Qualifications & Safety
Safety at sea overrides everything we do.
Our fishing boats have category 4 certificates issued by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). This enables them to be taken up to 20 miles from a safe-haven (Eastbourne in East Sussex) in daylight and in favourable weather conditions. The certificate allows parties of up to 6 persons to be carried. Subject to the experience of the skipper and crew along with an assessment of weather conditions, it may be necessary to limit the range the boat can be taken to a distance of less than 20 miles.
As a requirement of the certificate, each boat has a full range of range of safety equipment including comfortable life-jackets, flares, lifebuoys and a life-raft. She is easy to operate and has an extremely reliable engine. On the day of charter a full safety briefing will be given to you and your crew. The briefing will encompass handling the boat, local hazards, the safety equipment carried and its use.
What qualifications do I need?
Formal qualifications are not required to charter however it would not be sensible to allow a novice boat handler or a person with no experience to charter her. As a guide, at least one member of your party should have at least 2 years, sea-going, boat-handling experience and/or a minimum of a Level 2 RYA powerboat qualification/Day Skipper qualification.
On the day you arrive to charter and following the safety briefing, we will spend some time familiarizing you with the fishing boat. Depending on your experience this may be very brief or take a little longer. If you prefer we can arrange to complete the familiarization process (at no extra cost) prior to your days charter. Please call if you would like more information or to discuss your boating experience.
If you are interested in completing an RYA powerboat course, our partners Sea Training Sussex can help. An RYA level 2 training course is well-worth completing and allows you to obtain an international certificate of competence which you can use abroad to charter. The training course lasts for 2 days and costs £250.