PRESS RELEASE

3rd December 2007

UKSA help Prince's Trust youth 'Get into Maritime'

On Monday 3rd December 2007, Prince’s Trust Ambassador and star of TV’s Strictly Come Dancing, Kenny Logan, presented a group of young people from The Prince’s Trust with their UKSA Professional Instructor Training certificates on the main stage at the Whyte and Mackay Earls Court Boat Show.

The group, who were selected from hundreds of applicants, were selected to take part in a 10 week watersports training programme at UKSA, equipping them with kayaking and dinghy sailing instructor qualifications enabling them to enter careers in the watersports industry.

The Prince’s Trust has been working with UKSA for the past three years providing week long ‘Get into Maritime’ residential courses for young people living in the South East. The week-long watersports and yachting experience helps unemployed 18-24 year olds learn a variety of new skills including first aid, powerboat handling as well as watersports skills in windsurfing, kayaking and dinghy sailing.

Following the success of the week-long courses, UKSA and The Prince’s Trust worked together to create a 12-week UK based Professional Watersports Instructor Training course. Funding from UKSA’s Chichester Scholarship Scheme and grants from The Peter Harrison Foundation in association with The Prince’s Trust enable a small group of young people to undertake the training each year.

The young people who took part in this year’s instructor training course have all experienced major challenges in their lives including drug addiction, crime, unemployment and emotional problems. Each of them has found the course has given them a new focus in life. Sam Todd, 22, from Southampton had problems at home before getting involved with The Prince’s Trust and found himself getting involved in drink and alcohol abuse. Now, Sam has a positive future ahead of him thanks to the Get into Maritime scheme, “I haven’t looked back since being selected to take part in the programme. I now have ambitions of becoming a senior instructor and one day returning to UKSA to teach after I have gained some experience working abroad.”

Martina Milburn, Chief Executive of The Prince’s Trust comments “We are delighted to be working with organisations like the UKSA. The 'Get into Maritime' course gives young people the confidence, motivation and work based skills they need to find work.”

UKSA’s Chief Executive Jon Ely comments, “The partnership between UKSA and The Prince’s Trust is a great success and we are looking forward to working together to provide more opportunities for young people in the future.”