2025 Blind and Visually impaired Surfing Sessions Funded by The Primary Club
This is your chance to try surfing if you are visually impaired or blind. These sessions have been made possible by the fantastic support from The Primary Club who are funding this initiative.
Each session will be lead by Team England para coaches and supported by trained coaches, volunteers and para athletes. Everyone volunteering on these sessions will be fully trained by Surfing England and lead by coaches with experience coaching visually impaired and blind surfers. We will also be joined by Melissa Reid 3 x world champion in the visually impaired classification, Melissa will be on hand to give advice and share her coaching knowledge.
No previous experience required and all equipment (including wetsuits) will be provided.
More details below and please sign up here Sign Up Form if you want to join us on any of the sessions. DO NOT contact the surf centres directly.
Locations and dates:
1st July, The Wave, Bristol
14th – 15th August, Croyde
26th + 28th September, South Shields
The session details
Timings:
We will be at the beach/The Wave all day, so you are welcome to come along from about 10am. We will run up to 3 sessions throughout the day depending on numbers.
Sessions will run at 11am, 1pm and 3pm. Please arrive 1 hour before your session for an introduction and so you can get kitted up in your wetsuit. Sessions will be 90 minutes long, which will include around 60 minutes in the water. For THE WAVE, the sessions will run at 10:30am and 12:30pm.
You can specify on the sign up form which time would work best for you. In advance you will be allocated a session before the day so you can plan accordingly. You can arrive early and stay to watch other sessions if you want to make the most of the whole day, but the volunteers and coaches will only be available to assist you during your allocated session.
Facilities:
All locations will have parking, toilets and changing areas available for you. These vary by location. We will send more details, including a specific meeting point nearer the time so that you can plan your day accordingly.
If you need assistance with any personal care needs such as getting changed into a wetsuit, please bring someone with you.
Equipment:
You do not need any specific equipment for the day, but please make sure to have swimwear to wear under a wetsuit. If you have your own wetsuit, feel free to bring that to wear.
We will provide boards, buoyancy aids/life jackets (as needed), helmets (as needed), rash vests and surfboards.
There will be trained instructors with lots of experience coaching people with visual impairments, they will be there to assist people from arrival on the day.
What to bring:
Please make sure to bring swimwear, a towel and warm clothes for when you finish your session. Please also remember to bring water and snacks to keep you fuelled throughout the day. It is likely you will be quite tired after you finish your session.
If it’s a sunny day, remember to bring suncream and a hat. Ideally make sure you have waterproof suncream for your face during the session.
DON’T FORGET TO BRING ANY MEDICATION THAT YOU REQUIRE OR MAY NEED THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
Final notes:
REMEMBER TO SIGN UP FOR ONE OF THE SESSIONS. YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO TAKE PART UNLESS YOU HAVE REGISTERED FOR A SESSION.
A huge thank you to The Primary Club who have funded these sessions.
A further thank you to all the fantastic surf centres who are supporting these sessions. To South Shields Surf School CIC in South Shields, The Wave in Bristol and Surf South West X The Wave Project in Croyde, North Devon.
For all enquiries, please contact Jack@surfingengland.org
