Hi Bryn and all at Cobnor,

Just a quick message to say thanks for Phoebe’s great course, which finished on Thursday (RYA level 2).  Hugh was absolutely fantastic with the children and is a great instructor.  Phoebe loved his enthusiasm and fabulous knowledge – what a star!  We really appreciate his excellent tuition.

Many thanks and see you all soon,

Mags Duncan-Duggal

It’s lovely to receive praise about our sailing courses and, most importantly, our sailing instructors (well done Hugh!) from the parents of children who are learning to sail. Phoebe was just one of the 9-12 year olds taking part in the RYA Youth Sailing Scheme (Stage 2) evening courses that we started in April, ran throughout May and finished just last Thursday.

This course, which took place during four hour sessions on Thursday evenings over eight weeks, taught Phoebe and the others a range of sailing skills and background knowledge, to get them well on their way to being confident small boat sailors.

Cobnor Activities Centre’s evening sailing sessions give those who don’t have the opportunity to learn to sail at the weekends or in the school holidays a chance to get some excellent sailing practice; they also have the added bonus of walking away with an RYA (Royal Yachting Association) certificate.

Our next available sailing courses are the RYA Youth Sailing Scheme – Stages 3 and 4, both running in August. Our evening sailing sessions will resume next April. Find out more about our courses, sessions and camps here or call 01243 572791 to book a place today.

The major £1million building and refurbishment project, which completed last April,  has not only seen two fully refurbished residential buildings and a brand new state-of-the-art building but also a large classroom, equipped with the latest data communications. The new residential facilities feature increased sleeping space, two rooms designated to course leaders and improved shower and toilet facilities whereas the new educational facilities are fully equipped with IT facilities and support, a big screen for presentations and WIFI access. 

Cobnor’s new facilities were officially opened by the Lord-Lieutenant of West Sussex, Mrs Susan Pyper, and the Bourne Community College Band provided a celebratory vibe to the day. Chairman of Cobnor Activities Centre, Barry Colegate, opened this momentous day’s proceedings by showing appreciation to all those involved in making the refurbishment project happen. His thanks went out to various charities, companies and trusts, West Sussex County Council, Chichester Harbour Conservancy and local schools.

Barry also mentioned the three 100 metre boreholes, which guests were standing on as they listened to his speech.  He told how these, along with solar panelling, are supplying the building’s energy system. This highlights Cobnor’s careful consideration of the environment in the construction of these new facilities that are sure to benefit many local youth groups for years to come. He then handed over to Lord-Lieutenant of West Sussex for the official unveiling of Martin Beale’s commemorative plaque.

The Lord Lieutenant told guests how Cobnor is a place she knows and admires; she often walks along Cobnor Point and has seen many changes and developments over the years. Mrs Pyper also noted how lucky we are to have somewhere like Cobnor Activities Centre in our locality:

“What a very happy occasion and a great achievement. We’re so lucky to have such a centre of excellence for our young people (and not so young people) to learn and enjoy outdoor activities and, overall, have fun. It’s a very fitting memorial to Martin Beale.”

Mrs Pyper also gave thanks to those involved in the new development, including the current Chairman Barry and his predecessor Nick Fox. After officially naming the building she handed over to Martin Beale’s daughter, Diana Beale, to say a few words.

Diana was delighted with Cobnor’s dedication to her father, Cobnor’s founder, Martin Beale, and stated that she was: “seriously chuffed with the occasion”. She talked about how her dad’s spirit is still here in his legacy; that he knew so many people and had so many friends from different walks of life and his greatest legacy of all is the network of relationships out of which Cobnor Activities Centre has flourished.

Acknowledgement of how her father would have been delighted with the way things were continuing to run was also given by Diana. She mentioned that her dad would have been thrilled that the official naming event was announced by the Lord Lieutenant, having been a Deputy Lord-Lieutenant himself. She also gave special thanks to Mark Murray-Brown and Liz Wilson, who have been running Cobnor Activities Centre for quite a while now. Diana maintained that Mark and Liz’s connections with the Beale family are more than just those of colleagues and that Martin would be delighted with the way they have continued to run the business he began back in the 1950s with strong family connections.

Certain her father would have approved of a local construction company’s involvement in the project, Diana gave mention to Nutbourne Construction.  Another company involved in the new construction was AES Solar Systems, who provided the solar panelling for the environmentally friendly building. George Goudsmit was delighted to be involved in the project and said this of Cobnor Activities Centre: “Fantastic, it’s a very inspiring and very cared for place. I’m happy to be involved.”

Diana also expressed that Martin would have been pleased, and perhaps somewhat amused, by some of the ways the funds for this exciting project were achieved. For example, the contribution of Cobstock, Cobnor’s annual music festival and very own Glastonbury!

There was even a reference to Pete and Bryn’s quirky staff training emails, which Diana’s children who are now part of the Cobnor Activities Centre staff, regularly receive. She made a request for a Christmas book compiling their witty efforts – hmmm we’ll see about that, shall we lads? Not sure it would make a bestseller’s list!

Overall, Diana willed everyone to keep supporting Cobnor Activities Centre, stating that the day’s event: “was a wonderful reunion for all those involved over the years. My father would be pleased with the excellent work that’s been done here and still continues to be done.” Barry Colegate summed up the formal proceedings beautifully by saying of Martin Beale: “If you’re seeking his monument just look around you.”

Chidham Primary School then read some poetry inspired by their experiences at Cobnor Activities Centre (which will be published in a later blog). Bryn Jones, who has worked at the Centre as a sailing instructor for nine years, commented: “It was a wonderful day. It was especially nice to hear about Chidham Primary School’s experiences.” The children then presented the Lord-Lieutenant with a bouquet of flowers, which was a lovely finishing touch.

After the formalities it was time for the guests to enjoy sandwiches and refreshments while taking a look around the new facilities. Brian and Moira Strickland and Christopher and Annette Whitmorejones, who were involved in Cobnor Activities Centre’s early days, were delighted to have this opportunity to come back and see how things have developed, and said: “Amazing! It’s lovely to see how far the Centre’s come over the last 40 years.”

For more photos please visit: http://www.facebook.com/CobnorActivitiesCentre.

We post a brochure to our regular customers every year that gives details about the outdoor activities and courses we offer, including dates, costs and other booking information.  But this year, with the help of Katy Lassetter Copywriting Services and Outside the Box Creative, the creative forces joined and we’ve seen our visions for a professional looking brochure really come to life.

Up until now the brochure has been designed and written in the office by Pete Alner who offers us IT support. But while Pete is a talented IT technician and a skilled sailing instructor, he’s not really a designer. So, this year we opted to seek out some professionals who could reflect Cobnor Activities Centre as a business through images and words. You can download your copy of the 2010 brochure here.

As well as our 2010 brochure, and besides the website, we decided that a way to get more detailed information about who we are and what we offer would be to create a folder that could be filled with interchangeable inserts on specific types of Cobnor Activities Centre information.

For example, for schools we are now able to make up a folder to include sheets detailing the range of outdoor activities and equipment available; camps, courses, sessions and trips on offer; our residential facilities, including those for educational purposes; and local attractions and amenities suitable for both education and recreation. If you’re a school who’d like to find out more about what we offer at Cobnor Activities Centre, please contact us today.