Anchors aweigh for Blind Sailing Association
12 August 2011
Dozens of blind people in the Merseyside area will be battening down the hatches and getting ready to hit the high seas after a local charity stowed £9,720 from the Santander Foundation for their sailing training weekends.
UK North Blind Sailing Association aim to promote social inclusion for blind people by providing training and social events connected to sailing. The donation will enable the Association to fund six training weekends for around 72 people at the Plas Menai National Water Sports Centre in North Wales. Whilst there, participants will learn the importance of working as a team to sail the centre's J80 keel boats.
Robert Owen, Chairman at UK North Blind Sailing Association said: "We are extremely grateful to the Santander Foundation for their support which will enable us to carry this popular project forward. Blind people can easily become socially and physically isolated within their local communities, even small trips within the local area need much courage and perseverance for a blind person. Our Association was formed to remove some of these barriers and with our dedicated team of volunteers and the generous support of the Santander Foundation I feel that we are making progress."
Avril Jones, Service and Control Manager at Santander's Caernarfon branch said: "It has been a pleasure to come along to one of the sessions and meet some of the people who are taking part in this innovative training. The benefits gained are obvious and I hope that the lessons learned will be helpful in normal day to day life."