Rockley Watersports is again hosting the successful Can Do Festival and Dorset School Games watersports events in Poole Park as part of the national Your School Games initiative. Both events are growing in popularity with school children and academies across the county getting involved and signing up to take part.
Niki Birrell, double Paralympic bronze medallist and five time sailing World Champion, will be in Poole Park at 2.30pm on each day of the events to meet with children and teachers and to present the medals. Currently working with PKF-Francis Clark Chartered Accountants and Business Advisors, Niki was the youngest member of the British Paralympic Sailing team and represented ParalympicGB at three consecutive Games. He was part of the team that achieved the most successful performance in sailing at a Paralympic Games.
Both events take place across four days for Primary and Secondary school pupils. The inaugural Can Do watersports festival was launched in 2016 as an initiative to motivate and inspire thousands of young people across the country to take part in competitive sport. The Festival is a dedicated two day event for children on the SEN register who take part in taster sessions on the water and coming together to finish the day with a team kayak race. Each year this particular event grows in popularity and the 2018 Can Do Festival has 38 schools signed up for over 290 children to get out on the water.
The Dorset School Games will see 20 schools and up to 200 children take part in the dinghy sailing regatta on Poole Park Lake. For four consecutive years Rockley and Active Dorset have collaborated to provide hundreds of Dorset school children the opportunity to get on the water and compete to represent their school. The continued, successful partnership with Active Dorset now includes the Can Do Festival offering watersports activities and opportunities for all school children.
