A lovely letter from their teacher, we're so pleased they had an amazing adventure and grew in skill and confidence.

On behalf of ten boys and girls from Year 8 at St Michael’s Middle School, and myself as their teacher, I would like to thank you and your Foundation very much indeed for substantially financing our Tall Ships Adventure 2018.

We took children from varied backgrounds on the voyage and it was fantastic to see how they grew in confidence in so many different ways: in having confidence in themselves as individuals; in becoming more confident in feeling part of a team; and in developing confidence in approaching new and challenging situations in a positive way.

It is always so rewarding to see the youngsters respond in this way – I feel very privileged to have been part of it.

This experience will stand them in good stead as they shortly move on to upper school and face new challenges and opportunities.

On the voyage, we were able to sail across to the Channel Islands again, which was amazing! Although many of the children had to learn some resilience when faced with sea sickness, they did so admirably! Some of the children’s highlights were: having dolphins swimming alongside the yacht as we approached St Peter Port in Guernsey; learning how to sail (especially helming), navigate and how to tie and use different knots; cooking for 16 people; swimming in the sea water outdoor pools in Guernsey; enjoying the beautiful beach at Alderney; and dangling their legs over the side while sailing along and watching the sun set.

When asked what they would like to say to you all at the John Thornton Young Achievers Foundation in response to their voyage, these were some of the youngsters’ comments:

‘I can’t thank you enough. It was an amazing trip that wouldn’t have happened without your generosity.’

‘Thank you for paying some money. I really enjoyed the trip. It was a once in a lifetime experience thanks to the charity.’

‘Thank you for helping to pay and giving me this amazing opportunity. I will remember it forever.’

‘I would like to thank them a lot for paying for this amazing trip.’

‘Thank you so much for your generosity as it was the best trip of my life and I will remember it all my life.’

As you can see, this voyage has had a huge impact on these youngsters and they are very grateful indeed to have had this opportunity.

It is a really unique experience and so valuable, so we thank you very much for this year’s support and are very excited to hear that you have offered to support us again next year.

With many thanks and best wishes

Heather Prest and the St Michael’s Year 8 Crew!