The Sea is our home
SOP
Mistral Sailing Ltd is a privately owned company, the Managing Directors is Tony J Blenkinsop, who is also the Chief Instructor and Principal. Mistral Sailing operates as an RYA Recognised Training Centre(RTC) offering practical sail training courses, adventure sails, charter and own boat tuition. The standard operating procedures are designed to ensure that all representatives of Mistral Sailing, are conversant with the operating procedures and safety policies of the company. The Management team will review this document and appendices periodically.
⦁ The area of operation for RYA Sail training is between the Firth of Clyde to a line between Sanda Island and Girvan. Permission of the Directors/Chief Instructor is required to go out of this area. Each case will be treated on its own merits and will be dependent on the instructor’s previous experience.
⦁ Training Vessel- The training vessel ‘Mistral’ a Beneteau Oceanis 393, used for the purpose of RYA training courses is owned and operated by Mistral Sailing Ltd
⦁ Mistral Sailing provides the following RYA training: Introduction to Yachting, Competent Crew, DaySkipper, and Coastal Skipper along with Yachtmaster Preps.
⦁ Course duration- The period of the courses will be 2 days and nights for Introduction to Yachting, either 3 weekends of 2 days and 2 nights or 5 days and 5 nights for Competent Crew; 5 days and 5 nights for DaySkipper, Costal and Yachtmaster preps. Mistral Sailing is committed to provide a high level of training. The Chief Instructor is a Yachtmaster Instructor with many years of training experience as well as many years of practical sailing experience around the world in varying conditions.
⦁ Roles- The roles of the Principal and Chief Instructor are as laid out in the RYA guidance documents, in abbreviation the Principal is responsible for the running of the RTC and the Chief Instructor is responsible for the running and quality of the courses and the well-being of the students. In the case of bad weather, the Chief Instructor together with the Principal and/or Senior Instructor will be responsible for deciding if a course should run with guidance from the Chief Instructor.
⦁ Safety- The vessel and RTC will work to the RYA and coding guidelines at all times. The skipper must arrive 2 hours prior to the crew, in order to check the safety check list, the cleanliness and condition of the boat, any any safety/maintenance issues should be recorded and reported to the Principal. See Appendix 1. (See boat file)
⦁ Crew introduction- All crew will meet their skipper before entering the pontoons, when the skipper will point out any hazards on the way to the vessel. Once on board the vessel the crew will be given a full safety briefing. See appendix 2. (See boat file) Following the safety briefing the skipper will ask all crew to sign the crew sheet, this crew sheet will be sent to the Principal. See appendix 3. (See boat file) The skipper will allocate a second in command in case of accident or emergency to him, this person will be responsible for taking the appropriate action if required. The skipper will photograph the crew sheet and send to the shore contact (Principal or Admin) in case of emergency. The vessel’s are fully coded and fitted with various required safety devices to RYA coding specification. The equipment will be serviced and checked as per coding requirements. The skipper will message the Principal every evening to advise where they are and what the plan is for the following day. If the boat is on Adventure Sail and out of telephone signal the vessel is equipped with AIS for tracking and the Skipper will send a notification to the Principal when signal is restored.
⦁ Welfare- Any employee or representative of Mistral Sailing is not permitted to drink alcohol, take any illegal substances, or take any other substance that affects their judgement or physical abilities during or prior to a course.
⦁ Smoking is not permitted on our vessels
⦁ If any employee or representative becomes unwell prior or during work they must advise the Principal as soon as practicable.
⦁ Any skipper must only work 10 hours in a 24 hour period and 77 hours in a 7 day period.
⦁ The training vessel must not be used for racing under any circumstances.
⦁ Crew welfare- The skipper should ensure that the crew are comfortable for the duration of the course, the crew should be encouraged by the skipper to raise any concerns or issues as the course progresses. The skipper should tell the crew that if at any time they feel they are not getting enough attention. The skipper should be informed and this should be covered in the introduction at the start of the course.
⦁ The skipper will also tell the crew what is likely to be achieved during the course. All RYA courses must be taught in English.
⦁ Training Period- The period of the courses will be 2 days and nights for Introduction to Yachting, either 3 weekends of 2 days and 2 nights or 5 days and 5 nights for competent crew; 5 days and 5 nights for DaySkipper, Costal Skipper and Yachtmaster preps.
⦁ All skippers should be regularly referring to RYA publication G158 during the training period to make sure that they are covering the syllabus and that they only sign off on the subjects that have been achieved under the relevant standards of ‘has a knowledge of’ or ‘understands’ or ‘can’.
⦁ This will reinforce the delivery and the completion of a course syllabus.
⦁ It is not guaranteed that a student will pass any course, the instructor will make all reasonable attempts to help a student understand and be able to cover the areas needed to pass the certificate.
⦁ FoodProvisioning of the boat will be done by the Instructor, Principal or Chief Instructor prior to the course. The Principal will contact the candidates prior to the course to ask for dietary requirements and any medical conditions. This should be completed by the student at the time of booking.
⦁ Food hygiene- Whilst onboard the vessel, food hygiene is of up most importance, our vessel adheres to the food safety standards. At the end of the week all perishable food must be removed and disposed of. See appendix 4. (See boat file)
⦁ Pollution regulations- The heads must only be pumped when 3 miles offshore or greater. No items are to be disposed of overboard. All items must be kept and disposed of appropriately in the next harbour or marina. Recycling is encouraged where possible and we encourage our Skippers and crew to do so.
⦁ Working with young people–safeguarding. Mistral sailing will take people over the age of 16 on our vessels but all applications will be considered on their own merit. We want to provide a safe environment for any person under the age of 18. See appendix (See boat file) for our young person’s policy and further reading on RYA guide on safeguarding children and young people.
⦁ Any person that is between the age of 16 and 18 years old must have their own cabin/bunk and specific permission for photographs to be taken and pictures to be posted on social media.
⦁ Family groups are welcome where an appropriate adult is included in the crew.
⦁ First aid and accident procedures- All instructors must hold a valid first aid certificate; they are responsible for renewal of this qualification.
⦁ The instructor should provide new documentation to the Principal prior to the expiry of current certificate. The vessel will be adequately stocked with first aid equipment, and will also have a secondary first aid kit for minor injuries. Any accident needs to be recorded in the accident logbook and the Principal advised.
⦁ Lone working- Lone working is only permitted with management agreement. No single-handed operations should be undertaken on the water. All structural boat maintenance must be agreed by the Principal. Any works must be carried out by suitably experienced or qualified person. The principal must be made aware of any work that may affect the boat coding.
⦁ Minor incident - If the incident does not fit in the scope of a major incident the skipper may deal with the incident unaided whilst still ensuring the safety of the other crew. It is possible depending on the incident the casualty may continue with the course or be taken off the vessel in the most appropriate manor,the casualty should be always supervised.
⦁ Next of Kin will only be advised if the incident is major or at the request of the casualty.
⦁ Major incident- A major incident is defined by the RYA as ‘A Major Incident is an event where there is loss of life, a serious injury, or there is substantial damage to property and/or the environment.’
⦁ The following are examples of serious incidents or accidents:
⦁ An incident leading to a fatality, serious or multiple fractures, amputation or other seriousinjuryleading to hospitalisation
⦁ Any situation that presents a serious risk to RYA reputation/brand
⦁ Major damage to vessels afloat or property ashore
⦁ Loss of contact with group or individual, overdue groups or individuals
⦁ Other circumstances in which a group or individual might be at serious risk of harm
⦁ Life threatening illness of an individual or group
⦁ Any adverse situation in which the media are or may be involved.
⦁ In the event of a major incident the priority is the welfare of the people involved, the emergency services should be called if appropriate. The principal and Chief instructor contacted as soon as practicable.
⦁ Immediate action -
⦁ 1) Call appropriate emergency services
⦁ 2) Call Principal
⦁ 3)Advise any witnesses that they should not leave and that they should not post anything on social media
⦁ 4) The Principal will follow the Emergency check list on appendix 6 (See boat file)
⦁ If it is likely that the media will be involved, they are not to be spoken to and of course the incident requires to be reported.
⦁ The procedure for major incidents is to follow the RYA guidance on Major Incident Procedures and Crisis Communications. See appendix 7. (See boat file)
⦁ The emergency action plan should be followed. See appendix 8. (See boat file)
⦁ In the case of fatality, the police will speak to the next of kin, this is not the responsibility of Mistral Sailing.
⦁ Quick reference numbers below:
⦁ Tony Blenkinsop-Managing Director /Principal 07799417400
⦁ RYA Training Line 023 8060 4181
⦁ RYA out of hours emergency 07789556080
⦁ Emergency services999
⦁ Police non-emergency101
⦁ Environment Agency0800 807060
⦁ H & S Executive (reporting fatal injuries)0345 300 9923 Mon to Fri 8.30am–5pm
⦁ H & S Executive 24/7 Duty Officer 0151 922 9235
⦁ Marine Accident Branch (MAIB)023 8023 2527
⦁ Near Misses - At all times it is the intention of Mistral Sailing to prevent incidents from occurring, but we understand that there is the occasion where things don’t go to plan. Our policy is to report and address these issues to prevent them from happening again. If there is a situation with a ‘near miss’ this must be reported to the Principal as early as is practicable. The Principal will record the details of the incident and then once the vessel is back in the harbour will meet with the Instructor, or will communicate by way of ‘Zoom’ or other suitable means. A near miss is defined as a situation whereby sudden and immediate alteration of course is required to avoid a collision with either another vessel or an obstactle on the water or a charted object.
⦁ The findings will be discussed and it will be agreed what learning and action is required.
⦁ General Safety Considerations- Skippers and crew should pay particular attention to Shipping Channels, Ferry Routes and Submarine operations. Where possible, cross these routes and channels as quickly as possible and do not linger within their boundaries. 'Mistral' is equipped with AIS, but does not have radar. A proper lookout should be kept at all times, with particular attention paid during periods of poor visibility.
⦁ General notes on 'Mistral' Operation -
The engine delivers its best performance and economy at 1800RMP and should not be revved above 2200RPM. The vessel is equipped with 3 slab reefs. 1st reef should be put in at 17kts true wind; and further reefs as appropriate. All skippers should make themselves familiar with the training area and have consideration for the particular wind patterns and gusts around islands and headlands.
⦁ Skipper’s responsibilities- The skipper must ensure that the vessel is cleaned and checked for maintenance before and after each course. The maintenance log and cleaning check list should be filled in and sent to the Principal. The skipper must ensure that the vessel is refuelled at the end of each course. The skipper must not hand out licenses until the vessel is empty of the crew’s belongings and it has been cleaned and any equipment supplied by Mistral Sailing is returned.
⦁ Any employee (or contracted Instructor or any other staff) or Director of Mistral Sailing must not have a relationship of a sexual nature with any customer of Mistral Sailing for the period that they are a customer.
⦁ The skipper must not encourage any such behavior of this nature.
⦁ The Skipper/Chief Instructor must always have their instructor ticket/commercial endorsement with them when they are instructing. This is not a standalone document and should be considered with the booking terms and conditions and all appendixes.
⦁ Instructors training- Instructors will undergo their 5 yearly revalidation; however the Chief Instructor will organise refresher training at the start of each season. This is likely to be done by an external provider and may be classroom or ‘on the water’ based.
⦁ Before any new instructor is allowed to take students out they will have a minimum of 1 day of shadow training with Chief or other Senior instructor (where appropriate) to include a full briefing on each boat that they will be working on.
⦁ Joining Instructions- Mistral Sailing will send Joining Instructions no less than a week prior to the course starting, they will include;
⦁ The course name
⦁ The skipper’s name
⦁ The meeting date, time and address
⦁ Clothing recommendations
⦁ To advise of and dietary requirements or health conditions that may arise.
⦁ Anything else that is specific to the particular course.
⦁ Customer Feedback- Feedback is important to understand the needs and requirements of our students.
⦁ Mistral Sailing want to encourage feedback, and we will ask students to complete relevant feedback at the end of each course. All feedback will go directly to the Principal. It will be anonymized and sent to the Instructor.
⦁ Data Protection- Mistral Sailing is committed to ensuring that all relevant Data Protection Regulations are adhered to. We will hold and process information in line with the 8 core principles of the Data ProtectionAct1998.
⦁ Mistral Sailing is aware of GDPR and will take the required action. Under no circumstances are instructors allowed to collect or store students’ data.
⦁ It is very important that the crew sheet and any medical records are stored in the skippers’ cabin.
⦁ The crew sheet must be given to the Principal/Chief Instructor at the end of each week.
⦁ This document/together with the medical information will be retained for the purpose of recording the license with the RYA and then destroyed after 30 working days from the end of the course.
⦁ If in the course of your business you become aware of any sensitive data/historic crew or medical forms, the Principal/Chief instructor should be made aware, and the data secured.
⦁ Equality- Mistral Sailing is committed to the principle of equality and opportunity. We aim to ensure that all employees, representatives, customers (crew, clients) and suppliers are treated equally regardless of sex, age, disability, race, religion, belief, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, marriage and civil partnership, gender or social status.
⦁ We operate in line with the RYA Equality Policy. See appendix. (See boat file)
⦁ Complaints- As mentioned earlier in the document we want to encourage feedback as early as possible prior to any complaint happening. Whilst we try to ensure that our customers are happy sometimes things can go wrong. Our complaints procedure is set out in appendix . (See boat file)
Terms and Conditions of Business
1. About Mistral Sailing
1.1 Mistral Sailing, herein referred to as ‘we’, ‘our’, ‘us’, ‘the Company’ or “Mistral Sailing”
1.2 The safety of our clients, skippers and the general public is of the highest importance to us. Nothing operationally or financially will hinder us from making considered decisions on all matters of safety. We have invested heavily in our training yachts and instructors.
1.3 The quality of service, training and certification standards are foremost in our mind.
2. Who We Provide Services To
2.1 We provide sailing and navigation training courses to individuals, new or prospective boat-owners, those wanting to hire or charter boats, couples, groups, families, children and youth organisations.
3. General
3.1 We want our terms, conditions and pricing to be open, transparent, accessible, and, above all, fair. We pledge to treat all our customers with respect, and to ensure that we include as much information as possible up-front, and give our customers the freedom and flexibility to choose 'Mistral Sailing’ sailing experiences with confidence. In the unlikely event something goes wrong, we are committed to doing our best to addressing it and fixing it in good time, and to ensure that our complaints process is easily available for all to see.
3.2 All customers of Mistral Sailing agree to be bound by these terms and to uphold them at all times. The terms shall be extended to include all persons attending a Mistral Sailing Sailing experience, even if they are not the payee. The relevant business terms shall be extended to include payees, even if they are not the attendee.
3.3 It is specifically not a requirement that payees or attendees physically sign a copy of these terms and conditions in order to be bound by them – you agree to these terms and conditions when you make a booking with Mistral Sailing and pay the relevant fee. You may be asked to sign a copy of our master booking and next-of-kin form upon arrival.
3.4 If you do not fully accept all of these terms and conditions, do not proceed with any booking or make payment. In proceeding with a booking, making payment and attending, you agree that you signify your full understanding, acceptance and agreement of all of these terms and conditions.
3.5 Failure to uphold any or all parts of the terms and conditions may result in immediate termination of service, without any liability to you whatsoever. We reserve the right to withhold service until you have fulfilled your obligations under these terms, or made any relevant payments in full. Failure by Mistral Sailing to enforce a right under these terms does not necessarily result in waiver of such a right.
3.6 You agree to fully read and accept all of these terms and conditions, and to be bound by them and uphold them.
4. Booking Deposits
4.1 A deposit equal to 25%, or another stated amount on your invoice is payable in order to secure any booking, date, product or other reservation. It is your responsibility to ensure that Mistral Sailing has received this and all other payments due in advance of any booking.
4.2 You may make a provisional ‘verbal’, ‘pencilled in’ booking which is non obligatory for both you and us but the agreement to hold a place pending receipt of your deposit does not form any agreement or part of any agreement, it is simply a verbal agreement made in good faith of your intent. No booking shall be valid unless the deposit is received byMistral Sailing. You may make a provisional booking or notification of intention to book, in person, online, by telephone, paper-form or other method, but this shall not be held or reserved for you in any way until the deposit payment or full amount in the form of cleared funds, has been received.
4.3 Once you book you have 14 calendar days cooling off period. This 14 day period is in place to allow you time to read and understand our terms and conditions. If you wish to cancel within 14 days we will refund your full deposit. After 14 days your deposit will not be refunded.
5. Balance Payments
5.1 The full (or outstanding balance) amount for all bookings must be received at least 28 calendar days prior to the original stated or chosen start-date of your booking – OR the stated balance due date on your booking confirmation / invoice document. Any bookings for which the stated full-amount due has not been received by the required date and time may, at our discretion, be considered in default (unpaid and without prospect of receiving payment) and we reserve the right to cancel your booking and retain all monies paid to us in respect of that specific course date, booking, goods or service – without any liability or refund to you whatsoever (financial or otherwise).
6. Booking Process
6.1 In order to make a booking, you should research what experience type is right for you and for those you may be booking on behalf of. We can supply information about Sailing experiences and our own products and services.
6.2 Once you have decided, you can contact us to check availability and make a booking. We will then send you your booking details and joining instructions by e-mail, or by Royal Mail if you so request it. We can also supply free copies of all our printed material in an accessible large-print format for the visually-impaired.
6.3 In order to secure any booking you must confirm the availability and pay the booking deposit or full amount due.
6.4 For bookings that have a start-date more than 28 calendar days in advance, the booking deposit stated on your booking confirmation or invoice document must be paid at the time of making a booking, either by telephone, e-mail, contact in person or through any other means. You may still pay the booking deposit some time after making a booking, and we may still take payment and confirm your course, but availability cannot be guaranteed in this case – bookings are strictly allocated on a ‘first-come, first serve’ basis only. If you do not pay the booking deposit (or indeed full amount, if you prefer) your space may be re-sold to any other third party.
7 Cancellations
7.1 If you wish to cancel your booking you must inform us in writing.
7.2 If you cancel your booking giving us less than 28 calendar days notice (from the day we receive your written cancellation) you will lose all money paid and any outstanding balance will be due.
7.3 If we are successful in re-selling your place then we may, at our discretion, refund part or all of the monies paid.
8. Understanding the Products and Pre-Course Experience Requirements
8.1 It is solely the customers (attendee and/or payee) responsibility to ensure that the course/experience that they elect to book is suitable for them and for others that they may be booking for, that they are physically fit and able. Mistral Sailing is not responsible for performing any vetting or background checks of customers experience prior to booking.
8.2 At no time is any information or advertisement given on our websites, over the telephone, e-mail, brochure, leaflets or any other format to be considered advice. Any statements which you may consider to be ‘advice’ are purely the personal opinions of the author, and not the opinions or advice of Mistral Sailing. We supply information only. Only you, the customer, can make the ultimate decision about what Sailing experience to attend. You may then inform us which course or experience you wish to book and we will then endeavour to fulfil such a booking.
9. Age, Health & Fitness Declaration
9.1 Illness, injury or other medical conditions do not necessarily preclude or prevent any persons from participating in any Sailing experience; however, it is your responsibility to declare toMistral Sailing and the Skipper in charge of the vessel, details of any illness, injury, medical conditions, fitness or any other factor that may affect your participation.
9.2 Important conditions to disclose include (but are not limited to), epilepsy, giddy spells, asthma, diabetes, heart condition, arthritis, requirement to take regular medication or any other factor that may affect your participation, or that your Skipper should be made aware of.
9.3 Pregnant women must disclose that they are pregnant - and can only be permitted to attend up to their 2nd trimester, and then only if they are in possession of an official letter from the Health Professional in charge of their care stating that in their opinion it is safe for them to attend a physical activity such as has been booked.
9.4 It is your responsibility to disclose any and all medical conditions or medications, and any other considerations that may affect your suitability to participate in any booking run by, or on behalf of Mistral Sailing. You agree that you will disclose this information at the time of booking AND again directly to your Skipper or other relevant member of Mistral Sailing staff in direct charge of your service provision.
9.5 The services we provide include activities requiring a degree of physical exertion, which may include (but is not limited to); leaning, stretching, crouching, crawling, walking, lying down (front and back), running, pulling, pushing, carrying, jumping, using steps, stairs or ladders or high-ledges or gunwhales not necessarily designed for stepping on or off of. You agree to use all reasonable care whilst on-board any of our vessels, and whilst ashore during your booking with Mistral Sailing.
9.6 You agree that you are hereby duly warned against the danger of serious or fatal head injury or other trauma that may be caused by the boom on-board sailing vessels, and that you will keep an independent look-out for this specific hazard, at all material times. In addition, there exists a risk of head injury on-board our power-boats consisting of a sharp-edge at head-height – in rough weather or when the vessel is manoeuvring this could pose a hazard and you must keep a similar look-out in order to avoid injury.
9.7 If for whatever reason, your Skipper has to administer medical aid, Mistral Sailing and it’s employees, servants, agents, contractors or instructors accept no liability for any damages or injuries, howsoever caused, unless in the case of that person’s proven negligence. You agree that we (or a medically-trained skipper) may administer medical first-aid to you (or any minors for whom you are responsible) in the event of a medical emergency, and that you will hold us harmless in such an eventuality.
9.8 In signing the booking form you declare to the best of your knowledge, that: “I am not suffering from epilepsy, disability, giddy spells, asthma, diabetes, angina, or other heart condition and I am fit to participate in the sailing or powerboat course / experience”.
9.9 Please forward details of any medical treatment being received which will be supplied to the instructor.
10. Children, Unaccompanied Minors & Child Protection Policy
10.1 Children under 8 years of age are not accepted on any Sailing experience or otherMistral Sailing organised or managed course, event or experience without express written consent from the Company. It is solely your responsibility to ensure thatMistral Sailing has acknowledged, in writing, any intention to bring a person aged under 8 years onto any Sailing experience or other Mistral Sailing organised or managed course, event or experience.
10.2 No unaccompanied person under the age of 18 years will be accepted on to any Mistral Sailing Sailing experience or course.
11. Alcohol, Smoking, Illegal Substances, Weapons & Personal Conduct
11.1 Alcohol is permitted on-board our vessels, but must not be consumed during periods where the vessel is underway unless with the express permission of the ships master or whilst you may be required to participate in the operation of the vessel. In addition, you must not be incapacitated due to alcohol during these same periods.
11.2 During a practical Sailing experience, you are not simply a passenger in respect of the law. Section 80 (Non-Professionals) of the Railways & Transport Safety Act states that any non-professional (i.e. not a Qualified Instructor / Commercial Skipper), who is on-board a ship which is under way, and is exercising, or purporting or attempting to exercise, a function in connection with the navigation of the ship and is not a person to whom Section 78 or 79 applies (a professional seaman or captain), commits an offence if his ability to exercise the functions aforementioned is impaired because of drink or drugs. The offence shall be committed if the proportion of alcohol, blood or urine exceeds the prescribed limit. At the time of writing the prescribed limits are as follows:
(a) In the case of breath, 35 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres;
(b) In the case of blood, 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres,
(c) In the case of urine, 107 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres.
11.3 The same limits apply to our Skippers/Instructors whilst on duty, or when they may be required to perform their duties in an emergency.
11.4 You should be aware that if you commit such an offence you put yourself at risk and the lives of everyone else on-board at risk. You also leave yourself liable to arrest (by a Police Constable) without warrant under Section 85 of the Act.
11.5 In accordance with national legislation, Mistral Sailing operates a no-smoking policy across all our vessels and shore-based facilities. This means that smoking is not permitted at any time on board. It is an offence to smoke, and for the Skipper-in-Charge or Master of the Vessel to permit smoking, on board any of our vessels. This is covered under Part 1 of the Smoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005. Smoking may be permitted on open deck, at certain times, and at the sole discretion of the Instructor-in-Charge or Master of the Vessel.
11.6 It is expressly a condition of service that you must observe high standards of personal conduct, and obey all reasonable instructions given you by anyMistral Sailing member of staff or Skipper – specifically the Master of the Vessel has absolute authority and command and must be obeyed at all times – this is for your safety and the safety of others on-board. Any person who fails to comply with any such reasonable or lawful instruction may have their services terminated with immediate effect and removed from the training vessel at the nearest convenient port (regardless of consideration of their return to port of origin or other location – with no refund, or any other liability toMistral Sailing whatsoever.
11.7 An example of where this might be implemented is seriously disruptive or dangerous behaviour on-board. We also reserve the right to call on HM Coastguard or the Police for assistance, if it is determined that this is necessary.
11.8 You must not cause a nuisance, fear or alarm to any other person on-board or situated nearby and drunken or violent behaviour will not be tolerated. You must not take any action or inaction that might endanger the crew or otherwise disrupt the safe navigation of the vessel.
11.9 You must not be in possession of any controlled substance (e.g. drugs / narcotics), or any other dangerous substance, mixture, intoxicant, poison, chemical or other noxious thing whilst on-board any Mistral Sailing operated vessel. In addition offensive or dangerous weapons, firearms or explosives are forbidden. Only pyrotechnic flares or devices owned and controlled at all times by Mistral Sailing are permitted on-board.
12. Additional Costs, Shore-Activities, Eating Out & Marina Berthing
12.1 All items included in the price shall be clearly stated on your original booking invoice. Unless stated otherwise, there may be some additional costs or optional activities / extras available to you during any Mistral Sailing Sailing experience. Specifically, the shared cost of any mutually-decided marina berthing and any hire of waterproofs is not included in any course-fee. These represent optional costs and are usually minimal – e.g. 1 x Overnight Marina Stay & Use of Toilets/Showers/Electricity @ £30.00 shared between 6 persons on-board = £5.00 Per Person.
12.2 Some Mistral Sailing practical courses & sailing experiences, include fuel, gas - up to and including £40, consumables, overnight accommodation where stated, safety equipment, use of Mistral Sailing books and publications, full board meals, snacks and drinks etc for the duration of the sailing experience. Food and drink ashore is not included in the price charged.
12.3 If you are in any doubt of what is included or excluded in our terms please call us within 14 days of your booking.
13. Customer Responsibilities
13.1 All payees / attendees must ensure that they have read, understood and accepted all the supplied sales/course information literature, including brochures, e-mail, links, attachments, as well as all of these terms and conditions and their associated links and referenced material. Any person unable to access all of these materials for any reason should contact Mistral Sailing to receive their free hardcopy printed versions.
13.2 Customers must be aware that not all Mistral Sailing Sailing experiences are for beginners, and that there may be pre-event recommended experience levels, reading, and background shore based knowledge or pre-requisite logged mileage.
13.3 If you are in any doubt about the level of knowledge, miles or previous experience required then ask any of our staff.
13.4 Mistral Sailing is in no way responsible if you elect to book onto any Sailing experience or Experience for which you are not sufficiently experienced, capable or qualified – you are solely responsible for ensuring that you meet any pre-course recommended experience levels, or any other pre-requisites.
13.5 All attendees must ensure that they are contactable by Clyde Yachts at least 7 days prior to the stated or chosen start-date of their Sailing experience / Experience. They should be contactable by telephone or e-mail, and it is the customer’s responsibility to ensure that we have the correct contact details recorded for them. This is to ensure that we can contact you in the event of a cancellation or postponement and that you do not travel for a booked service that has been cancelled or postponed. If you have not heard from Mistral Sailing 7 calendar days prior to your stated or chosen start-date, you must make telephone, written (post or e-mailed), contact with us to ensure that we have the correct contact details, and to enquire as to the status of your upcoming booking.
13.6 Mistral Sailing is in no way responsible or liable in any way if you travel and/or arrive for any service to be delivered by us that has been cancelled or postponed.
13.7 On arrival, all attendees will be required to read and sign a copy of our latest Crew Registration. This will ensure that you have read, understood and accepted these terms and conditions, and that we have your next-of-kin details recorded and kept on-shore, as we are required to do under the relevant regulations.
13.8 Customers accept that they may have different skippers, vessels of different specifications or different training crews during their Sailing experience. Although this would only happen in exceptional circumstances.
13.9 Customers agree to accept any and all advice given them by their Skipper.
14. Mistral Sailing Responsibilities
14.1. Mistral Sailing will make reasonable efforts to deliver the experience which you have booked
14.2 Mistral Sailing is responsible for supplying a suitable, safe, clean, functional and commercially coded (if required), and insured sailing yacht.
14.3 If any of our advertised vessels, facilities or instructors are unavailable for any reason we reserve the right to substitute another of similar or appropriate specification or qualification level with no liability to you whatsoever. Under no circumstances can Mistral Sailing guarantee to provide you with any particular vessel or Skipper as a condition of booking, as such elements are subject to change due to unexpected mechanical failure, breakdown, illness/injury etc., at any time.
14.4 We may note your request for a particular vessel, facility or Skipper, and in general such requests are usually fulfilled without issue – but this is not guaranteed and we may substitute any of these without prior notice, at any time.
15. Insurance & Personal Liability
15.1 Mistral Sailing owns one commercially-operated sailing vessel. This vessel and facilities are fully insured against all usual marine risks. In addition to directly owned / leased vessels we also work with a number of independent yacht owners, to provide additional capacity to our operations. Such vessel-owners hold their own insurance policies, relating to conducting RYA Training on-board and these policies can be made available for you to inspect prior to departure if you should so request it.
15.2 Mistral Sailing is not responsible for any accident, loss, damage, incident or injury, or death howsoever caused, to you or your property unless in the case of our proven negligence and any authority invoked makes an official judgement or decree as to our responsibility and/or liability.
15.3 We strongly recommend all attendees have appropriate insurance cover to cover personal injuries, accidents, death and loss of, or damage to, personal property.
16.Mistral Sailing ‘No Obligation’ Booking Period
16.1 The ‘No Obligation’ period is the period up until exactly 14 calendar days after the date of your booking. It is offered to allow you additional time to fully assimilate all of your chosen sailing experience details, costs, pre-requisites, pre-course recommended experience levels, travel arrangements, personal commitments, work-leave entitlements and all the terms and conditions and related documents.
16.2 During this period you may cancel or amend (e.g. change dates) you’re booking at any time and without giving any reason. You are entitled to receive a full refund of any and all monies paid, including any relevant credit card charges. You agree that such payments remain entirely your property up until the end of the ‘No Obligation’ Booking Period.
16.3 You agree that when this period ends, all monies paid become the sole property of Mistral Sailing and that you cannot cancel or amend your booking, and receive any refund or replacement course date or product for any reason, including (but not limited to); changes to work-leave entitlement or child-care arrangements, illness, serious illness or injury (applies to you or any third party or family-member), bereavement, natural disaster, strikes, conflict, flooding or inclement weather, failure by third parties, travel restrictions / failures or any other factor.
16.5 Mistral Sailing strongly recommends that all customers purchase appropriate third-party cancellation insurance to cover such eventualities.
17 Condition removed
18. Your Right to Cancel, Changing Your Booking, Refunds & Cancellation Procedure
18.1 You have an absolute right to cancel or amend (change dates of) your booking (amendments subject to availability) up until exactly 28 calendar days prior to the original stated or first chosen start-date of your booking you do not have to provide any reason or explanation.
18.2 In this event you are entitled to a full refund of all monies, except booking deposit, paid towards your specific course-date, product or service, including any transaction fees or delivery charges. Please allow up to 28 working days for us to process your refund, but in most cases this will be much sooner. We will not be held liable if we are unable to meet the 28-day period as a result of action or inaction beyond our reasonable control (i.e. bank strikes / equipment failure etc). Refunds will be made only to the same payee or bank account that the original payment was made from.
18.3 You accept and agree that, within the period of exactly 28 calendar days prior to the original stated or first chosen start-date of your booking, you cannot cancel or amend your booking, or receive any refund or replacement course date or product for any reason, including (but not limited to); changes to work-leave entitlement or child-care arrangements, illness, serious illness or injury (applies to you or any third party or family-member), bereavement, natural disaster, strikes, conflict, flooding or inclement weather, failure by third parties, travel restrictions / failures or any other factor. Mistral Sailing recommends that all customers purchase third-party cancellation insurance.
18.4 In the case of multi-date bookings (e.g. courses over separate weekends or separated days), the date of the first start-date serves as the reference date for determining the cancellation entitlement period – there are not separate periods for each separate date or weekend which makes up part of the same booking or course (or continuation thereof). For example, courses which are taken in the ‘3 x Weekends’ format count as one single booking, and therefore the cancellation entitlement period for the entire booking is calculated from the start-date of the first weekend – even if dates for the subsequent weekends or other attendance dates have not yet been chosen.
18.6 Notice of cancellations, amendments, refund requests or any other requests relating to your booking MUST be received, in writing, by Mistral Sailing at least 28 calendar days prior to the original stated or first chosen start-date of your booking. E-mail and mailed letter shall be an acceptable method of communicating such a request provided that an actual human response / acknowledgement are provided by us. Telephone calls and visiting in person at a pre-arranged date and time. It is your responsibility to ensure that we have received such notice correctly, and that you have received an acknowledgement of such – you should always ask for a reference code relating to such a request.
Any requests for cancellations, amendments or refunds made within the specified 28-day period will not be accepted for any reason.
18.7 If you wish to cancel or amend (change dates of) your booking within the 28-day cancellation entitlement period, then you may request this, but we shall not be obliged to fulfil or facilitate this request, nor will you be entitled to any refund or option of receiving a different course-date, booking, product or service in lieu of the one you wish to cancel or amend.
18.8 In this event, and if you so request it, we shall endeavour to locate another party to take the course / experience place in your stead, and pay to us the fee that is equal or greater to the amount paid by you. If we receive more for the replacement booking than the fee that was originally paid to us by you (the original attendee/payee), you will not be entitled to receive the excess as a refund, credit or other benefit.
18.9 We may discount the space (at our discretion) to encourage other persons to book your space and pay the fee – in that event you may move dates (but you will not be offered any refund under any circumstances).
18.10 If we discount the space, but you later decide that you would rather continue with your booking as originally intended, you may not receive any further discount offered by us to encourage a replacement booking, as a refund, credit or other benefit.
18.11 In addition, the person taking advantage of any spaces discounted as a result of our efforts to assist you in replacing your booking may not be a family-member, work-colleague, friend, employee or other person with any connections with you – they must pay at least the same amount that you paid, or you may elect to pay to us the difference between your original course-fee and the discounted space(s) offered by us and taken advantage of by the person(s) with a connection to you.
18.12 If we subsequently discover that any discounts we offered in good faith were taken advantage of in this fashion, we reserve the right to bill you (the new attendee/payee) the total amount of the difference with immediate payment terms – you hereby agree to pay this amount upon presentation of our invoice document.
19. When We May Cancel or Amend Your Booking
19.1 You shall be entitled to a 100% refund, including any transaction or delivery charges (if applicable) if we have to cancel or postpone your course / experience prior to your arrival due to any failure from: technical, mechanical, electrical, staffing or manning levels, illness or injury, regulatory and legal, insurance, vessel coding, unavailability of stock or materials, over-booking, under-booking or any act of authority preventing or inhibiting the performance of our service to you.
19.2 If after your arrival and a period of delay not exceeding 24 hours has elapsed, we cannot commence service provision due to factors listed in the previous paragraph, we shall be entitled to cancel the course / experience or other service provision and offer you a full refund, including any transaction or delivery charges (if applicable), or another suitable course / experience date – you may select whichever option you would prefer (either a refund or another course / experience date).
19.4 In the case of any cancellations or postponements you agree and accept that no additional compensation or re-imbursement of expenses (e.g. travel, accommodation, loss-of-earnings, inconvenience etc.) will be paid in this event – even if you have made specific arrangements and incurred other costs solely to attend your chosen booking (e.g. flights or train tickets, other travel, incidental accommodation, changes to personal and work commitments, childcare etc). In all cases, the limit of our liability to you (or your payee), shall be the original amount paid to us in respect of the specific course / experience occurrence in question – circumstances in which you (or your payee) are entitled to a refund are set out in these terms. Mistral Sailing recommends that all customers purchase third-party cancellation insurance to cover such eventualities.
19.6 If you have other bookings or course / experience dates booked with us, even as part of a ‘package’ you shall not be entitled to receive a refund for these such elements that have not been directly affected by a cancellation, postponement or delay.
19.7 You agree and accept that the activities and services that we offer are highly susceptible to changes, cancellations and/or postponements caused by various factors, including (but not limited to): weather, meteorological, safety, technical, mechanical, electrical, staffing or manning levels, illness or injury, regulatory and legal, insurance, vessel coding, unavailability of stock or materials, over-booking, under-booking or any act of authority preventing or inhibiting the performance of our service to you.
19.8 You specifically agree that when you make a booking for any particular date(s), that these dates are a first-choice only, irrespective of any personal or other circumstances limiting you to these dates, or despite any statements about your personal availability you may make during the booking process.
19.9 We will endeavour to fulfil your course or experience booking on these requested dates, but if we are unable to do so for weather / meteorological factors beyond our control, then you agree that you will not be eligible for a refund, but that you may select new dates to allow us to fulfil the course or experience booking. The exception to this shall be when you have suffered consecutively two such cancellations already, in which case you shall be entitled to a full refund, including any transaction or delivery charges (if applicable) incurred.
19.10 There is a fair and reasonable reason for the specific exclusion from the refund policy of cancellations or postponements arising from weather / meteorological factors. Tthat is to say that no attendee or payee shall be entitled to any refund or compensation as a result of a cancellation, postponement or delay due to inclement or unsafe weather / marine conditions.
19.11 This is because that if it were the case that customers were entitled to a refund under these circumstances, there could be said to be a potential financial or commercial incentive, for Mistral Sailing to allow the course / experience to proceed in potentially unsafe circumstances.
19.12 We do not believe that financial considerations have any place in the decision-making process whereby safety of life at sea is concerned, and, as such we will not issue refunds or compensation whereby cancellations or postponements must be made due to inclement or unsafe weather / marine conditions – customers will be offered an alternative course / experience date or product. You agree and accept this term absolutely and accept that there will be absolutely no exceptions to this rule, save for the circumstances set out in the following two paragraphs:
19.13 Where we are unable to offer any other dates for the same course / experience type and format within 28 calendar days (irrespective of the customers own availability) from the original start-date of the specific course-date (or individual three-weekend course element/date), we will offer a full refund including any transaction fees or delivery charges (if applicable).
19.14 In addition, if a customer has experienced consecutively two such cancellations / postponements then they will also be entitled to a full refund including any transaction fees or delivery charges (if applicable).
19.15 You agree and accept that we may cancel your booking at any time and for any reason. This is highly unlikely, but may occur for reasons including (but not limited to): weather / meteorological / safety, technical, mechanical, electrical, staffing or manning levels, illness or injury, regulatory and legal, insurance, vessel coding, unavailability of stock or materials, over-booking, under-booking or any act of authority preventing or inhibiting the performance of our service to you.
19.16 In this event no compensation or re-imbursement of expenses (e.g. travel, accommodation, loss-of-earnings, inconvenience etc.) will be paid – even if you have made specific arrangements and incurred other costs solely to attend your chosen booking (e.g. flights or train tickets, other travel, incidental accommodation, changes to personal and work commitments etc.)
19.17 In any event the maximum limit of our liability will only be the total sum of the price paid, including any transaction fees or delivery charges (if applicable).
19.18 If we cancel your booking during the course or experience (for a non-weather / meteorological / marine safety reason), you will be offered an alternative date for completion, or a pro-rata refund for the portion of the course / experience / service you have not received.
19.19 You agree that it is your responsibility to contact Mistral Sailing at least 7 calendar days prior to your course / experience date (or prior to you travelling), to check the status of your booking. You agree that it is your responsibility to ensure that you are contactable (and that we have the correct and appropriate telephone / mobile-phone / e-mail contact details) within the period of 7-days leading up to the start-date of your course / experience date – especially on the actual start-date and period immediately prior the stated or agreed check-in / arrival time.
19.20 Cancellations / postponements can occur at any time and we are not responsible if you arrive for a course / experience that have been subject to a cancellation or postponement. We strongly recommend that you supply us with a valid mobile-telephone number that we can reach you one, and that you verify that it is the correct one that we hold.
20. Injuries, Damages & Major Incidents
20.1 You agree and accept that many of the services and training courses we provide can present an element of danger, physical injury, damage, loss or even death. Although even minor injuries are extremely rare, and we have never had any customer experience a major or lasting injury, or death, you accept that your participating in such activities is completely voluntary, and that you accept these risks. You agree to hold us harmless (including our employees, servants, agents, contractors etc) in the event that you incur any such injury – unless in the case of our proven negligence.
20.2 It is a possibility that your personal belongings may be lost, damaged or stolen during the course of your participating on a Mistral Sailing Sailing experience or course. You agree and accept that we cannot take any responsibility for such loss(es) or damage(s), and that our insurance will not cover loss or damage to your personal property (e.g. damage to electronic devices / dropping a camera overboard etc). We recommend that all customers purchase appropriate third-party insurance to indemnify you against such eventualities.
20.3 In highly unlikely the event that you are present when another customer(s) is involved in a Major Incident (very serious injury or death), you agree to assist us implement the Major Incident Policy.
We ask for such assistance as to include helping us, and working with the authorities to resolve and investigate the circumstances in which someone came to be injured or killed. In addition, this also includes refraining from making public comments (either verbally or online), or by speaking to the media or identifying the injured or killed person(s) before the next of kin has been officially informed.
21. Complaints Procedure
21.1 If you have a comment, complaint or concern – in the first instance you should raise this privately with your Course Instructor or other member of Mistral Sailing staff, at the first available opportunity. If you do have such an issue, you must raise it at the time, and not ignore it, or raise it later when nothing can possibly be done to address the issue.
21.2 It is not acceptable under these terms to leave, accept the services provided to you and then subsequently make a complaint afterwards, thereby denying us any reasonable opportunity to resolve the issue directly with you.
21.3 You may elaborate on your complaint afterwards, and in writing or by telephone, but the initial complaint with all the primary points of the complaint must be stated at the centre prior to departure from Mistral Sailing, so that we have a fair opportunity to fix any mistakes, resolve issues, alleviate any concerns and otherwise address any points of complaint or grievance.
21.4 In the unlikely event of a serious complaint we will follow our Internal Complaints Procedure, and we always aim to address your issue in a timely, professional and fair manner, and offer redress to you where appropriate..
22. Force Majeure
22.1 In the event of non-performance, partial performance or delay resulting wholly or partly from any force majeure or occurrence, or any circumstance whatever beyond the control ofMistral Sailing including (without limitation) the acts or omissions of third parties, labour difficulties, weather conditions, technical breakdown or accident to any vessel or any part of it, natural disaster or any act of authority, then Mistral Sailing shall use reasonable endeavours to continue to perform the booking but otherwise shall have no liability to the client.
22.2 The customer shall be liable to pay such part of the price as applicable to that part of the booking which has been performed (if any), and all expenses connected with it, and anything in excess (limited to the fee received) which has already been paid by the customer shall be refunded in accordance with the cancellation policy. Mistral Sailing determination of the applicable part of the price and the connected expenses shall be conclusive in the absence of manifest error.
23. Jurisdiction and Disputes
23.1 In the event of any dispute between Mistral Sailing its customers or any third party, this agreement shall be governed under Scots Law and in and through the Courts of Scotland.
GDPR
General Data Protection Regulations
In compliance with the ‘General Data Protection Regulations’ introduced on 18th May 2018 ‘Mistral Sailing’ will deal with your data in the following manner.
1. When enquiring about or booking any ‘Mistral Sailing’ sailing activities your data will be stored securely by Mistral Sailing
2. We will only ask for and keep data that is necessary for us to administer your enquiry/booking
3. We will use your data to keep you informed of any updates or changes to your enquiry or booking.
4. After a period of one year from your initial enquiry we will remove your data from our records unless you specifically request that we hold it for a further period
5. Your data will not be shared with anyone unless:
a) You have booked on an RYA course, in which case we will need to release some data to register with RYA certification or, in order that we comply with RYA guidelines we must open our centre for inspections process in which case the inspector/inspectors will have sight of, but not be given your data.
b) You have taken a bareboat charter in which case we may be required to release some of that on a request from HM Coastguard or a third party’s insurers or a harbour Authority.
c) We are required to maintain that data under any obligation to comply with any UK or European legislation.
d) “On successful completion of any RYA course your name, contact details, date of birth, certificate number and date of issue will be shared with the RYA through a secure web portal or www.rya.org.uk. The data will be stored on the RYA’s central database. This information allows the RYA to record your qualification, to update any records they may hold for you, and to verify or replace your certificate if required. For further information on how the RYA will deal with your data, please see the RYA’s privacy policy at www.rya.org.uk/go/privacy.”
6 If you want us to remove your data earlier from our records then we will remove your data as soon as practicable after your request unless we are required to maintain that data under any obligation to comply with any UK or European legislation.
7 If you wish that we use you data to contact you advising you of any future sailing activities which we will be conducting, then we require that you send us a separate email using the following wording:
I ______________ consent to Mistral Sailing storing my data for future use in informing me of any sailing activities in the future which Mistral Sailing may be running. I give this consent for the period of one year from the date of this email.
If you do not use this wording then Mistral Sailing will not contact you.
Vulnerable Groups Policy
Mistral Sailing Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy and Guidelines
Contents
PART 1 – POLICY
1. Introduction
2. Mistral Sailing Policy Statement
3. Mistral Sailing Policy Statement on the Protection of Vulnerable Adults/ Adults at Risk
PART 2 – PROCEDURES
1. Designated person
2. Safe recruitment
3. Good practice guidelines
4. Handling concerns, reports or allegations
PART 3 - INFORMATION AND SAMPLE DOCUMENTS
Useful contacts
Sample Templates/Documents
Good practice guide
Clyde Yachts Code of Conduct
Safeguarding and Child Protection referral form
Appendices
A What is child abuse?
B RYA Code of Ethics and Conduct – Instructors and Trainers
C RYA Youth Racing Anti-bullying Policy
D Anti Bullying Policy
PART 1 – POLICY
1 Introduction
These guidelines have been produced by Mistral Sailing to enable children and protected adults to enjoy the sports of sailing, and power boating in all their forms, in a safe environment.
In the context of this document, ‘child’ refers to any young person under the age of 18. The policy also covers ‘protected adults’ over the age of 16, such as people with learning disabilities, or who have difficulty communicating, or who rely on others to provide personal care.
There are several good reasons for doing this:
· to protect children and/or protected adults, both on and off the water
· to assure parents that their children are as safe in our organisation as they are
when taking part in any other sport or leisure activity
· to raise awareness amongst volunteers or employees so that they know what to do if they are concerned about a child or protected adult, whether the concern relates to the individual’s welfare whilst in our care or outside the sport
· to protect instructors, officials or volunteers by giving them some practical, common sense guidelines to avoid placing themselves in situations where they are open to allegations which could seriously damage their lives and careers
· to protect the organisation, by showing that we have taken ‘all reasonable steps’ to provide a safe environment.
2 Safeguarding Policy Statement - Children
As defined in the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) (Scotland) Act 2007 for the purposes of this policy anyone under the age of 18 should be considered as a child. The policy also applies to protected adults over the age of 16.
It is the policy ofMistral Sailing to safeguard children, young people and protected adults taking part in boating from physical, sexual or emotional harm. RYA Scotland will take all reasonable steps to ensure that, through appropriate procedures and training, all individuals participating inMistral Sailing activities do so in a safe environment. We recognise that the safety and welfare of all participants is paramount and that all individuals, whatever their age, gender, disability, culture, ethnic origin, colour, religion or belief, social status or sexual identity, have a right to protection from abuse.
Mistral Sailing actively seeks to:
· ·Create a safe and welcoming environment, both on and off the water, where everyone can have fun and develop their skills and confidence.
· Support and encourage recognised training centers, affiliated clubs and class associations to implement similar policies.
· Recognise that safeguarding all individuals is the responsibility of everyone, not just those who work with them.
· Ensure thatMistral Sailing organised training is run to the highest possible safety standards.
· Be prepared to review its ways of working to incorporate best practice. We will:
· Treat all children with respect and celebrate their achievements.
· Carefully recruit and select all employees, contractors and volunteers and ensure that those in relevant roles all hold a satisfactory Disclosure Scotland certificate and progressively, as appropriate1, are members of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme (PVG).
· Ensure all personnel who work with our young people and vulnerable adults undertake recognised safeguarding training.
· Respond swiftly and appropriately to all complaints and concerns about poor practice or suspected or actual child abuse.
This policy relates to all employees, contractors and volunteers who work with children or protected adults in the course of their Mistral Sailing duties. It will be kept under periodic review. All relevant concerns, allegations, complaints and their outcome should be notified to the Mistral Sailing Child Protection Co-ordinator.
It is important to emphasise that while this document is rightly concerned with the Safeguarding of Children and Protected Adults, the subject needs to be considered in the context that by far, incidents of concern are very few indeed compared with the thousands of hours of positive learning experiences and achievements, enjoyed by young people and adults, facilitated by our employees and volunteers.
3. Mistral Sailing Safeguarding Policy Statement - Vulnerable Adults/ Adults at Risk
This policy applies to any adult aged 16 or over who has a physical or learning disability or mental illness which causes them to be dependent on others for physical care and assistance and/or who may have difficulty communicating their needs and wishes.
It is the policy of Mistral Sailing to safeguard vulnerable adults taking part in boating from physical, sexual or emotional harm. Mistral Sailing will take all reasonable steps to ensure that, through appropriate procedures and training, vulnerable adults participating in Mistral Sailing activities do so in a safe environment. Everyone, whatever their age, gender, disability, culture, ethnic origin, colour, religion or belief, social status or sexual identity, has a right to protection from abuse.
Mistral Sailing actively seeks to:
· Create a safe and welcoming environment, both on and off the water, where participants can have fun and develop their skills and confidence.
· Support and encourage recognised training centres, affiliated clubs and class associations to implement similar policies.
· Recognise that safeguarding vulnerable adults is the responsibility of everyone, not just those who work directly with them.
· Ensure that Mistral Sailing organised training and events are run to the highest possible safety standards.
· Be prepared to review its ways of working to incorporate best practice. We will:
· Treat all participants with respect and celebrate their achievements.
· Carefully recruit and select all employees, contractors and volunteers.
· Respond swiftly and appropriately to all complaints and concerns about poor practice or suspected or actual abuse.
This policy relates to all employees, contractors and volunteers who work with vulnerable adults in the course of their RYA duties. It will be kept under periodic review. All relevant concerns, allegations, complaints and their outcome should be notified to the RYA HR and Administration Manager.
PART 2 – Procedures
1. Designated Person
Although everyone has a role to play in ensuring that children and protected adults are safe, Mistral Sailing has a designated person responsible for child protection and safeguarding.
The Terms of Reference for ‘the designated person’ are as follows;
· Maintaining an up to date policy and procedures, compatible with the RYA’s.
· Ensuring that relevant staff and/or volunteers are aware of and follow the procedures, including implementing safe recruitment procedures.
· Advising the management committee on safeguarding issues.
· Maintaining contact details for local Children’s Social Care Services and Police.
If there is a concern, the designated person will:
· Be the first point of contact for any concerns or allegations, from children or adults, ensuring that confidentiality is maintained in all cases.
· Decide on the appropriate action to be taken, in line with the organisation’s procedures and in conjunction with the person in charge (Vice president, Principal etc.).
· Keep the RYA informed as necessary (see flowcharts in Section 6).
Mistral Sailing Yacht Training designated person
Mistral Sailing Child Protection Co-ordinator is
Claire Blenkinsop, 59 Margaret Road, Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear. NE26 2PH. 07855381929
If Claire is unavailable and the matter is urgent, contact Jackie Reid, RYA Child Protection Co-ordinator, tel. 023 8060 4104, e-mail jackie.reid@rya.org.uk.
(Note that where immediate emergency intervention may be required, (as opposed to dealing with emerging issues) there should be no delay in making contact with the police. This may be done without further referral but should be reported to the above named as soon as possible. Police officers who deal with these matters have received specialist training and are willing to give advice and guidance in any case of doubt).
2. Safe recruitment
All full time or freelance staff, whether for paid or voluntary work, will be subject to an appropriate level of scrutiny. If the person’s “normal duties” include teaching, instructing, training or supervising children and/or protected adults, then membership of the PVG Scheme or an enhanced disclosure is required before that person is permitted to work with individuals where the person will be in regular contact with children, in sole charge of children with no parents or other adults present.
· who to check
· paid staff and/or volunteers (if they have the same level of responsibility, whether they are paid or not)
· new applicants and existing volunteers/staff where they have direct access to children or protected adults in the normal course of their duties
· those with specific responsibilities (e.g. instructor, centre principal, safeguarding/welfare officer, coach, head of cadet section).
· the level of check to be conducted for each category
· references
· self-disclosure (normally used at the application stage and followed up by a full Disclosure at the offer stage)
· Enhanced Criminal Records Disclosure.
· membership of the PVG Scheme as appropriate
Criminal Records checks
Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act, Mistral Sailing will not ask someone to apply for a Disclosure unless they are going to be in a position of trust, ‘in close or unsupervised contact with children or protected adults, or in a role with influence over children or protected adults welfare A Disclosure will only be used in conjunction with the other checks listed above and not relied on in isolation.
Confidentiality
All personal information will be treated as confidential, stored securely and only shared with those who need to see it in the course of their duties or to protect children or protected adults. When data is no longer relevant it will be destroyed securely, e.g. by shredding.
Mistral Sailing recruitment and induction policy
Mistral Sailing requires all employees recruited to posts involving contact with children to provide references and to obtain an Enhanced Criminal Records Disclosure/ join the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme prior to confirmation of appointment. All Instructors involved in delivering programs to Children must obtain an Enhanced Disclosure/ join the PVG Scheme. All Mistral Sailing Instructors sign up to the Code of Ethics and Conduct.
The Child Protection policy statement is contained in the Mistral Sailing Instructor issued to all volunteers. All Mistral Sailing employees and contractors whose work will involve contact with children are required to familiarise themselves with these Guidelines.
3. Good practice guidelines
Culture
It is important to develop a culture within Mistral Sailing where both children and adults feel able to raise concerns, knowing that they will be taken seriously, treated confidentially and will not make the situation worse for themselves or others.
Some children may be more vulnerable to abuse or find it more difficult to express their concerns.
Minimising risk
Mistral Sailing Plan the work of the organisation and promote good practice to minimise situations where adults are working unobserved or could take advantage of their position of trust. Good practice protects everyone – children, volunteers and staff.
These common sense guidelines should be maintained by everyone within Mistral Sailing:
· Avoid spending any significant time working with children or protected adults in isolation
· Do not take children alone in a car, however short the journey
· Do not take children to your home as part of your organisation’s activity
· Where any of these are unavoidable, ensure that they only occur with the full knowledge and consent of someone in charge of the organisation or the child’s parents
· Design training programs that are within the ability of the individual child or protected adult
· If a child is having difficulty with a wetsuit or buoyancy aid, ask them to ask a friend to help if at all possible
· If you do have to help a child, make sure you are in full view of others, preferably another adult
You should never:
· engage in rough, physical or sexually provocative games
· allow or engage in inappropriate touching of any form
· allow children to use inappropriate language unchallenged, or use such language yourself when with children or protected adults
· make sexually suggestive comments to a child , or protected adult even in fun
· fail to respond to an allegation made by a child or protected adult; always act
· do things of a personal nature that children or protected adults can do for themselves.
It may sometimes be necessary to do things of a personal nature for children, particularly if they are very young or disabled. These tasks should only be carried out with the full understanding and consent of either the child or protected adult (where possible) and their parents/carers. In an emergency situation which requires this type of help, parents should be fully informed. In such situations it is important to ensure that any adult present is sensitive to the child and undertakes personal care tasks with the utmost discretion.
Responsibilities of staff and volunteers
This policy relates to all employees, contractors and volunteers who work with Children and vulnerable adults in the course of their duties, they have the following responsibilities in this context:
· following good practice and
· recognising signs of abuse (see Appendix A)
·
Mistral Sailing Instructors are expected to comply with theMistral Sailing Codes of Ethics and Conduct (see Appendices B and C).
Child Protection Training
Child Protection Training Workshops are offered by Sportscotland and Children 1st at venues throughout Scotland delivering a three-hour basic awareness workshop ‘Safeguarding and Protecting Children’ to RYA clubs and centres. Mistral Sailing personnel who work with our young people or protected adults are strongly encouraged to undertake this training.
Responsibilities of parents and participants
Parents play an essential part in their children’s participation. Mistral Sailing have adopted a Code of Conduct (attached) that can be signed up to by everyone involved, whether they are participants, parents, staff or volunteers, so that everyone is aware of their responsibilities towards each other and appropriate action can be taken if anyone’s behaviour fails to meet the expectations set out in the Code.
Bullying
Mistral Sailing Anti-bullying policy is in Appendix D and is also available on the website.
Managing challenging behaviour
Guidance for instructors on handling young people who display challenging behaviour is available on the RYA website under Courses and Training, Teaching, Instructor Resources.
First aid and medical treatment
First aid is part of your normal duty of care. Obtain consent if medication or medical treatment is required in the absence of the parent/carer.
Photography
Digital technology makes it easy to take, store, send, manipulate and publish images.
There are two key principles to bear in mind:
Before taking photos or video, obtain written consent from the child and their parents/carers for their images to be taken and used
· ·A consent form could be included with the course application form
· Care must be taken in the storage of and access to images.
When publishing images we make sure they are appropriate and do not include any information that might enable someone to contact the child
4. Handling concerns, reports or allegations
A complaint, concern or allegation may come from a number of sources: the child, their parents, a protected adult or someone else within Mistral Sailing. It may involve the behaviour of one of a volunteer or employees, or something that has happened to the child outside the sport, perhaps at home or at school. Children or protected adults may confide in adults they trust, in a place where they feel at ease.
An allegation may range from mild verbal bullying to physical or sexual abuse. If you are concerned that a child or protected adult may be being abused, it is NOT your responsibility to investigate further BUT it is your responsibility to act on your concerns, making a record of anything that is said and report them to the appropriate statutory authorities. For guidance on recognising abuse, see Appendix A.
Handling an allegation from a child or protected adult Always:
· stay calm – ensure that the child is safe and feels safe
· show and tell the child/protected adult that you are taking what he/she says seriously
· reassure that child and stress that he/she is not to blame
· be careful about physical contact, it may not be what the child wants
· be honest, explain that you will have to tell someone else to help stop the alleged abuse
· make a record of what the individual has said as soon as possible after the event
· follow your organisation’s safeguarding procedures.
Never:
· rush into actions that may be inappropriate
· make promises you cannot keep (e.g. you won’t tell anyone)
· ask more questions than are necessary for you to be sure that you need to act
· take sole responsibility – consult someone else (ideally the designated Safeguarding/Welfare Officer or the person in charge or someone you can trust) so that you can begin to protect the child/protected adult and gain support for yourself.
·
You may be upset about what the child/protected adult has said or you may worry about the consequences of your actions. Sometimes people worry about children being removed from their families as a result of abuse, but in reality this rarely happens. However, one thing is certain – you cannot ignore it.
Recording and handling information
If you suspect that a child/protected adult may have been the subject of any form of physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect, the allegation must be referred as soon as possible to Children’s Social Work2 department or the Police who have trained experts to handle such cases. Do not start asking questions which may jeopardise any formal investigation. Listen to and keep a record of anything the child tells you or that you have observed and pass the information on to the statutory authorities (see Template 9 for Referral Form).
All information must be treated as confidential, stored securely and only shared with those who need to know. If the allegation or suspicion concerns someone within your club or centre, only the child’s parents/carers, the person in charge of the organisation (unless they are the subject of the allegation), the relevant authorities and
the RYA Scotland Safeguarding Awareness Co- ordinator should be informed. If the alleged abuse took place outside the sport, the Police or Social Work department will decide who else needs to be informed, including the child’s parents/carers. It should not be discussed by anyone within the organisation other than the person who received or initiated the allegation and, if different, the person in charge.
Confidential information must be stored securely. It is recommended that it should be retained for at least 3 years and destroyed by secure means, e.g. by shredding or burning.
Safety Policy
The safety of our clients, skippers and the general public is of the highest importance toMistral Sailing. Nothing operationally or financially will hinder us from making considered decisions on all matters of safety.
We have an open and transparent attitude to input and comment from any body whether they are an enforcement agency, a client or an interested member of the public. We adopt this attitude because we are human and therefore imperfect making us subject to failure.
We will take all reasonable steps to ensure a safe environment for all to enjoy themselves and be safe from harm when attending any event connected to Mistral Sailing
We openly welcome comment, input or observation on any potential safety issues from anyone involved in our business be they clients, students, passengers or visitors to our business.
Our ‘Standard Operating Procedures’ document and ‘Risk Assessment’ paper giving the details of day to day operational safety issues, the actions to be taken minimise risk and the procedures in the event of an incident.
We endeavour to comply with the legislation pertinent to the operation of our fleet of commercial yachts and welcome any comments, observations or questions on the compliance to that legislation.
We take great care to comply with certification of safety equipment on board the fleet and welcome any queries on the paperwork required to operate our fleet.
Anyone who wishes to comment on any safety related matter should contact Tony Blenkinsop who will more than welcome your input, observations or comment.
Contact Details
Tony Blenkinsop
59 Margaret Road, Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear, NE26 2PH 07799417400
Diversity
Mistral Sailing is committed to the principle of equality of opportunity.
Mistral Sailing aims to ensure that all present and potential participants, members, instructors, coaches, competitors, officials, volunteers and employees are treated fairly and on an equal basis, irrespective of sex, age, disability, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, marriage, civil partnership, gender reassignment or social status. At Mistral Sailing all participants should feel welcome, whatever their background.
Objectives:
To make boating an activity that is genuinely open to anyone who wishes to take part.
To provide a framework for everyone to enjoy the sport, in whatever capacity and to whatever level the individual desires.
To ensure that Mistral Sailing provision of RYA courses are accessible to all, including those who have been under-represented in the past.
Copyright © 2023 Mistral Sailing - All Rights Reserved.
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