Please select your home edition
Edition

RYA Scotland Impact Award - Jamie Rodger Kintyre Seasports

by RYA Scotland 30 Jun 2023 03:53 PDT
Jamie Rodger, Kintyre Seasports © RYA Scotland

Jamie Rodgers helped achieve RYA Recognised Training Centre (RTC) status for the voluntary run charity in Campbeltown, Kintyre Seasports, and has been nominated for an RYA Scotland Impact Award.

In less than a year Jamie Rodgers managed to achieve RTC status for Campbeltown, introducing 50 Campbeltown Grammar School (CGS) pupils to sailing, qualifying 30 of them as dinghy sailors, with 14 now working towards instructor qualifications. 2022 was the first year of the CGS programme, and it has established strong relationships to underpin meaningful growth in the local community.

Kintyre Seasports is a ground breaking charity based on Campbeltown Loch, an outstanding natural destination for sailing and other watersports. A unique feature of the project is the outstanding commitment of community organisations previously unconnected with watersports. RYA Scotland have been involved from the start, actively supporting the charity's community-first policy and bidding for funding for new facilities.

Jamie was nominated for an RYA Scotland Impact Award for making extraordinary progress in a short period of time for Kintyre Seasports in his role as Operations and Development Manager.

Jamie Rodgers, Kintyre Seasports

"The sailing instructor training programme, working with Campbeltown Grammar School and Campbeltown Sailing Club, brings together a group of pupils to learn to sail and to coach and that group are also going to move onto powerboating. Through the programme, we're teaching sailing directly and developing life skills through the sport of sailing."

"I think the big difference has been that there was a huge amount of work done before I came and there's so many volunteers who have worked really hard to get Kintyre Sea Sports to the point where they could get full-time staff and become a training centre."

"RYA Scotland have really been involved from the start of the project and they've supported the volunteers locally to get to the stage where they were ready to become a training centre to go through the funding routes that they needed to go through to actually identify what the need was and how they were going to fulfil that need. And then since I've come on board I've had a huge amount of support to get a new training centre up and running. It's the first time I've done that. It's obviously quite a big thing."

Elaine McGeachy, Depute Head Campbeltown Grammar School

"Jamie was really keen on getting them all on the water sailing, and so we had quite a few meetings to get the logistics and the program running and he offered to come in and he spoke to our pupils. He went round the classes, our personal support assemblies and encouraged them all to sign up. We got a little program up and running with a lot of our S2 and S3 students out on the water who have absolutely loved it and we couldn't have imagined even some of them being on the water or taking part in sailing and now they are really competent sailors and we're very pleased to be working well with Kintyre Sea Sports."

Kiera Wallace, Pupil CGS

"In school we were given the opportunity to come down and do a sailing course as a trial and I enjoyed it, so I kept going with it as they gave us more opportunities to keep going with it. You feel fear at first, and then it gives you like a peace of mind, like it makes you calm, because you get your mind taken off everything cos you've got to concentrate on doing the sailing. So it just takes you away from everything, from school and things like that."

Gregor Craig, Pupil CGS

"Jamie makes sure everyone understands him, like he just like waits for everyone to understand it and then he just like try and make it go at your own pace."

Ellie Watson

"He's really patient when he is teaching. He like, he doesn't get angry when you make mistakes or anything, and he'll let you figure it out yourself."

Jamie Rodgers, Kintyre Seasports

"There's a whole team of volunteers that I've worked with here since I got here and who were working here for years before I arrived to, to get us to a state where there was the funding in place, the charity in place and the, the foundation really for us to, to come and to build on to get us to a training centre status. And since then, there's a whole team of volunteers from both the club and Kintyre seaports who've worked to make sure that, the kit and the centre is of a standard, where we can be a recognised centre. Thank you."

The RYA Scotland Impact Awards aims to recognise achievements and contributions of the people that made our sport and activities happen in Scotland. Find out more at www.rya.org.uk/gbni/scotland/events/impact-awards

For more information about the Kintyre Seasports project visit www.kintyreseasports.co.uk

Related Articles

British Classic Week Day 1
Northerly winds gusting 22 knots make for a brisk start Day one at British Classic Week in Cowes saw fast-paced racing around the cans sponsored by Spirit Yachts for over 50 classic and modern classic yachts. Posted today at 7:05 pm
International Moth Worlds Opening Ceremony
137 sailors from 25 nations have gathered, featuring some of the biggest names in sailing After weeks of preparation and an intense lead-up, the 2025 Moth World Championship is ready to get under way. Official racing begins tomorrow, 8 July, on the waters of Lake Garda, with the event hosted by Fraglia Vela Malcesine. Posted today at 6:33 pm
iQFOiL Worlds a Aarhus day 2
No racing, but spirits stay high in Aarhus Day 2 of the iQFOiL World Championship in Aarhus tested the patience of sailors, coaches, and the Race Committee alike, as the wind refused to settle across the bay. Posted today at 5:07 pm
Foiling Frenzy at Fraglia Vela Malcesine
The Moth Worlds at Lake Garda are something else! The Moth Worlds at Lake Garda are something else! Regardless of where sailors are in their careers, or the reputation they have, everyone wants to be there and have a tilt at the title. Posted today at 3:45 pm
Protect Your Skin, Stay Out Longer
Rooster know that long days on the water are what summer is all about At Rooster, we know that long days on the water are what summer is all about. But with the sun high and strong, protecting your skin is just as important as protecting your kit. Posted today at 11:00 am
GWA Youth Wingfoil World Championship overall
The Surf-Freestyle and FreeFly-Slalom action rwaps up in Costa Brava The Surf-Freestyle and FreeFly-Slalom action at the the GWA 2025 Youth Worlds wrapped up after a week of intense action at San Pere Pescador, Spain, with the teenage champions chosen in the U14, U16 and U19 age groups. Posted today at 7:24 am
A dream realised for Litchfield's Hound
The Nielsen 59 Hound finished the Transatlantic Race 2025 on July 5 Dan Litchfield's classic Nielsen 59 Hound, co-skippered by Tom Stark, finished the Transatlantic Race 2025 on July 5 in an elapsed time of 16 Days, 08 Hours, 49 Mins and 22 Secs. Posted today at 7:08 am
Marblehead to Halifax Race Update
JV 66 Temptation/Oakcliff leads after 100 nautical miles After 100 nautical miles, Temptation/Oakcliff a JV 66 from Oakcliff Sailing Club out of Oyster Bay New York was in the lead closely followed by the other 66 footer in the race Boudicca, a King Marine Rachel Pugh 66 skippered by Rich Moody. Posted today at 3:10 am
Gran Canaria Gloria Windsurf World Cup Day 2
Philip Köster triumphs again in Pozo Izquierdo Köster survives a late scare to earn an eighth Pozo event title, and first 5-star victory since 2022, in even windier conditions than Saturday. Posted on 6 Jul
A perfect start to the 5th annual AEGEAN 600
Cloudless blue skies, crystal clear waters and perfect 12-15 knots of northerly wind At the very southern end of the Greek mainland at Cape Sounion in Attica, today's start to the 5th edition of the AEGEAN 600 was perfect: cloudless blue skies, crystal clear waters and perfect 12-15 knots of northerly wind. Posted on 6 Jul