Registered Charity No: 1107119
Leicestershire and Rutland Youth Sailing Association
10am to 4pm – booking in advance is essential,
by email or phone
Beginners and experienced sailors welcome
No charge on the day but donations welcome
Saturday Morning Kids Club for Beginners
Weekly - 9.30am to 12.30pm - £15 / week
Saturday Youth Advance / Race Training
Weekly - 9.30am to 12.30pm - £15 /week
August Holiday 1 week Courses
- Beginners / Stage 1&2
- Advanced / Stage 3&4
2024 Dates
5th - 9th August 2024
19th - 23rd August 2024
£190 for the whole week (5 days / 9am to 4pm) including all instruction & equipment.
6 Week RYA Level 1 & 2 Course
Saturdays x 6 - 1.30 pm to 4 pm - £290 / course
Next Course Starts 13th April 2024
Relaxed RYA Level 1 & 2 Course
Tuesdays 9.30am to 1pm - £10 / week
2 Days - 9am to 4pm £290 / Course
Date TBC
2 Days - 9am to 4pm £290 / Course
Date TBC
Lord-Lieutenant Michael Kapur OBE, the official representative of His Majesty The King for the county and city of Leicester, cut a red ribbon to mark the occasion of our official opening, alongside Mayor of Charnwood, Cllr Jennifer Tillotson, and LRYSA President Keith Lynch.
LRYSA President Keith Lynch praised the tremendous effort of the volunteers who had made the project possible. He said: “This has been a long journey for us to achieve the opening of this building and boat yard and I’d like to thank all of the people who’ve been involved.”
The LRYSA previously operated from a muddy compound with a collection of sheds and a Portaloo, with no electricity or running water. We are now able to run our activities from a gravelled boatyard with a modern clubhouse, which includes a large classroom, changing rooms and showers, disabled access, and a smaller training room with a kitchen area for catering.
Read the full article on the RYA website here
"Hero dives into Watermead Park lake after man falls in strapped into his mobility scooter"
Quick-thinking Pete Magee saved the life of a man on Monday (11/07/2022) after he heard a “large splash”. The man had plunged six feet down an embankment into a lake while still strapped into his mobility scooter in Watermead Country Park, Syston.
Pete dived into the waters of John Merricks Lake to help the man stay above water. He beckoned a passing dog-walker to help raise the alarm, while a second bystander entered the lake to help him keep the scooter upright while emergency services could arrive. The man, semi-conscious, was helped from the lake by fire crews with a winch and taken to the hospital via ambulance shortly after.
2005 Norfolk Broads
The Committee and members of the LRYSA are saddened to hear of the passing of John Buckingham. John was one of the founders of the LRYSA along with John Saunders and our current chair Colin Magee. At the time sailing was just for the wealthy and privileged, John wanted to make sailing, canoeing, and other water sports accessible and affordable to the whole community with a focus primarily on the young. The Leicestershire Schools Sailing Association (as we were known then) was created in 1967 through his work with the Outdoor Pursuits Department at County Hall. John and the other founders set to work begging and borrowing boats and equipment to set up a watersports centre at John Merrick's Lake in Watermead Country Park where it is still based today. Over the years, thousands of young people and adults have benefited from Johns inspiration. For many years John was senior coach and chairman of the LRYSA supporting and developing our activities throughout Leicestershire.
John was also a dear friend with a wonderfully cheeky sense of humour and compassion for the less fortunate. Our thoughts and sympathy go to his widow Helen and his family at this sad time.
Read more about John on the RYA website here
2018 Outstanding Contribution to Sailing Award
All courses include instruction from our highly trained RYA Instructors plus the boat & safety equipment (wetsuit, buoyancy aids, helmets) that you will need to enjoy your time on the water.
Please feel free to email us for more details or if you'd like to register for one of our courses
Activities take place on John Merricks Lake located in North Watermead Park, Syston, Leicester.
The LRYSA (The Leicestershire & Rutland Youth Sailing Association) is a registered Charity with the aim to make sailing accessible to the whole community regardless of their mental or physical abilities, age or background. We have a strong reputation and many years' experience working with vulnerable young people and are the only RYA Sailability accredited Centre in Leicestershire.
All Instructors are trained to high RYA standards and we rely on local funding to be able to maintain these qualifications and also the level of boats and equipment we need to safely offer our services at a very low cost or often free to our most vulnerable groups.
Please feel free to get in touch if you are interested or want some more information ....some of our Volunteer Roles available:
Sailing Instructors: We can help if some of your qualifications are out of date
Power Boat Drivers: To help us with Safety cover
On-Shore Volunteers: Especially if you have experience of working with vulnerable children (severely disabled, blind or autistic children)
Admin & Marketing Volunteers: creating marketing materials (such as flyers), social media, contacting local groups & businesses and helping us spread the Word!!
General Volunteers: we can always find you something to do!!
Details of Courses & Dates + More Information about Sailing
Feel free to Contact Us with any questions
All courses are run to Royal Yachting Association (RYA) standards and all Instructors hold RYA Qualifications. The RYA undertakes an inspection of our activities each year.