencyfinancial planning. The financialplanning club guidance includes advice on reviewing income andexpenditure, how to utilise savings, plus ideas to help generate revenue. It�sa very useful document and I do recommend that you give it a read.

This guidance is accompanied by a COVID-19 Financial Toolkit�which has been created to support those working on emergency planningand budgeting processes. I know many of you already have robust business plansin place however, these are now unlikely to remain practical for theforeseeable future. I hope this toolkit, along with the guidance, will provide youwith some helpful support during this process. As always, please do give me a ring or drop me an email to help with anyquestions you may have.

Government Action and Support

The Government has launched a new �support finder� tool�to help businesses and self-employed people across the UK to quickly and easily determine what financial support is available to them during the pandemic. Thank you to those of you who have replied to my questions regarding the receipt of the available business grants and rate holiday. It is very useful to get a picture of the current status. Please do get in touch with me if you would like some help with this.��

Sport England�Community Emergency Fund

As mentioned in my last blog, Sport England has announced a �195 million package to help the community sport and physical activity sector in England cope with the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic. This includes a �20 million Community Emergency Fund for clubs and community organisations to bid for grants between �300 and �10,000. Learn more here.�I am also happy to discus and to support any clubs looking to apply.�

Covid-19 Access to Support Survey

Thank you to everyone who has also already submitted their responses to the��Covid-19 Access to Support Survey��which I emailed to clubs this week. The survey has been designed to help you identify some of the help and support currently available. Your responses will willhelp the RYA and myself to support you better in these times. So please do take a moment to discuss with your follow committee members at your club or training centre who will complete the survey of your clubs behalf: it only takes a few minutes but provides us with invaluable information.� � �

Club DevelopmentForums: sharing experiences �

To help bringclubs together, I will be hosting a new series of weekly online Club DevelopmentForums focusing on issues which have developed as a result of the coronavirus epidemic.Utilising software that creates an online meeting spaces, the aim of these free �face-to-face�forums is to share experiences and discuss topics that we are all facing. Theyreally are the ideal opportunity for club committee members to learn andexchange ideas. They willlast for approximately one hour and will take place on Wednesdays, see the list of dates and topics below as well as more information on the RYA South website.

Please book your place here. After you have signed up you willbe emailed instructions on how to log on to the webinar.

It's Time to Talk�

In conjunction with the above program I will also be hosting a weekly opportunity to join me online to have a general chat about any problems you are facing, concerns you have and opportunities you can see.

I am hoping that this will give you a platform to be able to speak with other clubs and share outside of the Development Forum topics. We are all in this together! So please do come and have a break from working from home/ home schooling your children, drink a cuppa tea and chat with me and others in the region.

Timings:-

RYAeSailing Spring Club Championship - Regional Finals

With the virtual eSailing racing proving extremely popular the RYAhas decided to introduce the 'RYA eSailing Spring Club Championship' that willallow all competitors the chance to compete for the title of not only RYAeSailing Regional Spring Club Champion but also RYA eSailing Spring ClubNational Champion.

Clubs have been running their own ClubChampionships, which are now coming to a conclusion with a completion deadline of the 03 May 2020. Winners from the Club Championships will then be going forward to a regional heats on the 16th may followed by the regional final on the 23rd May. The top competitor from each RYA Region will then go forward to a National Final which is due to be sailed onSaturday 30th May 2020. Keep an eye of the RYA South Facebook for updates on results.�

If you want to find out more about the above & eSailing in general please have a look here�

#SailFromHome� Something for Everyone

While we areunable to get out on the water, you can still get your sailing fix from the range of opportunists on offer through�#sailfromhome. Originally launched with content for racing sailors this has now beenincreased substantially to involve everyone interested in sailing: no matterwhat your age or level of experience.�

Every day, newcontent is delivered direct from the various RYA media channels includingTwitter, Facebook and Youtube. So do keep an eye on your social media feeds.

From advice on boat maintenance to top tipsfrom experts, to bitesize tutorials for junior and OnBoard sailors as well asclub development specific sessions: there really is something for everyone toenjoy.�

Junior andOnBoard sailors are enjoying #SailSmart sessions run by Jake Elsbury from RSSailing. �Proving a huge hit, these bitesize tutorials take place every Wednesday. On Thursdays youngsters can have funwhile learning knots and how to use them with #KnotOnTheWater. �More info here.�

Aimed atclubs,

�Marketing Mondays� include webinars from the experts at SocialB on howto successfully use social media. You may find this of benefit in helping youto communicate with your membership during this difficult time.�

On Thursdaysdon�t miss the Club Development sessions which are packed full of advice andinformation from myself and all the other Regional Development Officers. Cluband centres can also get top tips on how to get ahead with funding applicationswith the #FundingFridays webinars, and stay in touch with all things #esailingon Saturdays.�

The fullplaylist of videos can be found here�whilst the full #SailFromHome weekly activity schedule is here.

Panerai Challenger Trophy nominations extendeduntil 15 May

Nominations for the Panerai Challenger Trophy 2020�havebeen extended until 15 May. This is an exclusive opportunity for RYA OnBoardvenues. If you have a young sailor or windsurfer within your organisation thathas used the power of being on the water to overcome something significant thenplease consider making a nomination. To make a nomination, click here.

RYA VolunteerAwards has been extended until 01 May

Each year the RYA Volunteer awards recognise the outstanding contributions made by volunteersthroughout the UK. To nominate someone from you club please visit RYAVolunteer Awards webpage

Pleaseshare

Pleaseshare this Club Room - and encourage people to signthemselves up here. This is our main communicationslist for club related information so be the first to hear.

And finally�please keep in contact

The more we share with each other, themore we can learn about the challenges that clubs are facing and how we canbest navigate these together.

You can email at susie.moore@rya.org.uk or call on 07748806733� �

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