uk sail training · sail training is a challenging adventurous activity delivered outside . the...

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I have witnessed first-hand the positive impact that sailing as crew on a Sail Training vessel can have. I have spoken to young people that, never having sailedbefore, worked together to navigate their boat safely through the night. The pride intheir achievement was evident when they spoke about their adventure. Strangers had become a team that overcame challenges including the weather, getting up at unusual times of the night, and taking your turn at the helm because others arerelying on you. The experience creates lasting memories that ensure these lessons are remembered for a long time

Sail Training makes a positive difference to so many young people. Overcomingthe challenges of living and working together on a boat with people you may not know very well, requires courage, tolerance, communication and teamwork. Peoplefind their strengths and discover what they can do, not what they can’t. Surrounded by fresh air and exposed to the elements, Sail Training can bring out the best inpeople and teach lessons for life. It is also great fun!

ASTO (the Association of Sail Training Organisations) supporrrrts more than 30UK Sail Training charities that provide adventure for young peoppple and people with disabilities from all backgrounds. Part of ASTO’s role is to encourage member organisations to improve what they do, by sharing good practice, commissioning research and surveys and gathering data on outcomes. In this booklet ASTOexplains how Sail Training can have a long-term positive impact on those that take part.

HRH The Countess of WessexPatron, ASTO

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UK SAIL TRAINING : SUMMARY OF OUTCOMES

Sail Training is a challenging adventurous activity delivered outside the normal routine of life. Sail Training is also a fun and exciting adventure!

Sailing offshore as part of a team that is responsible for the running of the boat opens a whole new world of challenges, skills and discovery. To live, work and play as part of the crew on a Sail Training vessel can be a life changing experience.

The trainee crew on board a Sail Training vessel takes part in all aspects of running the boat, from navigation, setting sail, taking the helm, to cooking and cleaning. The powerful feeling of being in the same boat and working together to tame the elements brings a sense of pride and achievement, as well as respect and tolerance of each other’s strengths and differences. Sail Training in the UK as a personal development activity has existed since the 1950s, with the formation of the Ocean Youth Club, London Sailing Project and the Sail Training Association. It is just as relevant today, giving young people confidence in their own abilities by being outdoors, making real friends and achieving as a team.

The large body of anecdotal evidence about the power of Sail Training is now supplemented by growing amounts of research and surveys from around the world. This booklet aims to summarise some of this research. The full papers can be found on uksailtraining.org.uk/why-does-it-work.

Sail Training Research

Since 2015 ASTO has commissioned several pieces of research and reviews to find more evidence about the outcomes of Sail Training. The first sought to ascertain which short term outcomes can reliably be linked to longer term outcomes. Five outcomes were found where the improvement was maintained after the programme; these included behavioural conduct, coping skills and locus of control.

ASTO then developed a Theory of Change to establish how the changes in Sail Training might come about. The surveys conducted with Trainees over the last 18 months confirm that this theory is broadly correct. While Sail Training has many things in common with other types of outdoor learning, we believe that the specific challenges and unique physical environment of Sail Training can result in a distinctive experience. These ‘boosters’, or catalysers, have the potential to increase initial take-up and engagement in activities and contribute to stronger and longer lasting impacts.

What Is Sail Training?

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IN 2019 ASTO HAS...

Vessels range in size from...

How long are the voyages?

Who goes sailing?*

How big is the group?

Special needs Youth charity Schools Scouts / Cadets Individuals

24

35

x2x4

52.8%23.6%

8.3% 10.0% 19.8% 22.2% 24.5%

1.7%

215

62

10

Full member organisations

4-10 days2-3 days 15+ days!

Vessels5

berth43

berth!

associate members

TOFEET FEET

*Other = 15.2% (Including : NEETS, Young Carers, Care Leavers, Local Authority & D of E).

ranging from...Approximately... up to...

Equivalent to Equivalent to

Sail Training By Numbers

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NP

C–

Tran

sfor

min

g th

e ch

arity

sec

tor

Improvedhappiness / wellbeing

Hig

her a

spira

tions

Better engaged in communities / responsible

citizens

“Can

do”

attit

ude

Bet

ter

rela

tions

hips

Mor

e en

gage

d in

lear

ning

Improved educational attainment

Improved employability

Improved long-term life chances

Increased motivation and resourcefulness when faced with

adversity

Long

term

out

com

esH

ow it

hel

ps

Prid

e / s

ense

of a

chie

vem

ent

Wha

t the

y le

arn

Sel

f-con

fiden

ce /

self-

belie

f /

self-

este

em

Sel

f-rel

ianc

e / i

ndep

ende

nce

Res

ilien

ce

Sel

f-con

trol /

per

sona

l di

scip

line

Org

anis

atio

nal s

kills

+ ti

me

man

agem

ent

Doi

ng th

ings

you

don

’t th

ink

you

can

do /

doin

g th

ings

out

side

yo

ur c

omfo

rt zo

ne e

g cl

imbi

ng

alof

t, ov

erco

min

g se

asic

knes

s

Ove

rcom

ing

pers

onal

cha

lleng

es

to a

chie

ve g

oals

Bei

ng tr

uste

d by

sta

ff +

give

n re

spon

sibi

lity

with

real

co

nseq

uenc

es

Act

iviti

es

Doi

ng th

ings

you

don

’t w

ant t

o do

, eg

dom

estic

cho

res

Follo

win

g a

rout

ine

Personal development

Pro

blem

sol

ving

put

into

pra

ctic

e

Lear

ning

and

pra

ctic

ing

new

th

ings

Lear

ning

abo

ut th

e en

viro

nmen

t

Tang

ible

ski

lls (d

omes

tic,

saili

ng, o

ther

s)

Crit

ical

thin

king

ski

lls

Kno

wle

dge

of /

resp

ect f

or th

e en

viro

nmen

t

Skills

Val

ue o

f tea

mw

ork

+ co

oper

atio

n

Res

pect

for

+ un

ders

tand

ing

of o

ther

s

Exp

ande

d ho

rizon

s

Kno

wle

dge

of d

iffer

ent s

ocia

l gr

oups

+ab

ility

to b

ridge

soc

ial

diffe

renc

es

Wor

king

as

a te

am +

sup

porti

ng

peer

s to

ach

ieve

goa

ls

Mee

ting

and

livin

g in

clo

se

prox

imity

with

new

peo

ple

Social development

‘Inte

nse

/ acc

eler

ated

' ex

perie

nce

–co

ntin

uous

, re

side

ntia

l, ca

n’t w

alk

away

inte

nsifi

es

outc

omes

'Pea

k' e

xper

ienc

e –

stro

ng m

emor

ies

crea

ting

mor

e la

stin

g im

pact

'Rea

l' ex

perie

nce

–ac

tions

hav

e re

al

cons

eque

nces

and

le

arni

ng is

less

ab

stra

ct

'Ris

ky'e

xper

ienc

e –

parti

cipa

nts

feel

tru

sted

with

re

spon

sibi

litie

s; +

feel

vu

lner

able

, cre

atin

g gr

eate

r sen

se o

f eq

ualit

y

'Diff

eren

t' ex

perie

nce

–ne

w e

nviro

nmen

t, no

bagg

age

'Isol

ated

' exp

erie

nce

–pa

rtici

pant

s ar

e m

ore

pres

ent a

nd a

ble

to

addr

ess

norm

al h

abits

Sail

trai

ning

‘boo

ster

s’

Voya

ge

Up

to 1

2 m

onth

s po

st v

oyag

e+

12 m

onth

sS

ail T

rain

ing

Theo

ry o

f Cha

nge

as d

evel

oped

by

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“It was an incredible experience and a trip

I won't forget.”

“It's easy to join in even if you know nothing.”

“If you get this amazing opportunity, grab it

with both hands. You won't regret it.”

“The sailing trip was amazing. I would

definitely recommend going on it.”

Sail Training Outcomes

brilliant

sea sick

difficult

sailing

do it

once in a lifetime

fungood opportunity

best

worthwhileskills

recommendgrowth adventure

confidence

unique

rewarding

would go again

new experience

nice crew

friends

team

sights

new places

learning challenge

enjoyable

experiencegreat

*THe bigger the word the more often it was mentioned

If a friend asked you about the Sail Training voyage, what would you tell them about it?

What did trainees have to say?

ASTO conducted the surveys

developed in our Theory of Change

to gain an understanding of how Sail

Training affects trainees. The large

sample size, of over 1,000 responses,

provides a statistically reliable and

powerful testament to the positive

impact of Sail Training. The voyage

experience had a positive impact on

trainees for all the criteria measured.

The greatest positive change,as an

outcome of the voyage, was trainees

feeling that a ‘lot of things about them

are good’. This is a positive change in

self-esteem. Maybe unsurprisingly, the

findings showed that longer voyages

have the strongest positive impact on

outcomes.

“Children’s perception of

their ability, their expectations of future success,

and the extent to which they value an

activity influence their motivation and

persistence leading to improved academic

outcomes, especially for low-attaining

pupils.”Gutman, L. and Schoon, I.

(2013)

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I feel I have a number of good qualities(or, lots of things about me are good)

When things go wrong I keep trying

I get things done on time

I can find ways to solve problems

I am in control of what happens to me

When I get angry with someone I can keep calm

I get on with lots of different people

If I work hard I will usually get what I want

I will do tasks even if I don’t enjoy them

I feel I can achieve things if I put my mind to it(or, if I try I can do well at things)

I try to understand how other people think and feel

I enjoy working with other people

Not at all

Before the voyage After the voyage

Yes definitely

I feel I have a number of good qualities

25.2%

Before Voyage

25.4%

Before Voyage

44.7%

After Voyage

36.8% 54.1%

Before Voyage After Voyage

Before Voyage After Voyage

39.5%

After Voyage

33.1% 50.6%

When things go wrong I keep trying

I get things done on time I can find ways to solve problems

*% of ‘Yes, de�nitely’

Survey of Trainees

Trainees were asked to what extent they agreed with a list of outcomes. They were surveyed before and after their voyage.

For all outcomes, there was an improvement.

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Survey Of Team Leaders

“New lasting friendships

formed. Seeing

students we were dubious would be able

to change, leave school, and move on to college etc. and succeed.”

“They learn they must put

their things away tidy every day.

They learn to look out for their crew

mate, such as home sick,

missing mum or dad, or just

tired. Some show signs of

a caring nature.”

“The students were much

more resilient and capable

than expected.”

ASTO, in partnership with TLF Research, surveyed team leaders to gather their perspective on Sail Training as a group activity. Over 50 team leaders took part in the survey, a response rate of over 60%. The team leaders represented a total of approximately 600 trainees, adding weight to their feedback. When asked, team leaders most strongly agreed that a ‘sense of achievement’ had been an outcome. This was particularly encouraging because an importance survey highlighted this as the outcome that mattered most to team leaders.

There were some unexpected benefits…

“In terms of transfer into everyday life, most respondents highlighted social

skills such as listening more than talking, tolerance,

interacting with unfamiliar

people, patience, confidence and time

management.”Prince, H. & Fletcher, E.

(2019)

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Sense of achievement 9.3

8.8

9.1

9.0

8.9

8.6

8.9

8.5

8.4

9.0

8.0

7.8

Resilience

Raised aspirations and motivations

Improved wellbeing and confidence

Improved communication skills

Improved independence and life skills (organisational, time management)

New skills (domestic and sailing)

Problem solving skills

Self-control personal discipline

Improved friendships/relationships with the group/class

Improved engagement with learning

Smoother progression/transition

Agree completely Disagree completely

To what extent were desired outcomes achieved - sorted in descending order of importance to team leaders

Overwhelmingly, Sail Training provided a positive group experience that Team Leaders would like to repeat.

• Over 90% of team leaders who could compare Sail Training with other group activities said

‘It was better than other experiences’.

• Weighting agreement scores by importance scores, for all outcomes, generates an overall Agreement Index

of 83%.

• Over 80% of team leaders are highly likely to recommend and re-book with the member organisation they

sailed with.

• Over 97% said that everything agreed at the planning stage was delivered.

Team Leaders were asked to what extent they agreed a list of outcomes were achieved, ‘at the end and since

the voyage’. The chart shows the average agreement score (out of 10).

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About Asto

ASTO is the Association of Sail Training Organisations and our role is to promote and support UK Sail Training. We do this in a variety of ways: • Our Small Ships Races bring the fleet together in friendly competition and raise awareness of Sail Training• Our annual conference aims to improve what our members do by sharing good practice• We commission research and promote Sail Training on behalf of all of our members

We are funded through a generous legacy of the late author Hammond Innes and support our members through an annual Hammond Innes bursary.

“Trainees’ views of the experience are broadly

similar whether they go to sea in a full-rigged ship or

a smaller boat, whether the rig is modern or traditional or whether the staff are all

volunteers or all professional seafarers.”

Allison, P., McCulloch, K., McLaughlin, P., Edwards, V., & Tett, L.

(2007).

“Participants experienced increased resilience from the first to the last day of the voyage, and that increased resilience was maintained five months following the voyage.”

Hayhurst, J., Hunter, J. A., Kafka, S., & Boyes, M. (2015).

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Bibliography

“It is now clear that Voyages of Discovery is having an unusually great impact on the disadvantaged young

people it works with. There appears to be something

about the experience [of Sail Training] that it provides

that marks it out from more conventional ways of improving young people’s

confidence, teamwork, communication and

social skills.”Quinn, L and Williams, V (2018)

1. Prince, H. & Fletcher, E. (2019) Ocean Youth Trust North: A report on the social impact of sail training. University of Cumbria/ Ocean Youth Trust North. Available at http://www.oytnorth.org.uk/about/social-impact-study

2. Schijf, M., Allison, P. & Von Wald, K. (2017) Sail Training: A Systematic Review. Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership. 2017, Vol. 9, No. 2: 167-180

3. Fletcher, E. & Prince, H. (2017) Steering a course towards Eudaimonia: The effects of sail training on well-being and character. Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, Vol. 17(3): pp.179-190.

4. Allison, P., McCulloch, K., McLaughlin, P., Edwards, V., & Tett, L. (2007). The characteristics and value of the sail training experience. Edinburgh, Scotland: The University of Edinburgh.

5. Hayhurst, J., Hunter, J. A., Kafka, S., & Boyes, M. (2015). Enhancing resilience in youth through a 10-day

developmental voyage. Journal of Adventure Education & Outdoor Learning, 15, 40–52.

6. Quinn, L and Williams, V (2018) Challenge Wales: Voyages of Discovery. Year 2 Evaluation. Social Effectiveness Research Centre

7. Fiennes, C., Oliver, S. & O’Mara-Eves, A. (2016). The Relationship Between Short-term Outcomes and Long-term Outcomes Produced by Outdoor Adventure Programmes: A Rapid Review. Giving Evidence and the EPPI-Centre, UCL Institute of Education

8. Gutman, L. and Schoon, I. (2013). The impact of non-cognitive skills on outcomes for young people – Literature Review. Institute of Education, University of London

9. Noble, J., Kenley, A. & Patel, S. (2017). Sail Training Theory of Change, evidence review and measurement framework. New Philanthropy Capital.

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ASTOUnit 10 North MeadowRoyal Clarence YardGosportPO12 1BPRegistered charity No 1083059. A company registered in England and Wales, No 4084476

Tel: 02392 503 [email protected]

@uksailtraining

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uk sail training · sail training is a challenging adventurous activity delivered outside . the...

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