Over twenty school pupils from Pembrokeshire have achieved sailing qualifications and gained confidence on the water following sponsorship from the Port of Milford Haven.

The Port recently partnered with Pembrokeshire Performance Sailing Academy (PPSA) to offer students from St Florence VC School and Golden Grove School in Pembroke the opportunity to complete their Youth Sailing Stage 1 Certificates.

Based at Pembroke Dock’s Llanion Cove, PPSA provides a range of RYA dinghy and multihull sailing courses, powerboat courses and some shore-based training. With the Port’s funding, they have been able to run youth sailing courses for twenty-four students - twelve from St Florence VC school and twelve from Golden Grove School.

The Port of Milford Haven and PPSA have worked together on the Waterway for a number of years and are committed to giving more people the opportunity to enjoy the marine environment in a fun, educated and safe way.

 

Richard Owens, Chief Instructor from PPSA, commented: “It’s been great to see the children from St Florence and Golden Grove schools participate in the RYA’s ‘On Board’ scheme over the past six weeks. The scheme is a fantastic way to introduce young people to sailing and is proven to have a profound and positive effect on their lives.  Life skills learned through sailing transfer from the water to the classroom and beyond. These range from confidence, teamwork and leadership to problem solving and adapting to new and different situations. We hope to be able to expand and deliver more of these opportunities in the coming months and years.”

PR and Communications Executive for the Port of Milford Haven, Sara Aicken, added: “The Waterway is a fantastic place to learn new skills and enjoy the great outdoors. Although the water is all around us it isn’t always accessible to everyone, but we’re delighted that investment in these training courses has enabled over twenty young people to experience new activities and learn important safety lessons.”  

For more information about the courses that PPSA offers visit www.ppsa.co.uk

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Photo 1: Sara Aicken from the Port with PPSA instructors and students from Golden Grove School.

Photo 2: Pupils enjoy learning to sail on the Milford Haven Waterway.

 

Notes to Editors

Port of Milford Haven

The Port of Milford Haven is the UK’s top energy port and Wales’ busiest port handling around 20% of Britain’s seaborne trade in oil and gas.  It is widely recognised in the industry as the energy capital of the UK.

The Port, along with the cluster of energy-related businesses along the Waterway, is a key driver of economic activity in Pembrokeshire, attracting inward investment and supporting over 4,000 jobs.

The Port of Milford Haven also owns and operates Pembroke Port and Milford Dock.  Activities such as cargo handling, ferry operations, fish landing and cruise calls as well as a first class marina are spread across these two sites. 

One of the most prominent on the West Coast, the Port is in the heart of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, the only Coastal National Park in Great Britain. It is marked as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and has many areas designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

The Port of Milford Haven is a trust port – an independent, commercially run organisation that has statutory responsibilities governed by its Acts, to maintain and improve navigation and the provision of Port and Harbour services and facilities.  Additionally, the Port provides significant financial and in-kind support to a wide variety of local causes.  All profits are retained within the business to fund these objectives. 

For further information, visit www.mhpa.co.uk or contact:

Anna Malloy
Port of Milford Haven
01646 696100
anna.malloy@mhpa.co.uk