A Deputy Lieutenant recently attended an event hosted by a group of young refugees (aged 16 to 18) living in accommodation in Great Yarmouth who have been given the opportunity to learn to sail by the Norfolk Schools Sailing Association.
The young people, mainly from the Sudan and Afghanistan, are having to start life afresh, learning English and getting used to our culture. The DL noted “They were most welcoming, had excellent manners, produced a delicious meal and gave impressive presentations on their sailing experiences during the summer.”
Andy Goff, the Commodore of NSSA noted:
“Norfolk Schools Sailing Association taught 16 refugee young people to sail Toppers at Filby in May and June. The group naturally selected into six young people who wanted to train to compete in the National Schools Regatta, held this year at Draycote. The young people were amazing, achieving a fourth place and all of them in the top 17 out of a fleet of 30, many of whom had been sailing and competing for years. This group has gone on to sail at Filby completing Level 2 RYA. Four of the group have also sailed with the National Tall Ships Trust from Portsmouth to Ipswich and return.
The sailing activity has been wonderful, and the young people have enjoyed every minute but alongside this the softer outcomes have also been helpful to their overall development. They been exposed to other young people and joined in activities on the water in English which helps their language acquisition and they have learned about the history and geography of the Norfolk Broads. They have learned about weather and how a sail works which involves elements of physics and maths. The other major outcome has to be build self-esteem and confidence as learning to sail to the level these young people have achieved in the short time they have been sailing is truly amazing and testament to their determination.”
