RYA HQ

[Guest]

The RYA wants to relocate its HQ. I suggested it was time it moved away from the Solent. That it had been there long enough, and its proximity meant that Solent issues got a disproportionate amount of management time.

As there are more members outside Hampshire than within it, I suggested somewhere in Essex. I don't come from Essex. No personal axe to grind.

Why did the Sec General (name of Carr) not want the subject debated by the members who pay him?

William Cooper

 

[Guest]

I suggest becasue they are out of touch. Quite probably, though, the board memebers and staff are living in Hamsphire and they would be dammed if they would move to Essex.

 

[ccscott49]

They could move to the west country, nice spot and they need the work down there.

 

[brianhumber]

Your post re lack of discussion with the members is why I am not a member. If this goes ahead the RYA will become even more disfunctional than it is at the moment with the ensuing disruption and enforced staff changes. Any bets that the HQ will move to where Carr's home is?
having said that, these days, with electronics it does not matter where the location is. You could have the HQ in Oban for example. Same goes for Coastguards- Solent Coastguard moves to Oban?.

 

[Guest]

Humpy, you and I tend to think the same. Mr carr wrote to me saying that because all the staff, and all the council and all the paid employees and all his friends lived in Hampshire, the RYA HQ had to stay there.

Yachting is nationwide. Pity the RYA is not.

William Cooper

 

[Mr Cassandra]

So .Is it a good idear if they move to Birmingham?[ that doe`s not look right] but you get my drift. cheers bob t

Bob T

 

[ccscott49]

I'm not reallu sure if it matters where they go, as they will be out of touch with the boating community wherever they are!

 

[JohnR]

Isn't the move to allow them to expand the staff? I don't know what they do at the moment, nothing that benefits my boating so far as I can see. IMHO the RYA is run for the benefit of it employees not for the benefit of its members.

 

[ccscott49]

They do some good work, but not a lot for the cruising types, IMHO of course, I know we've had this discussion a few times before, looks like it's starting again!

 

[poter]

Why have an RYA H/Q at all? Fire all the directors and staff and just open a call centre.
everyone else is doing it!

poter

 

[cgull]

They could move to Birmingham,top floor of the RAC building at M5 junction

 

[burgundyben]

Bill, I agree that solent issues do take a disproportionate amount of the RYAs time, but there is a disproportionate amount of sailing activity in the Solent, the move is only 10 miles, a move farther afield would only cause disruption (I move production lines around the world and I know about the problems of moving organisations only too well).

I dont think this move is going to make any difference to the way the RYA serves its members or not as the case may be, I have to agree with the sentiment of your post, something does need to be done by the RYA as its seen to be a failing organisation by too many people, do they read this do you think?



burgundyben, coolest of men, by all I'm called, cool burgundyben.

 

[claymore]

Time Gentlemen Please.

I've hung off this one for long enough.
Modern communications methods mean that location is not as important as it perhaps used to be.
Take the RYA away says Poter - that can't be a serious suggestion.
Hampshire is central - East to West and as most of the sailing in this country happens somewhere on the South Coast - Hampshire is good enough.
Finally Bill, Rod Carr is an extremely effective, capable and dedicated man whose efforts over the years have done so much good for a vast range of people - as have the eforts of the RYA. It is the National Authority, rather like the BCU, BMC,ASA, AAA - it is a voluntary sector organisation and like them it has its detractors - but all aspects of watersports that it deals with in the UK would be considerably poorer without it - lets start with the haul of Golds in Sydney,- achieved through the securing of realistic funding and the marrying of talented sailors to world class RYA coaches, move on if you wish to the world envied dinghy, windsurfing and powerboat coaching courses and finally - if you have a little legal problem, give the RYA a ring and ask for Edmund Whelan.
It would be nice to stop RYA bashing really - its a pointless exercise - why not accept that they cannot please all of the people.....
Before closing - How can you bash them on the one hand then appear offended on the other when they don't feel the need to discuss relocation with you? The people who run the RYA are more than capable of making that decision themselves - based on their knowledge of their operations.
Regards
John S

 

[bedouin]

I agree that there is no real need for the RYA to be based near the Solent, but it has some advantages.

Firstly, the Solent (or more exactly Chi-Poole) is undoubtedly the centre of the UK sailing industry with a larger concentration of sailing there than anywhere else in the UK. This is reflected in the number of clubs, and marine industry companies based there. This in turn means that suitable staff are easier to find.

Perhaps more importantly - relocating the HQ of any organisation is a major undertaking. To move HQ more than a few miles means that you are likely to lose >50% of your staff within a year or so - and that is a major disruption.

 

[jamesjermain]

Bill, you do perpetuate some rot at times.

You know perfectly well that the Council is made up of Regional and other representatives from all over the country including Northern Ireland and that it meets in London for just this reason, not Eastleigh.

The headquarters at Easlleigh if for the full-time professional staff and if you have ever been there you will know that the Association HAS to move because the building in totally unsuitable for any use other than a Victorian Workhouse. Points made elsewhere explain why a move to purpose built accommodation not to many miles away is the only realistic course.

A move to Essex or Devon or Northumbria would have no benefits and an enormous number of disadvantages - not the least of which would be that I might lose some freelance earnings!

JJ

 

[Guest]

How right you are, James. I have never read so much rot as has been written by some people about the RYA, its work and how it works. Anybody who does not who Rod Carr is should learn to keep their ill founded opinions to themselves.
I used to drive from Cornwall to Eastleigh for regular meetings at training division, and curse the journey, but others had worse.
Solent is quite the most central, and it is necessary for a whole host of reasons to stay there.

 

[claymore]

Mike did you know the guy who was Regional Race Training Coordinator - used to do a lot at Restronguet and various other clubs - I think he's died now and I just cannot remember his name - I was RYA RRTC in the North West for a few years
js

 

[Guest]

The cynical and scathing remarks about the RYA byCCScott and others are rude and quite uncalled for. They are also parochial, as RYA compares very favourably against national authorities in many countries.
As for location, if RYA was purposely (and negatively) sited far from the Solent area, it would spend much more on travel because so many activities (for better or worse) are in that part of the coast.

 

[Guest]

Re: Time Gentlemen Please.

Where do you get the idea that south Hampshire is central? Presumably you live obn the south coast.

Where do you get the idea that the Solent area is the centre of british yachting?

There are more boats moored on the Thames and its estuary than in the Solent.

And they are used more. They do not sit at moorings all the time.

I do not find Mr Carr's performance at all effective. he seems to be a committee man. But then, the RYA seems to be a means of keeping committeee man busy.

William Cooper

 

[ccscott49]

It's funny that all the people who defend the RYA have something to do with them! Just an observation! I don't want to get embroiled in another debate! tee hee, remember last time?