RYA OnBoard turns 20

The RYA celebrates 20 years of its beloved OnBoard initiative, one of the UK’s largest grassroots programmes for getting kids into watersports.

The RYA celebrates 20 years of its beloved OnBoard initiative, one of the UK’s largest grassroots programmes for getting kids into watersports.

The RYA Onboard story so far

The RYA OnBoard program started small in 2005, with only two centres (Rockley Watersports in Poole and Hollingworth Lake Water Activity Centre in Rochdale) that focused on connecting schools with local sailing clubs and getting kids 8-18 out onto the water for the first time.

Now, RYA OnBoard’s reach has expanded to include involvement from 336 centres and clubs, each offering children the opportunity to try sailing and windsurfing. To date, it has introduced over 1.3 million children to watersports.

Character education OnBoard

Since 2017, OnBoard has been making a pivot towards character education that uses sailing as a way to build six core personal attributes— Confidence, Teamwork, Communication, Determination, Creativity, and Independence. These qualities were developed in alignment with the national curriculum guidance for character education, and have been carefully integrated into every aspect of the program.

“OnBoard has always been about more than just sailing; it’s about giving young people the confidence, character and life skills they need to thrive—in sport and in life,” says RYA OnBoard Manager Hannah Cockle.

And the future is bright.

RYA Onboard: 1 million more over the next decade

OnBoard means to continue its commitment to address inequality in access to sport and nature by breaking down barriers related to cost, location, ethnicity, gender, and the perceived exclusivity of sailing, particularly in underserved and underrepresented communities.

The program has no prerequisites. Participants can start from scratch, and some even go on to work their way through the RYA Youth Schemes.

OnBoard will also continue expanding its training and instructor base to allow even more children who wouldn’t otherwise have an opportunity to sail get out onto the water. 

“Our goal is to introduce another one million young people to sailing over the next decade, with a focus on making the water more accessible and inclusive than ever before,” says Cockle.

It will also continue collaborating with Swim England and the RNLI to help children safely and confidently enjoy the water, connecting youth across the UK with blue spaces to develop their ‘water confidence.’

Happy 20th anniversary OnBoard, we’re excited to see what comes next!

Want to get involved with RYA OnBoard?

More information is also available on the RYA OnBoard site. To find your nearest OnBoard activity centre, you can also use the RYA’s ‘Find My Nearest’ online tool, filtering services by OnBoard club.

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