£30k needed to help disability charity keep sailing

Monday 08 April 2019

A charity that aims to boost the confidence of disabled and disadvantaged islanders by giving them the opportunity to become 'captain' of a ship is appealing for help to raise £30,000 to replace the engines of its specially adapted catamaran.

Wetwheels Jersey takes 1,000 islanders of all ages on its fast catamaran each year, giving the majority of them their first ever experience on the water.

The charity launched in Jersey at the 2012 Boat Show by UK Yachtsman of the Year and respected disabled mariner Geoff Holt MBE, after he met a group of people from Le Tournoi, a diverse sports fundraising charity.

Geoff has been using a wheelchair for 35 years and says that over the years he met many people who had never been on the water. 

Pictured: Geoff Holt MBE founded Wetwheels in Portsmouth in 2011.

“There were two reasons for this: either they physically could not get on the boat or because they had to stay in a wheelchair and they are very few boats where you can fit the chair,” he explained.

This “gap in the market” inspired Geoff to set up Wetwheels, which he funded almost entirely by himself, in Portsmouth in 2011. “The vision was to make the oceans and seas more accessible. It was a success from day one. In the first year, we took 500 people on the water.”

Wetwheels Jersey was created in 2013 after a group of islanders raised enough funds for a boat in a matter of months. Over the years, volunteer skippers have devoted their time to take islanders on the water, regardless of their level of ability.

“It is so much more than a trip,” Geoff told Express. “The boat is accessible to anybody - even those with really complex disabilities. Our ‘unique selling point’ is that everyone can drive it! For a moment in time, they are captain of a power boat on water. It’s a shared experience with their friends, their families and the group.”

Pictured: 1,000 islanders get on the Wetwheels boat in Jersey every year.

“80% of the people have never been on water, they never had the opportunity, we create the opportunity. It makes a difference in people’s lives. It helps reduce anxiety, improve confidence and wellbeing. I love making adventures happen!”

“The feedback is amazing,” Dina Cook, Chief Operating Officer for the charity in Jersey, added. “It’s very moving. It’s special for the parents to see their children or for someone to see their mother or father on the boat. The feelgood factor is great. It feels like we created some magic.”

The charity relies on its fundraising activities, donations and the support of corporate partners to pay for its £50,000 running costs.

This year, however, there's an additional challenge: they have to find an extra £30,000 to help buy two new engines for the catamaran, whose current engines are due to be replaced after five years in service.

Wetwheels Jersey hosted a fundraising dinner at Samphire last week, helping bring in over £7,000. They will also be at the Boat Show next month to spread the word and find more volunteer skippers to help man the boat.

“We always say that people leave their disability on deck,” Geoff says. “People come to have fun. We want them to feel welcome and safe. The boat is a place where they can enjoy themselves. They laugh together. It’s the Wetwheels magic.”