Arco Professional Safety Services has supported the Jubilee Sailing Trust (JST) with free consultancy on personal protective equipment (PPE) and training since 2017. The Trust runs inclusive adventures at sea, including day sails and voyages from its tall ship, SV Tenacious, the only sea-going ship in the world designed, built and sailed by a mixed-ability crew.
As a charity, the JST is reliant on donations to run its uniquely accessible ship that can be sailed by a truly diverse crew, including those with disabilities, mental health conditions, long-term health issues and the socially isolated.
Arco Professional Safety Services, like the JST, places the wellbeing and safety of its people at the forefront of its culture and is delighted to help facilitate such a laudable mission by sharing expertise and equipment. Arco Professional Safety Services has focused on essential working at height training for the charity’s permanent crew, as well as consultancy on the equipment used, storage, inspections and rescue provision. Arco Professional Safety Services has adapted its service to cater for the unique features of the ship that make it accessible to all, from the wheelchair lifts and wide decks to guidance tracks for people with visual impairments.
Ben, a member of JST’s voyage crew who is paralysed from the chest down feared the journey would be too much. He said: “That all changed when I hoisted myself out of my wheelchair up the main mast to the lookout point. When I got to the top absolutely shattered, I heard the whole ship cheer and when I sat there taking in the breath-taking view everything suddenly seemed to click. Gone was the negativity and the constant ‘I can’t do this’ rattling around my head.”
Sally, a Vision Rehabilitation Specialist and member of JST voyage crew, said: “For me physically climbing the mast, jumping off the side of the ship, negotiating the top bunk, and human guiding in sometimes exceptional circumstances; pushed me to extend my own ideas of what I thought I could manage.”
Mike Clayton, Equipment Department Manager at Arco Professional Safety Services, said: “Everyone deserves a safe place to live and work. Arco Professional Safety Services will continue to support the safe operation of the world’s only sea-going accessible tall ship, crucial for delivering inclusive adventures that leave attendees feeling liberated to explore their ability, potential and place in the world.”
