If you have a spare few minutes, please take a look at Alverstoke Junior School’s boating survey. Year 4 pupils at the school have put together a survey about boating and the environment as part of a project they are working on in conjunction with ‘AWARE – Around the World – A Race for the Environment’ – an initiative that links in with the next Vendee Globe. It’s great to see this younger generation taking an interest in the water and your input will be a great help to them – all answers are anonymous. Access the survey here: http://www.sendworx.co.uk/surveys.php?id=2

Landau UK’s Founder and Managing Director Ben Metcalfe was delighted to win Boating Business’s Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award which was presented to him by Peter Nash at the annual Boating Business/ Marine Trades Association Awards attended by 180 guests at the 2012 Tullett Prebon London Boat Show.

With the accent on highlighting the new generation who will be the future of the UK leisure marine industry the award is presented each year to an entrepreneur under 40 years old who has built a marine business using their own money that has made a difference to the marine industry.

Ben, who started Landau UK 16 years ago commenting on his achievement said “I am extremely honored to receive this most prestigious award from the Boating Business team. Especially as Boating Business is the authority and leader in our marine industry news. We have been very fortunate to have won a number of customer focussed awards over the years so to be recognised by the marine trade is very special to me and a great start to 2012. And without our valued trade and private customers who keep coming back to us I would not have been able to grow the company as I have, so a big thank you to all of you.”

The philosophy of Landau UK, which has now grown to over 15 strong and is based in Moodys old yard in Premier’s Swanwick Marina on the River Hamble in Southampton, is simply to put the customer first, give them the very best service, the best quality of work, advise and innovate, and keep it cheap!

This year sees Ben make one of his most significant investments to date, the acquisition and conversion of an ex Formula One articulated Hospitality Trailer into a Luxury Yacht, as a showcase for Landau UK’s most installed products and the quality of their workmanship, which will go on a waterside roadshow from April to September. The combination of the latest equipment to play with, great deals and engineers on hand for advice and customer boat visits Ben hopes, will attract and retain more customers for Landau UK this year.

For more information call 01489 577588 visit www.landauuk.com or email service@landauuk.com

With Easter just 10 weeks away, you may be interested to know that there are some last minute slots in the boatyard schedule still available in the run up to the first holiday week end of the season.

So if you haven’t yet booked your lift, call Shona at Marina Reception on 01489 884 081 or email swanwick@premiermarinas.com to check availability and we’ll do our best to fit you in.

The Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA) is delighted to announce that following a recent assessment, Premier’s Port Solent and Sovereign Harbour marinas have been awarded ‘Five Gold Anchors’ in TYHA’s prestigious Gold Anchor Award Scheme. This is an outstanding achievement for Premier with both scores ranking among the highest in the Scheme. TYHA’s Gold Anchor Award Scheme offers a trustworthy measure of excellence for boat owners looking to berth a boat on a permanent basis or to visit a marina with the Scheme scoring from 1 to 5 Gold Anchors.

PREMIER MARINAS PORT SOLENT

Premier’s Port Solent marina is located in Portsmouth Harbour and is one of the UK’s leading marinas with 800 berths in total, 400 of which are Premier owned and operated. The marina offers superb facilities and an enthusiastic and professional team headed up by General Manager Andy Osman. Port Solent is just one of eight South Coast marinas owned by Premier and in line with the company’s strategy for growth the marina offers everything a boater requires from an exciting cruising area to value for money berthing, fantastic facilities and boat care. Facilities at Port Solent include dedicated berth holder car parks and luxury showers and toilets and there’s a fully serviced boatyard with unlimited storage ashore. Other attractions include a wide range of boat care tenants, a chandlery, shops, restaurants, bars, a health club and a multiplex cinema.

Port Solent’s General Manager Andy Osman commented, “We are delighted and honoured to have been awarded Five Gold Anchors. This prestigious award reflects the hard work of my marina team and our continual investment in our marina services and facilities.”

“We are also very proud of the local services available at the marina. Port Solent is a modern, family friendly and fun marina offering a lively and vibrant waterside experience and The Boardwalk offers a delightful array of fine and casual dining to cater for all tastes.”

PREMIER MARINAS SOVEREIGN HARBOUR

Premier’s Sovereign Harbour is located on the Sussex coastline, just East of Eastbourne and is one of the UK’s leading marinas with 866 berths in total. The marina offers superb facilities and an enthusiastic and professional team headed by Marina Manager Janet Taylor. Sovereign Harbour is just one of eight South Coast marinas owned and operated by Premier and in line with the company’s strategy for growth the marina offers everything a boater requires from an exciting cruising area to value for money berthing, fantastic facilities and boat care. Facilities at Sovereign Harbour include dedicated berth holder car parks and a fully serviced boatyard. Other attractions include a wide range of onsite and local marine services, a chandlery, brokerage, shops, restaurants, cafés and wine bars.

Sovereign Harbour’s Marina Manager Janet Taylor commented, “We are delighted and honoured to have been awarded the highest accreditation achievable in the Gold Anchor Scheme. We are very proud of the marina’s services and facilities. The marina team work extremely hard and it’s pleasing to see that this has been recognised by a leading industry award scheme.”

Gareth Turnbull, TYHA General Manager said “Our detailed assessment and review of the berth holders’ satisfaction at Port Solent and Sovereign Harbour marinas proves that Premier Marinas is helping to set the standard for UK marinas.”

The Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA) provides support for marinas and related business throughout the UK and internationally. The Gold Anchor Award Scheme is a voluntary assessment programme which is focussed on customer service and providing quality moorings for the boat owner. The ratings range from 1 to 5 Gold Anchors and provide assurance of the credibility and quality of the marina when assessed against the technical criteria based on the Code of Practice for the Construction and Operation of Marinas and Yacht Harbours.

Premier Marinas is a keen supporter of TYHA’s Gold Anchor Award Scheme. Premier holds Five Gold Anchor awards at Sovereign Harbour, Brighton, Chichester and Gosport and in Falmouth and Southsea the company holds Four Gold Anchor Awards.

Port Solent’s General Manager, Andy Osman received the Five Gold Anchor Award from The Princess Royal at the 2012 London Boat Show. 

Watch the moment Port Solent’s General Manager, Andy Osman received the Five Gold Anchor Award from The Princess Royal here: CLIP: Port Solent’s General Manager, Andy Osman receives Five Gold Anchor Award

The Motor Boat of the Year Awards 2012, sponsored by Pantaenius, will bring together the great and the good from the motorboating world this year on 9 January in London.

The best companies from the industry will compete for prestigious awards in ten categories, with the winners announced at a gala evening.

Experts from Motor Boat & Yachting and Motor Boats Monthly magazines, along with a specially selected panel of judges, will decide the ten winners, with special mention for highly commended runners-up.

We are proud to announce that Dickies International has been nominated for the Garmin Europe Ltd Outstanding Service Award. Dickies International is based in Premier’s Swanwick and Brighton marinas.

This award is decided by nominations from the public. The award will go to the company that has provided extraordinary service in the marine industry. Just to be nominated for this award is a great honour.

As a Premier Berth Holder, we would like to remind you that in high wind conditions all our marinas carry out extra checks on the vessels in their care. These checks are carried out throughout the day and night and include checks on your lines and fenders to ensure that your boat is kept safe and secure. If there is a problem with your boat we will contact you immediately. If you are concerned about your boat at any time simply contact your home marina office – our offices are open 24 hours a day, every day.

On behalf of the Swanwick Team I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to our informal Christmas Party at Marina Reception on Tuesday and Wednesday 20th/21st December.
Come and share some nibbles, drink and a mince pie from 12.00hrs both days.
Catherine Birch from Premier’s Marketing Team is arranging a Christmas Hamper draw in support of Premier’s chosen charity, The Rainbow Center so do take a moment to drop by and purchase a ticket and support this worthwhile cause; you never know you may win some delicious food ! The draw will take place on Friday 23rd December.
Stay for few minutes or half an hour, if you can make it. It’ll be great to see you and say Happy Christmas

Berth holders, residents and marina visitors gathered at Sovereign Harbour Waterfront on Sunday 11^th December 2011 at 14.30 hours to enjoy the annual Christmas carol service. The Salvation Army band and crew from the Eastbourne Lifeboat were present and helped everyone get into the spirit of Christmas! Mulled wine and mince pies were served with donations to the New Lifeboat Appeal.

As part of our ongoing comitment to improve our site, Swanwick has recently undertaken a refurbishment of our customers storage facilities. The stores have been given a new lease of life by BDA Marine, our on site tenants and former Moody’s shipwrights. The result has transformed their appearance and extended their life dramatically.

     

For those who dont know, the stores are located opposite Vanilla Catering and CSL Publishing and available to all Berth Holders. Medium (6x4ft) & large stores (9x8ft) are currently available for hire from as little as £140.00 per quarter.

Why not make use of some great storage space so close to your boat?

Call Natalie Preston on 01489 884 081 or email swanwick@premiermarinas.com to book a store.

Lee Farrance

On Saturday 29^th October 2011, as part of Sovereign Harbour’s continuing Active Marina Programme, the marina held a ‘Lock Training Day’ for sailors, motor boaters and power boaters.

The aim of the event was to increase crew confidence and competence in locking and rafting. RYA Instructors met with Sovereign Harbour’s Duty Lock Keeper, Mark Tiernan to establish how the training would be carried out. RYA trainers then met with participants in Sovereign Harbour’s Yacht Club for a briefing. Overall, four powerboat owners and two yachtsmen took part in the locking day. Premier provided a dedicated lock for the day to assist with training. Vessels arrived at the lock and tied up on the waiting pontoon. A lock keeper deployed a lock packer and vessels proceeded into the lock. The lock turned and vessels exited into the outer harbour and repeated the exercise inbound. Participants then returned to the Yacht Club for a debriefing session. The event was very successful and berth holders found it to be very useful!

Visit the news pages of our website for upcoming events at Sovereign Harbour.