WATCH: Local children welcomed aboard one of Maldon’s historic Thames sailing barges for free activity day

By Ben Shahrabi

16th Apr 2023 | Local News

Local children learned the history of the Thames Sailing Barge Centaur on Thursday (April 14), to help keep it sailing from Maldon for future generations.

The Thames Sailing Barge Trust owns two barges based at Maldon's Hythe Quay: Centaur and Pudge. Centaur regularly hosts guests for trips and activity days. Meanwhile, Pudge is currently nearing the end of her five-year restoration and is expected to be opened to the public next month.

During the day, four groups of 15 children were welcomed aboard Centaur and given activity kits detailing the history of the 128-year-old vessel. Activities included a knowledge trail, colouring in, and writing names using flag signals. Each kit contained an activity book, a pencil, and a piece of rope to learn how to tie sailors' knots with.

Jenny Baines, a local schoolteacher, helped organise and run the activity day.

She told Nub News: "A lot of local families don't know what the barges are here for. We can explain their history and why they're here.

"I love sharing all the knowledge and passion that all the Barge Trust volunteers have."

Barges like Centaur were traditionally sailed by a skipper and a mate – one man and a boy. In the last few years, The Thames Sailing Barge Trust has taken on several local youngsters, to train them as future third hands, mates and, ultimately, skippers. It aims to make a workforce available to sail the historic barges in the future.

The Trust's next Children's Activity Day will be on June 1. Places can be booked via the website. Before that, the public are invited to visit the newly-restored Sailing Barge Pudge, alongside Centaur, on May 1.

For more information, visit the Thames Sailing Barge Trust's website.