We strive to maintain the charity’s motto of ‘Changing Lives’. We want every person on our ships to learn and grow – it is easy to think that the multi-ability sailing ship will only change the person with the disability’s life but this is simply not true. By engaging, living, and learning together, there is much to be gained.
We gather information and statistics that constantly prove what a difference we make to people’s lives. After each voyage we send out a post-voyage questionnaire. Please keep reading to see the questions we ask and the results we have gathered from these.
- Your ability to work with people more or less able than yourself after your voyage – 65% have rated very good & excellent (combined)
- Whilst on our voyages people’s awareness of disability change. Everyone has their own individual strengths, be it in a physical way or a strength of character. The buddy system allows people to operate together as a single unit so that they are able to monitor and help each other.
- Your attitudes towards people with different physical disabilities after your voyage – 83% have rated very good & excellent (combined)
- Learning that people with disabilities are fundamentally no different from people without disabilities helps reduce fear and avoidance. Our results show that people’s attitudes have changed and provides a greater understanding of what can be achieved.
- Your awareness of what can be achieved by a mixed ability team in a well-designed environment after your voyage? 87% have rated very good & excellent (combined)
- People with disabilities are the same as non-disabled people in many ways, but there are often tremendous differences in abilities. These results show that once people have taken part in a voyage, they gain an understanding and a greater awareness of what can be achieved and so people’s perceptions change.
- Your personal development after your voyage? 68% have rated very good & excellent (combined)
- Personal development includes activities such as improving self-awareness, improving self-knowledge, developing strengths, improving health, improving social abilities, and fulfilling aspirations. These are just some examples of personal development, however our figures indicate that one or more of these areas has improved.
- Your self-esteem after your voyage? 83% have rated very good & excellent (combined)
- Where good emotional health and positive self-esteem are strong predictors of happiness. People who have taken part in one of our voyages have felt their ability to cope with day to day situations has improved.
- Your understanding of how obstacles faced by people with disabilities can be reduced or removed after your voyage? 83% have rated very good & excellent (combined)
- One of the biggest barriers faced, and probably the hardest to remove, is stereotypical thinking. People with disabilities are just people who may happen to have difficulty with some day to day activities, such as walking, moving, talking, seeing, hearing, and so forth. Our voyages indicate that people’s perceptions change when placed in a mixed environment. People become more educated.
