This winter will be a busy time in our coastal environment with hundreds of young people embarking on Beach Ranger Academy Training, creating the next generation of blue leaders.

The Academy Training encourages young people aged 16 to 24 to connect with Cornwall’s marine surroundings through a structured programme of personal development. Through engaging activities that will build confidence, teamwork, communication and other life skills, the programme not only increases employability but also raises awareness of important environmental issues to a wider audience.

Brender Willmott, Beach Rangers Academy Leader says,

“It’s a really exciting opportunity for young people to gain training, awards, and rewards that will make them more employable. The Academy recognises the special places we live and encourages young people to celebrate and protect them.”

The Beach Rangers Academy is being run this year in both Newquay at the College and in Falmouth at the Dracaena Centre, and all young people are encouraged to get involved;

Jenn Sandiford, Youth Engagement Officer says,

“The Beach Rangers Academy is an adventure, engaging young people to learn new skills that they need for their future. Enhancing young people’s employability skills whilst educating them in marine conservation means they become more effective volunteers for local groups. It instills best practice so that when they become the future employers and employees, the best practice is already in place which helps the environment.”

Working with young people ensures that the work within this project is sustainable for the future. As Beach Rangers through the Bronze, Silver and Gold programmes, trained Beach Rangers will go on to organise and lead public engagement activities that promote the local marine environment to local secondary school pupils and the general public, enabling them to gain new skills relevant to finding jobs, training, volunteering opportunities, or starting entrepreneurial projects that contribute to the green economy.

The Academy is part of the Your Shore Beach Rangers Project, a partnership project with Cornwall Wildlife Trust and Cornwall College Newquay. The project will be running hundreds of events over the next three years so that by 2020 we have engaged thousands of Beach Rangers, school children, and community members. As a result, people of all ages and abilities will have an increased understanding about our fantastic marine environment and be in a better position to protect it, whilst a network of young people will have improved their skill sets, in education and life, to enable them to progress into the future and become leading voices for the environment in Cornwall and beyond.

A fantastic, new interactive website has been developed by the Project to help guide people into the programmes. If you are looking to learn new skills, meet interesting people, be part of a community and achieve qualifications that will look great on your CV, we would love to see you get involved.

For more information on the project, please see www.beachrangers.com
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