• All meals and refreshments while onboard

• Accommodation onboard

• Instructor costs and all your safety equipment

• Rental of oilskins/waterproofs is £5pd

• Any food or drinks ashore are at everyone own expense

• Mooring fees will be split amongst the crew for nights spent in marinas outside of the MDL family. This may amount to up to £25 p/person.

Please contact us at info@londonschoolofsailing.co.uk to discuss payment options

Please see our BOOKING TERMS AND CONDITIONS for details about changing your course once booked

For the competent crew course, no prior experience is required, although it may be beneficial if you have yacht or dinghy sailing experience.

The Competent Crew course is 5 days and 4 night s long.

You will be sailing on one of LSS’s sailing yachts kept on the River Hamble. They are able to sleep 8 people comfortably but will have a maximum of 5 plus the instructor.

The boats are Cougar and Panther, Reflex 38’s. They are racing boats which provide a great training experience, but as such you should expect basic but comfortable bunk style accommodation.

The boats are based in the Port Hamble Marina in the Hamble Village.

The Solent, which the River Hamble is on the Northern edge of, is the perfect training area between Southampton Water and the Isle of Wight.

Notorious for consistent winds, wicked tides, and a gorgeous variety of harbours, rivers and anchorages to visit.

An average week will see you visit any of the below:

• Cowes

• Yarmouth

• Beaulieu river

• Lymington

• The Needles & Alum Bay

• Newtown Creek

• Portsmouth

• Wooton Creek

• Osbourn Bay

• Langstone Harbour

• Chichester Harbour

  and many other little anchorages.

During the event, accommodation on the boat is provided.

If travelling from afar, it might be advisable to book accommodation the night before or after the event dates.

After completing the RYA Competent Crew course, it is the perfect stepping stone to either, complete your Day Skipper Theory course, or just any experience getting out on the water as crew to build your miles and sea time by racing, or cruising with friends.

We will be in marinas and harbours every day most likely so you won’t need to shower on the boat. The boats are fitted with a functional toilet, sink, shower and basic kitchen (galley) for cooking.

Please take a look at our kit list here.

Don’t forget your sleeping bag (and a pillow if you’d like).

The aim of this course is to introduce the complete beginner to cruising and to teach personal safety, seamanship and helmsmanship to the level required to be a useful member of the crew of a cruising yacht.

• Knowledge of sea terms and parts of a boat, her rigging and sails

• Sail handling

• Ropework Fire precautions and fire fighting

• Personal safety equipment

• Man overboard

• Emergency equipment

• Manners and customs

• Rules of the road

• Dinghies

• Meteorology

• Sea sickness

• Helmsmanship and sailing

  General Duties

• Sufficient knowledge to understand orders given concerning the sailing and day-to-day running of the boat

• Bending on, setting, reefing and handling of sails

• Use of sheets and halyards and their associated winches

• Handling ropes, including coiling, stowing, securing to cleats and single and double bollards

  Handling warps

• Ability to tie the following knots and to know their correct use: figure-of-eight, clove hitch, rolling hitch, bowline, round turn and two half hitches, single and double sheet bend, reef knot

• Awareness of the hazards of fire and the precautions necessary to prevent fire

• Knowledge of the action to be taken in event of fire

• Understands and complies with the rules for the wearing of safety harnesses, lifejackets and personal buoyancy aids

• Understands the action to be taken to recover a man overboard

• Can operate distress flares and knows when they should be used

• Understands how to launch and board a liferaft

• Understands accepted practice with regard to the use of burgees and ensigns, prevention of unnecessary noise or disturbance in the harbour including courtesies to other craft berthed alongside

• Aware of the responsibility of yacht skippers to protect the environment

• Is able to keep an efficient lookout at sea

• Understands and complies with the loading rules

• Is able to handle a dinghy under oars

• Awareness of forecasting services and knowledge of the Beaufort Scale

• Working efficiency is unaffected/partially affected/severely affected by seasickness

• Understands the basic principles of sailing and can steer and trim sails on all points of sailing

• Can steer a compass course, under sail and power

• Has carried out general duties satisfactorily on deck and below decks in connection with the daily routine of the vessel.