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RYA Scotland hosted a well attended inaugural meeting at Port Edgar on 27 November of Sailing Development Group Office Bearers from across Scotland. While a record of the meeting will be issued I thought it could be useful if I highlighted some items particularly relevant to HMS. I've also added a couple of news items at the end of the message.

RYAS Strategic Plan James Stuart (COO RYAS) is very keen to reflect SDG needs in the next strategic plan (2013 - 16). March 2012 will be the time to collect input and James plans to attend the 
HM Sailing Seminar at Royal Findhorn YC on
10 March 2012 so part of our programme will again include a Reps meeting. Come with ideas!
SDG Junior Sailing Championships The suggestion is for each SDG to hold a junior sailing championship on the same weekend across Scotland 6/7 October 2012. If we want to do this, we need to put it on our operational plan, find a host and arrange support.
Honda RIB championships This popular event will take place on 16 June 2012 but this time the intention is to have 4 training events spread across the country. Simon Paterson has been tasked to run a northern event and is in contact with one of our clubs to see if they could provide the venue.
Junior dinghy trip to Shetland? The chairperson of Shetland & Orkney Sailing (yes, SOS), Marsali Taylor, has made a tentative invitation for HMS juniors to fly-up to Shetland in the summer to train and compete with the SOS juniors. This may be something we would like to explore in the context of Open Race Training and enter in the operational plan. If this goes ahead, the understanding would be that we would host a return match in 2013.
Safeguarding Children & Protected Adults.
If your policy has not been updated for a couple of years it will almost certainly be out of date. RYAS now offers an on-line template that you can adapt for your club or centre's needs - see link.
RYAS Big Weekend 25/26 February 2012 will now have some trade stands (Boat Show) and will also include the RYAS Annual Award Ceremony - keep checking for details and please consider making some nominations for the awards. See link.
HMS News
Regional Race Management Seminar (for aspiring Regional Race Officers) will be hosted by Chanonry SC over a weekend in February and will be delivered by David Kent of the Scottish Sailing Institute hopefully assisted by Iona Cornish. The cost will be £75/head but for Highland residents, Coaching Highland grants will be available as the Regional Race Officers will then be able to train Club Race Officers in their own clubs. The precise dates are still under discussion but if you are interested, please contact training@chanonry.org.uk. 
HMS Sailing Seminar 10 March
@ Royal Findhorn YC Confirmed so far (in addition to James Stuart) is Chris Owen (SailTrimCoach), Lorna Summers & Pete Danks (Portsoy build your own Optimist project) & Jude Monson (successful yacht race crew who competes internationally without owning her own boat - aimed at the younger sailor wanting to make the transition from dinghies to yachts).
Richard Jenner
HMS Chairman 
chairman@hmsailing.org.uk