Hello,
At the Formula Kite European Championships 2023 last month, lots of young people got involved and had a go at kite flying. This was fantastic, and what was also wonderful was that so many people from our region came down to the beach to see what was going on.
Now is the time to capitalise on this interest. And RYA Connected is the perfect event to come along to, gain knowledge and insight from other clubs and experts, and implement learnings for next year’s season.
RYA Connected
The South RYA Connected event takes place on Saturday 2 December at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton.
This is our main event of the year and is a fantastic opportunity for us all to come together, and share and exchange our ideas, challenges and successes.
Everyone is welcome from all aspects of club life, as well as class associations, and will find valuable learnings from the various workshops, forums, presentations and discussions to suit your area.
Please don’t think the Southampton location is a barrier to coming. There is plenty of FREE car parking, and the venue is also within walkable distance from the ferry terminals, so if you are coming from the Island you don’t require a car. If you want to be extra green and cycle, the Redjet ferry allows bikes, and with security on site, there is plenty of secure parking for bikes as well.
If you want to travel by train, the venue is really close to Southampton Central and there are free buses from the train station, just look out for the Uni Link bus.
So far over 30 clubs have booked so don’t miss out and book today! Look at the full agenda and book here.
Exciting opportunity – RYA South Regional Chair
The RYA South Regional Team is looking for a new inspirational leader, who will play a key role in supporting the development and resilience of sailing and boating throughout the South region.
The Chairperson will also be instrumental in helping deliver the South regional strategy and delivery plans for the new RYA strategy ‘Together on Water’.
The role involves volunteering for 2-3 days per month and will chair all regular Regional Team meetings. Responsibilities also include representing the region at both regional and national levels, developing relationships with partners and stakeholders, and encouraging effective communication between members and clubs.
The role is perfect an experienced sailor or boater, who is also a strategic thinker with the ability to understand the needs of a wide range of participants and organisations.
For an informal conversation about the role please email Gareth Brookes, Regional Development Office Manager. To apply please send your CV and a short statement about why you are interested in the role to gareth.brookes@rya.org.uk by 5pm on Thursday 19 October. Individual meetings with shortlisted applicants will take place on 23 October, and we intend to appoint the new Chair in November 2023.
Find out more and apply here.
RYA South Instructor Academy
The RYA South Instructor Academy aims to support to help prepare qualified Dinghy Instructors, who are aspiring to become Senior Instructors, for their course. Through building confidence, knowledge, and skill.
The academy is a community-based approach to learning and development, made up of three online interactive sessions followed by a day afloat with the academy training team. These sessions provide the opportunity for shared learning experiences, networking, and personal development.
Those within the Academy will receive a 1:1 check-in at the end of the afloat session with an RYA Trainer. Aiding members to create and take responsibility for their own personal development plan, further supporting their journey to becoming a Senior Instructor. In between the sessions, the community of aspiring senior instructors will be able to support each other and contact the training team via a dedicated WhatsApp group.
The first session is free – which takes place online on 14 November, 19:30-20:30 – and the remaining Academy sessions cost £80, and run until March 2024 in line with the Senior Instructor course program. Find out more here.
Regional Training Groups
I am pleased to report that the BYS Regional Training Groups invitations have now been sent out for our Optimist, Topper, RS Feva, ILCA 4 and Techno windsurfers groups.
The invited sailors represent 23 sailing clubs, which is great to see the extent of young people from clubs from across the region. We also warmly welcome clubs several clubs who have returned as locations including Reading SC and Lee on Solent SC.
OnBoard in the South
The fantastic OnBoard programme grows from strength to strength in the region, and we warmly welcome Hythe SC to the initiative. This is the fourth club to become an RYA OnBoard recognised club in the South this year.
And finally,
Well done to all the young sailors at last weekend’s Eric Twiname Team Racing Championships, which was held at Oxford SC. 348 competitors – the biggest number ever – went head-to-head in 73 teams over 3 categories!
A big thank you to all those who helped make this event take place, with many from the South region. Next year’s event will take place at Oxford again on 12-13 October 2024.
Until next time,
Susie
