In this Bulletin
Sections which have changed since last time marked *
- * Voyage news
- * Volunteer sea staff bookings – PLEASE help!
- Funding for sail training staff / volunteer qualifications
- Sea Staff awards – nominations welcome
- Individual bookings for summer 2026
- Adult voyages
- 2026 dates for your diary
- Vessel tracking
- * Financial appeal
- Raise funds for OYT South if you’re shopping online – we’ve made over £2,800 through Easyfundraising! Are you aware of the size of donations available?
- OYT South social media – please share as well as liking!
- Chris Ellis Award – win £££s of the price of your next voyage
- New readers’ welcome and introduction
- Receiving this newsletter by email
* Voyage news
Last week we sailed with another crew from The Petersfield School. They joined on Monday and the voyage started with introductions and safety briefings as the crew learned to use lifejackets, safety harness lines and winches:
After dinner they set off for West Cowes, with people having a chance to learn to steer:
They arrived as the sun was setting and by the time they were docked it was dark and everyone was ready for bed!
On Tuesday morning the young people went ashore to explore Cowes. After lunch they practised some knots and helped to rig our smallest headsail., the ORC,, as strong winds were forecast. Out in the Solent it was blowing 30 knots so they found a relatively sheltered area to set the ORC and a reefed mizzen:
They practised some manoeuvres, endured a couple of rain clouds passing through with rain and wind under them, and then sailed to the shelter of Calshot to drop sails before motoring to Lymington into a short steep chop that made for an uncomfortable ride – but it only lasted for an hour. In Lymington they berthed alongside two challenger yachts which had also been out sailing with young people.
Having to leave early on Wednesday due to a tidal constraint, there were up at 7am and underway by 0930. They set the ORC, the mainsail with three reefs and the mizzen with two reefs – the wind that day was hugely variable and they had everything from 6 knots of wind to 32 knots (light breeze to near gale).
People had a chance to steer and go out on the bowsprit:
The young people also got involved with filling in the logbook and navigating:
They spent the day in the eastern Solent with bursts of heavy rain and wind driven by the clouds. They tacked their way against the tide in Osborne Bay and then executed a man overboard recovery drill – just as they were about to pick up the buoy used to represent a casualty in the water, a squall came over and the heavens opened up with heavy rain!
They headed back to Ocean Village and docked for the evening, with games on board after dinner.
The following day they had a later wake up and a leisurely breakfast as the weather was too bad to sail. Everyone joined in making pizza wraps for lunch and they worked towards their sailing qualifications, looking at knots, flares, points of sail and paddling the dinghy:
Next came a walk to the park and a game of capture the flag. Back on board after dinner it was time for Movie Night: Pirates of the Caribbean! That was followed by a bedtime story.
The voyage ended on Friday – they had sailed 77 miles and you can see the complete voyage track here.
Feedback included:
“Loved the staff. They took good care of us and let us do fun activities.”
“It was a crazy, fun and joyful experience. I hope I can go again soon … Best bit: probably when like the big waves were happening.”
“It was my second time aboard Prolific and it was so fun again! Even though the weather … My best bit was being able to like steer the boat myself and actually like being able to sail on my own.”
“This was my second time to go aboard Prolific. I had so much fun, especially the 3 metre waves. They were so cool! I absolutely loved it! Will hopefully come again … My most memorable bit was probably going out on the bowsprit, that was really fun.”
“My most favourite bit was probably either rigging the ORC or hoisting one of the sails or getting to steer the boat … My least favourite was falling asleep at the beginning of Pirates of the Caribbean and waking up in the credits!”
“Somehow, on Prolific even washing up is enjoyable. Everything was really fun!!!”
“The whole experience was very fun and I hope I can do it again. Thanks :-)”
“It was my first time and the staff was very nice … My best bit was probably steering the boat during the big waves.”
“It was fun driving the boat and the food was really nice. Thank you. :-)”
“We had fun doing some exciting sailing and learnt lots of new things and made lots of memories.”
“This was my first time on Prolific and I loved it so much! Everything is so fun and even cleaning the dirty plates was fun with everyone.”
And from the staff member who sailed with them:
“Love the interaction with children. Staff always positive. Range of activities was very well catered for the crew. Thank you. :-) … My best bit is that everyone got on really, really well. And I think there was nobody who felt as an outsider or not included in any of the activities or the downtime everyone was together.”
Big thanks to sea staff Constantinos, Sara, Will Parker, Rois Smith, Matts Kruger, Tom Hounsham and Surya Harrison.
That was followed by a voyage with the Vyne School, Basingstoke. They began by motoring to Priory Bay on the IoW on Saturday night, with young people taking it in turns to do winch drills and learning to steer.
The next morning there was almost no wind but the forecast was for a sailing wind later on.
They motored south of the Isle of Wight, passing close to Sandown which looked beautiful on a sunny day, and with everyone involved in steering and sail handling:
A gentle breeze filled in and they were able to switch off the engine as they headed towards Poole, with a man overboard recovery demonstration in Swanage Bay.
There was time for shore leave next morning and then they left Poole in an easterly force 5, hoisting sails inside the harbour knowing that the outer channel would have a lumpy sea state. They motored out of the channel into short steep waves and had to slow down in order not to slam into each wave, while avoiding multiple small vessels heading inbound. Outside in the channel they hoisted the staysail – and were quickly engulfed in in rain fog! Radar navigation commenced but almost immediately the fog dispersed, the sea state quietened and Prolific settled into a rhythm. Some of the young people still found conditions quite challenging.
The engine went off and they sailed to Weymouth. The sun came out as they made their approach, the local twilight racing was under way and they saw many boats flying their spinnakers.
They had dinner under way which meant that once Prolific was secure, people could go ashore to walk and play on the beach before bed time.
On Tuesday they woke up at 0530 to catch the tide back to the Solent. They hoisted sails on the way out but there was not a breath of wind: they motored all the way to the Needles before the wind picked up to 20 knots and they sailed up a busy Solent, gybing their way through a multitude of yachts.
They then dropped sails and stopped in Cowes for a short stay as the young people were keen to explore. Those who wanted to earn a sailing qualification did some work on that before the final passage back to Ocean Village.
They had sailed 168 miles and you can see their voyage track here.
Feedback included:
“I’m so glad I came, I had a really good time. Everyone was so nice and funny. I really enjoyed everything. Thank you so much and I will miss all of you.”
“Most lasting memory: trying to put up the front sail when all the weather was bad and we were bouncing up and down. It was scary but fun at the same time.”
“Felt like I could work as part of a team as I was not able to do this before … The food was amazing,”
“It was an amazing experience. Best bit: steering the boat and seeing jellyfish.”
“I had an amazing time!”
And from the school staff:
“I learned so much, found a love for the sea. I cannot thank all the staff enough for all their support and patience with our group. Everyone on the boat was amazing and did a great job. Best bit: seeing everyone up on deck working together to get the boat ready. Most lasting memory: sailing into Weymouth when I was at the helm, just as the sun was going down in front of us.”
“Really enjoyed the last few days. A great step out of my regular life. Was very impressed with how the staff coped with some quite challenging situations. Everyone has been very accommodating and welcoming/supportive. Thank you. I loved being on the water, it was great. Best bit: when I got a knot! When I had been trying something lots and lots and I suddenly got it!”
Big thanks to sea staff Constantinos, Sara, Rooby Vaughan-Woods, Keri Hammond, Matts Kruger, Surya Harrison, and special congratulations to Theo McKay who passed a third mate assessment!
* Volunteer sea staff bookings – PLEASE help!
Please do get in touch if you can help with any of these! Some of these dates are reappearing on the list because no sooner do we replace someone who has dropped out, than someone else drops out!
31 Aug – 4 Sept, Poole to Southampton – qualified watchleader needed
26-29 Sept, Southampton – qualified watchleader or bosun needed
5-9 Oct, Southampton –qualified watchleader ideally needed, but possibly also space for a trainee watchleader
19-23 Oct, Southampton – qualified watchleader, and possibly space for a trainee watchleader as well
28 Oct – 1 Nov, Southampton – qualified watchleader
2 Nov – qualified watchleaders for day sail
Please send offers or questions to webmaster1@oytsouth.org.
Funding for sail training staff / volunteer qualifications
Are you a watchleader or bosun with us and committed to long-term involvement in sail training, already qualified to at least Day Skipper level, and looking to gain more qualifications in order to make progress? The Trinity House ASTO Bursaries Scheme could help you afford some courses, but under a new system starting this year, the application window is 1 April – 30 June each year, with no other rounds, and applicants MUST be endorsed by an ASTO member such as OYT South. If you are thinking of applying in this year’s window or simply want to know more about how it works, please contact us!
Sea Staff awards – nominations welcome
Regular readers will know that in recent years we have had our annual Gipsy Moth Award for Young Volunteer of the Year (aged 25 and under) – the current holder is Jack Thompson. But we have never had an award specifically for over-25 volunteers. This season, we are introducing the Brian Eyres Award, in memory of our late Skipper and Treasurer. Brian exemplified the best of volunteering, ashore and afloat, for OYT South as well as a range of other causes – he did so much in his lifetime and this award will be a way to recognise and remember his huge contribution to the OYC and to OYT South.
The Brian Eyres Award is not for long service or similar (we now have a series of long-service certificates for every five years that a volunteer spends with us). Instead, we want people to nominate volunteers if you see them doing something particularly impressive or heart-warming, ashore or afloat, in 2026. This could be something as simple as being the watchleader who took time to turn things round for a scared and unhappy young person on board; or the person who did a tough job in miserable conditions when no-one else wanted to do it; or someone who invented a brilliant activity to raise morale. It might be something which saved a voyage, but equally it could be something that no-one even noticed except you. Please email webmaster1@oytsouth.org with your nominations. Don’t worry about the age of the volunteer you are nominating – if we get anything for someone aged 25 and under, we can take it into account in the discussions about the Gipsy Moth Award (which is a collective decision by all the paid staff).
Nominations can come from anyone – other volunteers, staff, young people, parents and carers, clients, group leaders.
At the end of the year we will ask someone to look at nominations for the Brian Eyres Award and choose a winner to be announced at the next training weekend.
Individual bookings for summer 2026
The 2026 programme is on the website and there is an availability list here.
There are just TWO voyages left this summer which have spaces – please spread the word and let’s fill the last few places!
12-16 August, Brixham to Brixham, 4 nights, age 11-16, passports not needed, £540 per person
31 Aug – 4 Sept, Poole to Southampton, 4 nights, £540 per person. The age range for this one was not originally specified other than our general 11-25 range; but in practice bookings so far are aged 17-24.
Adult voyages
There’s one more adult weekend this season:
9-11 Oct 2026, Southampton, 2 nights, age range 18+, £270 per person, adult weekend voyage (Friday evening to Sunday evening)
These weekends are ideal for people who want to find out more about the possibility of volunteering with us – but you are also welcome if you simply want to come along and enjoy a sail on board Prolific! Contact us to ask about booking.
2026 dates for your diary
Prolific has planned maintenance days this year and we always need lots of help (skilled or unskilled) – email refit@oytsouth.org to book yourself in for any of these:
Saturday 27th June – Southampton
Sunday 23rd August – Brixham
Monday 12th October – Southampton
The 2026 OYT South AGM and Curry Night will be on Saturday 7th November.
Looking even further ahead, the next shorebased volunteers’ training weekend is set for 5th-7th February 2027 – keep it free!
Vessel tracking
Prolific’s vessel tracking is available on our website – you can look at any time to see where we are and where we have been sailing. Big thanks to Millennium who built us a whole new tracking system when the one we used to use was discontinued!
* Financial appeal
Big thanks this week to people who have donated in memory of Frederick Colby.
We need a regular flow of funds to cover at least three major areas: bursaries for young people who could not otherwise afford to sail; vessel maintenance and equipment; and staff salaries – please help, or pass on our details to anyone you come across who might make a grant, large or small.
See here for how to make a donation – you can contribute by cheque, bank transfer or PayPal, but please do something if you possibly can. Don’t forget that if you complete and return a Gift Aid form we can claim back tax on your donation.
Raise funds for OYT South if you’re shopping online – we’ve made over £2,800 through Easyfundraising! Are you aware of the size of donations available?
We mention Easyfundraising in the newsletter each week and we’re really grateful to those people who are using it regularly, but there must be people who haven’t looked at it, or often don’t remember to do it.
Here’s what it DOESN’T do:
- Require you to buy from sources you wouldn’t normally use
- Take lots of time
- Ask you to do anything complicated at all!
- Produce donations so small you would barely notice
- Cost you a penny!
You simply have to buy whatever you already planned to buy online, from whoever you choose to shop with – but having signed up with Easyfundraising, just click to accept a donation if it’s offered when you shop. It’s often a percentage, which means the donations can be really significant for bigger items – a holiday, a flight, an expensive train ticket etc. For example, one volunteer got a £17 donation when renewing their home insurance. Someone else earned nearly £10 from a VistaPrint order. A few donations like that from a hundred supporters and it starts looking like a really significant total each year.
Do tell us if you’ve got a really good donation from something you bought – these stories help to inspire others. Maybe you even order things online for business purposes and your employer would agree to donate to us like this – at no cost to them but a way to feel good every time they need new boxes of business cards or train tickets to get staff to a conference!
It takes a minute or two to sign up to Easyfundraising: you can do it on a desktop, tablet and/or phone, and you can install a widget that flags up when a donation is available. Once that’s done, imagine you’re looking to buy – say – a rainbow unicorn: just put “rainbow unicorn” in your usual search box, and the list of results shows you which sites come with donations, and how much. It’s up to you what to pick and whether to accept the donation from the site, but a huge choice of sites will offer a donation, often including the site you would normally choose to use for all your rainbow unicorn requirements – and it doesn’t cost you anything, you pay the same price you would pay anyway.
PLEASE click the link now and sign up!
We have already raised over £2,800 through Easyfundraising – huge thanks to everyone who has used it!
OYT South social media – please share as well as liking!
If you look at the top left of any page on our website, you can click on icons for Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn. We are also on TikTok, and these days we recommend Bluesky rather than Twitter/X – please come and join us there!
Please share our social media posts as widely as you can – with the help of all our supporters, this charity is doing some amazing work and we need more people to hear about it. You don’t need to do anything more than share a post, or perhaps add a comment which could be as simple as “I’ve sailed with this charity!” or “I volunteer for this charity!”.
Please note that OYT South has a policy that our adult staff and volunteers should not make or accept personal online connections with crew members aged under 18, or vulnerable adults. Crew members can use the sites to stay in touch with the boat and with each other, but not with individual staff and volunteers.
Chris Ellis Award – win £££s of the price of your next voyage
Open for 2026 entries.
If you have enjoyed a voyage with OYT South and want to come again (and are aged 11-25), please think about entering for this award. You can win up to £500 off the price of another voyage, by sending in an account of a voyage you have already done with us. It can be a logbook, diary, story, pictures, video – anything which gives the judges an idea of why you had a good time and would like to come again. The prize is judged at the end of each season and the award can be spent on a voyage the following year. Entries should be emailed to webmaster1@oytsouth.org or posted to the office. See here for more details of this award, which was set up in memory of one of the charity’s founders. You can also see some previous winning entries.
New readers’ welcome and introduction
If you have recently registered your interest in OYT South, welcome to our newsletter, which is sent out almost every week, normally on a Friday, and is also copied onto the website.
If you have just started receiving this newsletter by email, it is because we believe you have signed up and consented to receive it – perhaps by emailing us to ask for it, completing a form on our website, or adding your email address to the book on board where people can sign up to receive news, as well as leaving comments. If this was a mistake or you simply decide you want to stop receiving the newsletter, just press “reply” to the email and write UNSUBSCRIBE at the top, or email webmaster1@oytsouth.org asking to unsubscribe.
Each week the newsletter includes a wide range of news from the boat and from the charity, including details of voyages available for young people; adult voyages; opportunities for adult volunteers both ashore and afloat, and much more. We find that while some people read the bulletin almost every week, many others dip in and out, and read it when it’s convenient – which is why some items are repeated. New items are marked with an asterisk * so that if you did read it last week, you can see which sections you can safely skip.
Please feel free to join in any OYT South activities – nothing here is restricted to long-standing members or people who already know one another. New people are always very welcome!
If you need an introduction to the work of OYT South, you should find a lot of useful information on our website. But essentially, we are a registered charity (no. 1079959) which exists to offer adventure under sail as a personal development opportunity for young people aged 11-25, from the widest possible range of backgrounds. A high proportion of our young crew members are disadvantaged or deserving in some way: many of these sail in groups organised by other charities, youth clubs, special schools and so on, and will fill the bulk of our term-time voyages. But those from more fortunate backgrounds are also welcome to sail, either in groups or by coming as individuals on a mixed voyage. Every year we run a variety of shorter local voyages plus longer adventure trips – sometimes including Tall Ships races during the summer holidays. If you are aged 11-25 and hoping to sail as a crew member, take a look here – and this section is also useful for adults who are thinking of organising a voyage for a young person. Adults planning to organise a full group voyage should also see here. Adults who want to sail themselves should see here.
We have a professional staff skipper, mate and engineer, but our watch leaders are normally all volunteers, who combine sailing skills with an interest in working with young people. You can find more information here – how the system works, how to join, and profiles of existing staff and volunteers.
To volunteer for OYT South ashore, please see here. To help with the vessel’s annual refit, see here.
It is a very expensive business maintaining a boat, running an office and employing staff. If you want to help us, please become a member of OYT South. Or see here for information on making a donation.
If you have any questions, please do email – or contact the office.
Receiving this newsletter by email
Many thanks to all those who have given consent to receiving this newsletter by email. If you are not currently getting it by email and would like to, please just click here Newsletter Subscribe and press “send”, or email webmaster1@oytsouth.org.