Conservation and Restoration Project of a Heritage Wooden Tall Ship ‘Tectona’
This project, funded by The Radcliffe Trust has brought together the knowledge, skills and experience of skilled shipwrights, boat builders and sailors with the enthusiasm of regular weekly volunteers. The volunteers have included people from a wide range of backgrounds, including those in recovery from Addiction and Mental Health Issues, ex-service personnel, students, ex-offenders and retired people. Together they have developed their skills and worked with their hands to conserve and rebuild the Tall Ship Tectona in order to get her sailing and providing life changing voyages to those in Recovery.
Piers (a local young man who had completed a boatbuilding apprenticeship with the RNLI) joined the Tectona refurbishment team with a great attitude and lots of skill but a gap in wooden boat building. Since joining Tectona’s refurbishment, he has gained invaluable experience from working on a real-life project alongside other shipwrights and volunteers. He has honed his woodworking skills whilst replacing the bulwarks and rebuilding the aft hatch. In September he is going on to complete a course at Falmouth Boat Building School and Tectona has inspired him to pursue a career in the heritage boat building industry.
