Statement on Paddlesport Activity
Apr 12, 2020
SCA statement on paddlesport activity - 12th April 2020
This statement supersedes guidance issued on 25th March and 26th March 2020.
In light of the government’s Stay at Home measures to stop the spread of COVID-19 and more recent requests from several organisations to do everything we can to reduce the burden on the emergency services, the SCA strongly recommends that all paddlesport activity on Scottish waters cease until further notice.
We recognise that some members will feel confident that they could paddle without impacting on the emergency services nevertheless we urge everyone to refrain from going out paddling at this time. The RNLI statement on 9th April 2020
and the HM Coastguard Blog
demonstrate the types of pressures that organisations are under and the difficulties they face trying to maintain social distancing whilst carrying out their work.
Members of the public have been calling the emergency services after seeing people paddling, even when there was no need for them to be alerted. This has been placing an unnecessary burden on the emergency services and it risks people’s health through potentially exposing emergency personnel to COVID-19. It also reduces the ability of the emergency services to respond to future incidents, through the need for staff to self isolate.
We recognise that these are challenging times for us all and our first priority is the safety and health of everyone, as we do our level best to stop the spread of the virus. We really appreciate the level of creativity and innovation shown by many within our community to keep people connected, virtually, at this time. We are confident that we will emerge from this an even stronger community of paddlers.
The SCA is doing everything we can to support paddlers and we have arranged a series of webinars
for the community to come together to discuss, share and learn more about our sport. The recent survey we carried out has informed the support we provide and we have already issued a range of guidance to members, clubs, providers and coaches and hosted several online events. Check out our news feed
for more details. Please let us know
if there is anything further you think we can do.
Government “Stay at Home” Guidance
People are only allowed to leave their home for the following purposes:
- shopping for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible
- one form of exercise a day - alone or with members of your household
- any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person and
- travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home
These four reasons are exceptions and government advice is to minimise time spent outside of the home, ensuring you are two metres apart from anyone outside of your household.
General Guidance
For general queries related to COVID-19, please follow government guidance:
HIGHLIGHTED EVENTS
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We are pleased to announce a new course date available to book for the BCAB Core Coach Training taking place online.
Mental Health First Aid Training - 20th May 2024 at Glenmore Lodge AWARD IN FIRST AID FOR MENTAL HEALTH AT SCQF LEVEL 5 (1 day course) We are delighted to be able to offer you the opportunity to complete Mental Health First Aid Training at Glenmore Lodge Monday 20th May 0830 - 1730. This will be run by Noush Duffy and Mo Samson - two experienced paddlesport coaches, Mental Health First Aid trainers and part of the Paddle Scotland Equality Groups. This Paddle Scotland course is being offered at the subsidised rate of £75 (inc. lunch and refreshments for the day). Bookings close 5 May . Sunday evening accommodation at Glenmore Lodge is also available to book via the link below. We are passionate about supporting paddlesport coaches to increase knowledge in this area so you can better support the people you work with. We'd love it if you could attend. Login to JustGo Then click here to book This forms part of our longer term strategy to increase Mental Health knowledge and awareness within our coaches and leaders and will be the first of other subsidised courses to follow.
We have two upcoming training opportunities for coaches wanting to become a provider of the Paddlesport Safety and Rescue Course.
Spaces are available to book for the All Ability session at the 2024 Scottish Women's Paddle Symposium, which will take place 17-19 May 2024 at Glenmore Lodge in Aviemore.
