There‘s an increasing national debate about our children’s mental health and the impact of digital – especially smartphones and social media – on their development. I read more and more articles about this topic, and find I am having frequent conversations about it with people my age (our children are now adults, some of us are grandparents!), feeling we should do something. We are lucky enough to have grown up in happier times, with freedom to make a mess, and a mess of things. Being a bit bored, allowed to roam unmonitored, had its risks but it gave us resilience (and the opportunity to experience the highs that come after the lows!).
To quote Dame Rachel D’Souza, The Childrens Commissioner, “there is a growing group of children who are struggling with their mental health. This generation of children has experienced uniquely uncertain and challenging times. Some have spent some of their most formative years isolated and indoors ………… not all children have the support system and protective factors they need to thrive in these difficult circumstances.”
For me, this is also personal. I am not a complete stranger to depression and anxiety, and I am convinced that if I had not been blessed with opportunities to get outdoors (often reluctantly) and face physical challenges – hikes in mountains, jobs on farms, adventurous travel, and above all messing around in boats (sometimes called sailing), then I too might have fallen victim to mental illness, which can be so debilitating and blights so many lives.
With our small team in Infotex spanning a range of ages, and several parents in our midst, I have always been conscious of the need, in our techie world, for us to take care of our mental well being. I could have done a lot more, and been more systematic, but as we have ploughed and furrowed our way through the past 2 decades, some of them intense in their onlineness, to find ourselves in this post-Covid dystopian world of remote working and on-screen communication, we try to retain some contact with reality. We have had an Infotex golf club, a sailing club, an Ipswich Town Supporters club, and numerous “gatherings”, hack days and jollies, which have been a lot of fun and helped to keep us all grounded and connected to each other. As I write this, I realise we need to do more, and I must do something about that..
One of our traditions has been to take a team to run in the Suffolk Whole Hog – this is a ridiculous – but marvellous – annual event on a beautiful Suffolk farm, in which several hundred people with a diverse range of fitnesses, speeds and agilities all run together on a cross country course of several kilometres, dotted with hazards and obstacles.
Whilst there is a competitive spirit, and one or two of the Infotex team go at it hard, it’s the taking part that counts, and for me, as each year goes by it does get increasingly hard to get round in a respectable time. It certainly helps to have a purpose, so raising a bit of money for a good cause does force me out onto the circuit…
For me, messing about in boats has been the most consistent of my activities, and I do feel a certain passion for all it can provide. The pleasure is not just in the activity itself, but in having an awareness of the nautical aspect of any story, whether reading or watching videos. Even travelling on a cross channel ferry has an added interest, because you can look at the harbour and the other boats, interested in their course, speed and manoeuvres.
So this year I am really excited that on 6th October our team will be running the Whole Hog to raise funds for the the AYC Schools Sailing Trust – a wonderful small charity that gets young people from schools and youth groups out onto the water for a taste of adventure. The kind of adventure that I think sailing is uniquely brilliant for – creativity, confidence, teamwork, communication, determination, and independence. The Trust aims to offer young people in Suffolk the chance to learn to sail and to connect with the incredible beauty of Suffolk’s River Alde.
This summer 222 children came from 12 local schools, out of whom 3 children went on to do a full sailing course and crew in a proper race – so they are now sailors! Being outdoors, working as a team, learning about tide and the wind – every child that participates, even if for one day, gains something from this new experience whether it is learning to steer on their own, or conquering a fear of water. As a volunteer on the water, I was struck by how many of the children were completely unaware of Suffolk’s coast and rivers, and how positive this experience is for many of them.
There is plenty of scope to expand this to more schools – demand is outstripping supply and there is a waiting list. Despite an army of volunteers there are still costs. £50 pays for a child to participate in a training day, £500 is needed to pay for the transport for a school to get its young sailors to the water. We hope you will agree this is a very worthwhile project, which deserves to be supported, having as it does the potential to transform lives.
…and think of what I am putting myself through to try to attract your attention!
