Lizzi Collinge, MP for Morecambe and Lunesdale, visited Arnside Sailing Club over the weekend. She came to an Easter event at the Club, which included paddle boarding, an easter egg trial and beach activity, aimed at families with children. Arnside is now in the Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency.
Lizzi said, “It was great to see all the activity that was going on, meeting with club members and families taking part.”
Arnside Sailing Club are now a charity promoting water sports. This includes giving opportunities to people who do not normally get a chance to take part in water sports. The Club offers sailing, paddle boarding, kayaking as well as lessons for adults and children. It has a thriving youth programme. The Club is affiliated to both the RYA and Paddle UK.
The Club aims to keep its fees low so that cost is not a barrier to taking part and offers low-income membership of just £25 a year. So that people do not need to buy their own boat, there are club sailing boats, kayaks and paddle boards available for use by members,
Thanks to grant funding from the Areti Trust, the Club has set up a small bursary scheme to enable children with parents in receipt of Universal Credit to take part in water sports lessons. The Club is AALA (Adventure Activities) licensed and offers lessons for schools and youth clubs.
Lizzi added “It is great to see what clubs, like Arnside Sailing Club, are doing to enable children from less well-off backgrounds to take part in their activities. My own kids really enjoyed the paddleboarding and kayaking and kids from all backgrounds should have the same opportunities to be out on the water.”
Alasdair Simpson for the Club said “We enjoyed welcoming Lizzi to the Club and showing her round. Water sports are a great way of enjoying the natural environment, meeting others and keeping fit”