Huge thanks to Edward Morello, MP of West Dorset for flying the Women in Boatbuilding flag in Westminster yesterday. The debate around 'Shipyards and economic growth' was largely focused on naval and commercial shipyards, but leisure boatbuilding makes up 14% of the industry, and deserves a voice too in these debates.

Edward spoke about our work with the Boat Building Academy in Lyme Regis, which is in his constituency, and where we met him a few weeks ago. Introducing him to some of the current students gave him the chance to see first-hand the impact of our work, and the importance of preserving traditional boatbuilding skills. 
Edward did an amazing job sharing the need for central funding to preserve traditional skills and craft. 

Check out the amazing latest episode in our 'Boatbuilders Tour' series on the Women in Boatbuilding Youtube channel! 

www.youtube.com/channel/UCUhb6m8BaqpYdmkhQVNWMYA

PRESS RELEASE FROM BBA:

Women outnumber men on the Boat Building Academy’s flagship 40-week course for the first time in its 28-year history.
 
The newest student cohort at the Boat Building Academy (BBA) in Lyme Regis, Dorset comprises eight women and seven men.
 
The most women enrolled previously was four - and for two years there were no female students at all.
 
Diversity in boat building has long been a concern, and the rise in female applicants at the BBA is the result of a far-reaching, new Diversity and Inclusivity mission, launched just over a year ago by the BBA and Belinda Joslin, founder of Women in Boatbuilding (WIBB).
 
The multi-faceted strategy puts diversity at the heart of the Academy’s priorities - from the top down - and includes practical and financial support.
 
A five-day Women’s Workshop course now runs annually for women to try their hand at woodworking, before committing to further study.
 
While a new bursary scheme exclusively for women is making it possible for a growing number of women to meet the cost of the course and access the high-level training and career development opportunities it provides.
 
In addition, WIBB members already working in the industry are also actively mentoring female BBA students.
 
Student Sophia Harding from Portsmouth is just 17. 
 
Determined to enter a ‘practical’ career she dropped out of sixth form, taught herself to sail and bought an old boat, which she single-handedly restored last winter.  The BBA’s new women’s bursary scheme has now enabled her to join the 40-week course.
 
She said: “I enrolled on the one-week workshop out of curiosity. I enjoyed it, but had to see how feasible it would be to get a place on the 40-week course, which would require funding the course privately and moving away from home. 
 
“The interview with the BBA involved them ascertaining my commitment, and the game changer was when they announced that I had won a 50 per cent bursary. 
 
“During the summer I worked for Urban Truant, a charter boat company, where I saved every penny towards the outstanding fees. They also sponsored a portion of the fees, and in addition, I gained sponsorship from the William Price Trust.
 
“The hard work paid off and I’m absolutely loving it,” she continued. “It’s incredibly challenging as you would expect. It’s inspiring to be part of a group of men and women of all ages, from all over the world and with varying capabilities, who are each equally passionate about learning to build beautiful wooden boats.”
 
Student Hannah Lovett, 38, and from Calderdale in West Yorkshire, has come to the BBA after leaving her career as a restauranteur.
 
She said: “I knew that working with my hands was the only way I wanted to work, and I was initially thinking joinery. But one day a friend who works with boats sent me a link to Women in Boat Building which I found completely inspiring. A couple of weeks later, I woke up at 3am, sat bolt upright in bed and knew that’s what I should do.
 
“I’m so happy to be on the first course to be predominantly women. I love that the Academy is making a conscious effort to balance gender diversity.”
 
The cohort started the course ‘upstairs’ at the BBA, learning the skills which eventually enables them to move ‘downstairs’ and begin the long and challenging process of building four wooden boats from scratch.
 
These boats will be proudly launched, in line with tradition, into Lyme Regis harbour next June.
 
Belinda Joslin of Women in Boatbuilding said: “The BBA is an amazingly inclusive and welcoming environment for women, so we're delighted to have helped more women to feel that it's a space they belong in and are welcome in. This success story is proof that the DEI strategy worked and we hope the wider industry will learn from the measures that BBA have taken, and put more of a priority on DEI to tackle the skills shortage in boatbuilding nationwide.”
 
BBA Director Will Reed agreed: “It’s deeply encouraging to see so many talented women on the course.
 
“We have an exciting strategy in place to further promote diversity and inclusion in the industry and look forward to seeing these and many more young women go on to exciting careers in boat building.”
 
Ends
 
Picture captions:
Sophia Harding and Hannah Lovett are members of the new 40-week course cohort which is predominantly female for the first time in its history.
Members of the new cohort outside the BBA in Lyme Regis.
 
www.boatbuildingacademy.com
 
The BBA was founded in 1997 by naval commander Tim Gedge and has trained over 2500 people in boat building and furniture making. Many students have gone on to work at some of the top boatyards in the world.
 
Women in Boatbuilding is a Community Interest Company that supports and celebrates the work of women who work hands-on in boatbuilding and related marine trades round the world. Boatyards, boatbuilding and the maritime industry as a whole continue to be heavily male-dominated. WIBB shares the stories of the women working in the industry to inspire others and offer support to colleges and yards who want to improve their gender diversity.
 
www.womeninboatbuilding.com
 
Boat Building was placed on the Red List of Endangered Crafts in 2023. This status is given when there is believed to be insufficient growth in the number of practitioners to make the craft viable following the present generation.
 

The second Women in Boatbuilding Christmas Gathering will be held from 10.30am on Saturday 7 December. 
A full day of activities and networking are planned, enabling women working hands-on in boatbuilding and related marine trades to meet, support, learn and grow from each other.
The day will start with a private viewing of Victory Live: The Big Repair - showcasing the ten year conservation programme currently taking place on Nelson’s flagship, HMS Victory. Visitors will also get an exclusive look at the work of the shipwrights onboard HMS Warrior, the largest and most powerful warship of Queen Victoria’s fleet. Events will be led by the shipwrights who are part of the talented team preserving these historic ships. This will be followed by a rope demonstration of practical knots and methods used by the shipwrights in the yard.
In the afternoon, the group will tour the Lloyds Register Heritage Foundation SHE-SEES exhibition situated in Boathouse No4, that celebrates the work of women – past and present      - in the maritime world.
Members of the community will then share some of their own stories and experiences, including Norfolk Boatbuilder Abbey Molyneux and Italian Boatbuilder Gaia Brojano. Both women were recently invited to speak at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival in NW Pacific US, and their stories inspired and amazed festival goers, including internationally-acclaimed technical author Nigel Calder. ‘Abbey’s talk in Port Townsend was the best I have ever watched.’                                               
‘We’re delighted to be gathering in Portsmouth this Christmas – the combination of the SHE_SEES exhibition, and the diverse workforce on the historic ships means that it’s the perfect environment to gather and celebrate the work that women are involved with in the industry.’
Belinda Joslin, Founder Women in Boatbuilding CIC
 
Limited places are available to book here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/womeninboatbuilding
We welcome anyone working in boatbuilding or related trades to join us. 

The Women in Boatbuilding Team had an amazing time at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2024, sharing their stories and skills and having a great time. 
We were blown away with the whole festival and place - will write a longer highlights blog post when I've recovered from jet lag but just wanted to say THANK YOU PORT TOWNSEND!
Team Included:
Obi Oji - Blue Tree Boatbuilders - UK
Sydney Fassam - Sunseeker International - UK
Abbey Molyneux - Abbey Boatbuilder - UK
Christine MAcPheat - Canada
Gaia Brojanigo - Broja Woodworking - Italy
Belinda Joslin - UK
Heike Lowenstein - UK 

The WIBB team are going stateside in September! We've been asked to create some Women in Boatbuilding events at this amazing festival, and we can't wait to meet all the women there working in marine trades...

Since the festival organisers first asked us to attend to create a WIBB panel, our events and level of involvement have grown and grown. There are now 7 women from different countries, backgrounds and trades coming in to be a part of the festival.... to give talks, demos, presentations, tours, events, meet like-minded people, share stories, make friends and celebrate the craft we all love. 

We can't wait! Thank you so much Barb, Kaci and Diana for inviting us and we can't wait to meet you in person!

So great to report that the BBA have had a huge uplift in the number of women studying boatbuilding there - partly down to our collaboration :) Press release from BBA below...and an amazing image that says it all. So chuffed. 

​Opportunities for women boat builders growing thanks to the BBA.
 
A year after implementing its new Diversity and Inclusivity mission, the Boat Building Academy and Furniture School (BBA) in Lyme Regis is seeing encouraging results, with female enrolments rising from zero to 25 per cent on some courses.
 
Founded in 1997 by naval commander Tim Gedge, the BBA situated on Monmouth Beach is a professional training institution that teaches both modern and traditional boat-building methods. 
 
Will Reed became the Director and Co-Chair of Trustees of the academy in 2019 and made it a priority to increase opportunities for women students, not only at the Boat Building Academy, but also across the wider industry.
 
Alongside a bursary scheme available to all, a bursary scheme exclusively for women gives access to high-level training and career development opportunities and has already been taken up by six students.
 
The BBA’s flagship 40-week boat-building course, which often provides its graduates with a direct route into some of the country’s top boatyards, currently has 25 per cent women and one non-binary person amongst its ranks.
 
Will explained: “Gender does not dictate what people are capable of doing, or not doing – it should be irrelevant. We are determined to make the BBA a welcome place for all and to have a better balance in the workshops. We are thrilled with the positive results and this success has been boosted considerably by our close and ongoing collaboration with Women in Boatbuilding (WIBB).”
 
WIBB works to expand the activity and support for women working hands-on in boatbuilding and related industries by working with organisations like the BBA and providing a mix of ​mentoring, workshops and social opportunities.
 
Amy Stringfellow, WIBB director, has worked with Will to create the Women’s Workshop, a five-day course which she has designed for women to try their hand at woodworking.
 
Eleven women have taken part in the programme so far with plenty of interest in future courses. Some of the women attending use the course as a taster, and an opportunity to talk to the BBA team about longer courses.
 
Women in Boatbuilding members already working in the boat building industry are also actively mentoring female BBA students.
 
BBA Graduate and WIBB Director Dr Obioma Oji has mentored current BBA student Marie Franklin.
 
Marie said: “It has been a joy for me to be part of the WIBB mentorship scheme. I have been so fortunate as my mentor is a fabulous woman who has taken time to listen to me and had encouraged me in so many ways. It’s super inspiring to see how she has developed her boatbuilding and I always look forward to spending time with her and her infinite wisdom.”
 
Founder of WIBB, Belinda Joslin said: “The first time I met Will in 2022 I asked him how many women he had enrolled on his upcoming 40-week boat building course, and he said: “None – and none in the course before it.
 
“Having worked as a finisher in the industry myself I wasn’t surprised by this.
 
“But I was impressed by Will’s determination to change this and his willingness to ask us for help. It’s very encouraging to see the progress we have already made through our joint strategy, combined with the inclusive environment that is a priority at BBA. “
 
She continued: “The BBA should now not only continue to proactively welcome and support women at the academy, but also expand to support BBA graduates when they enter the workforce. We have already seen great results through our own mentoring scheme. I would like to see the BBA form its own graduate mentoring programme.
 
“The industry continues to be very male dominated, so continuing the right support for women is crucial to retain them in boatbuilding roles. The BBA is forward-thinking enough to see that - done right - this can benefit the entire industry.”
 
For information on the BBA’s courses and bursaries please visit: www.boatbuildingacademy.com
 
Ends
 
Picture captions: 
D&i1 - Belinda Joslin (centre) visited the BBA in March to attend the traditional sailmaking course and spoke of her delight at progress so far, and the continuing mission to promote diversity and inclusion in boatbuilding. She is seen here with the BBA’s current female students. 
D&i2 – BBA student Marie Franklin (left) and BBA graduate and WIBB Director Dr Obiama Oji.
 
Media information on this release from Debbie Granville at: [email protected]