Sailing club given the lift it deserves by East Midlands Airport

Swarkestone Sailing Club, based near the airport, runs weekly Sailability sessions from April to November which gives access to the lake for a number of local people with a range of disabilities including spinal injuries, strokes and mental health issues. It is one of around 80 around the UK.

Some sailing dinghies have been adapted for different disabilities, including a club member who is paralysed from the neck down who steers it with her chin. But the club needs hoists to lift Sailability members from their wheelchairs and into the dinghies - and that's where EMA came in.

The club applied for and was granted £2,000 towards a special hoist from the EMA Community Fund, which hands out funding to eligible community groups and projects in the area around the airport. The club also successfully applied for £10,000 towards solar panels on the clubhouse roof from the airport's Low Carbon Energy Fund. Last year, EMA's Community fund topped £2m in handouts to groups including schools, charities and sports clubs.

Gary Flint of Swarkestone Sailability Club, which continues to meet weekly to socialise during the winter months, said: "It enables people who would not necessarily achieve in sport to be able to compete. It is a levelling sport, where disabled people can compete with able-bodied people. It is really friendly, everyone gets along, it is like a family who look out for each other.

"Coming here is a really great boost of positivity. It is not just the sailing, it is the social engagement, meeting these amazing people who make things happen."

Commenting on the funding from the EMA Community Fund, he added: "If we didn't have the hoist, a lot of members wouldn't be able to sail, so it makes a massive difference. The solar panels are providing longevity for the club. With fuel bills going through the roof, it means we can keep the club going as well as supporting the green initiative. People in wheelchairs tend to feel the cold more so it is great to be able to heat the building without it having a big impact on our bills."

EMA's Community Engagement Manager Colleen Hempson recently joined other EMA staff at the club to volunteer for the day, helping to get the boats ready, pack them away and assist getting the Sailability members on and off the dinghies.

She said: "It was wonderful to see firsthand how the funding helps the club, and a privilege to spend time with the club members, carers and volunteers who clearly get a huge amount of enjoyment at Swarkestone Sailing Club. The way the hoist enables people to get out of their wheelchairs and onto the water, providing them with an enormous sense of freedom, was really heartwarming to witness.

"The solar panels are also of huge benefit for the Sailability sessions which continue throughout the year even when sailing isn't possible, and helps to keep bills down while keeping the clubhouse warm, which is especially important for those in wheelchairs."

The Airport Community Fund is open for applications from eligible local groups - for more information visit Supporting The Local Community | East Midlands Airport

Photo: Sailibility club member Ken Butterfield uses the hoist to take to the water

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