Excelsior Trust awarded Community Fund grant to take 12 young people to sea

Excelsior Trust awarded a Dudgeon Community Fund grant to develop sea skills for young people

The Excelsior Trust, the Lowestoft-based charity operating the 103-year-old Lowestoft sailing trawler Excelsior, has been awarded a grant from the Dudgeon Community Fund to take 12 young people from schools and colleges to sea this summer for two weeks, sailing from Szczecin (Poland) to Lowestoft, visiting offshore windfarms along the way.  Participants will also include apprentices in the energy industry. 

The scheme will be extended to several hundred school pupils in the Great Yarmouth, North Norfolk and Breckland regions of Norfolk (the Dudgeon Community Fund areas) who will hear from their peers of the participants’ experiences, raising awareness of the opportunities offered by the offshore wind sector. This is a pilot initiative and the funding from the Dudgeon STEM in Schools Programme will also support Excelsior’s evaluation of the initiative for future projects.  

The Dudgeon Community Fund aims to inspire students in school years 8-13 to study STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) with the aim that they will wish to continue education or employment within these areas.

The Excelsior Trust has taken nearly eleven thousand young people to sea since the charity was formed and a voyage on the vessel will enable those aboard to develop their STEM skills through daily activities on board including navigation and understanding the technological and engineering workings of a traditional maritime vessel, as well as practical skills for operating safely at sea and soft skills including communication, teamwork, resilience, self-discipline and life skills. 

A spokesperson for Excelsior Trust said: “We have been keen to partner with the offshore wind industry for some time and are delighted to receive this funding in recognition of the work we already do with young people in the area.  This will enable us to develop our activities and involve many more young people, helping them to discover the offshore career opportunities on their doorstep.”

The grant follows the announcement of a partnership between The Excelsior Trust and Lowestoft Town Council that will see more local young people being given the opportunity to sail a traditional Lowestoft Trawler on short and long trips. The Trust will be encouraging young people to contact them to apply for bursary funding for sailing experiences. 

Read more about The Excelsior Trust, one of our Shipshape Network East projects.