Island Life Magazine Ltd October/November 2014 | Page 49

years old, through youth development to
professional training.”
The UKSA complex embraces all the
hazards and pitfalls you might come up
against on the water - but they are all on
dry land. There is even a swimming pool so
students and professionals can go through
buoyancy training, rather than be thrown in
at the deep end in the sea.
Richard said: “We once worked with a
group of children from Croydon, and four
of the young girls, aged around 14, had
never been in a swimming pool before.
For them it was breaking that fear of the
water. Then if they are out on the water, and
capsize, they know they are going to float,
rather than drown.”
The equipment and facilities at UKSA
range from Pico dinghies for the very
young, through to paddle boards, kayaks,
lasers and keel boats up to yachts that range
from 35ft to the two 65ft ocean racing Farrs.
In all there are 11 yachts above 35ft in the
UKSA fleet.
Richard says: “A lot of people might look
on us as a cash-rich charity, but that is not
the case at all. Yes, we are a charity, and we
have a great fleet because our professional
training needs them. But they are not just
for the professionals; they are for everyone.
“We also have a full ship simulator suite,
used for taking people up to Officer of the
Watch level, but it is also used by schools.
Everything is designed for work at all levels,
not just for professional training. As a
charity we have to use our resources to the
best of our ability.
UKSA hold open days once a month, for
people to go and see for themselves what
is available. There are around 100 full time

staff members, and a further 60 part-time
in the high season, and all UKSA staff
live on the Island. The complex also has
accommodation for 270 people, and groups,
including those from the Island, usually stay
for a few days.
A fund-raising venture at this year’s Cowes
Week has enabled UKSA to fulfil their aim of
getting every sixth form pupil on the Island
on the water before next year’s Cowes Week.
Youth development is normally a six-week
course, and incredibly 85 per cent of the
people who go on the programmes end
up in education employment or training,
having been unemployed before.
Richard said: “If people are released from

a young offenders institute, 66 per cent
of them will re-offend within six months.
But of those who have been through our
unlocking potential course, only 10 per
cent of them re-offend. That for me is about
helping them prepare for the outside world.”
There are also one-year or two-year B-Tec
programmes, and with the worldwide
shortage of watersport instructors at the
moment, the courses provide the perfect
opportunity to step into that area of
employment. And the three-month or
six-month Yachtmaster programme leads
through to qualification.
The workshops at UKSA also enable those
on preliminary or advanced courses to
learn all skills that are needed to sail and
maintain a yacht across the ocean, ranging
from mending a broken toilet or water
maker to fixing a spluttering diesel engine.
Richard added: “We have bits of
everything you could possibly break on
board. So if someone is on their first yacht
delivery, they know how everything works,
and how to remedy problems. After all there
are no RAC patrol men to lend a hand in the
middle of the Atlantic. It’s about surviving a
crisis as well as dealing with the niceties of
sailing yachts - how to cope with everything
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