We are raising money to fund a ‘Voyage of Recovery’ for service users under the care of the Early Intervention in Psychosis Service, as well as service users under the TIDES service. Both teams work with people who have/or are at risk of experiencing a first episode of psychosis, which is a mental health condition causing people to have unusual experiences, hear voices, see things which others do not, have unusual thoughts or feelings which can be frightening and distressing and become socially isolated and paranoid of others.

We are aiming to raise £8,000 to fund this endeavour, which will consist of up to 18 people sailing for 6 days around the coast of England, our portion of the voyage will sail from Essex and end in Lymington, Hampshire. The Voyage is planned for 1st May 2027 through to 6th May 2027. This service is provided by the Cirdan Sailing Trust and their fast yacht, Faramir. The aim of this service is to teach teamwork, sailing skills, navigation, cooking, cleaning, connecting with nature, inspiring hope and increasing confidence, and everyday boat maintenance – key skills that can be translated into everyday life for those involved.

This is something which the Early Intervention Service have provided for service users in the past and the feedback has always been very positive from those involved and using self-assessment frameworks, these improvements have been measurable by those who undertook the voyage. These kinds of activities aimed at service users are classified as Adventure Therapy as it encourages personal growth and not to just minimise the symptoms of service users.

The average cost per person of one night in a psychiatric hospital is around the same as the cost of a week on Faramir.

The video below is provided by Cirdan Sailing Trust to highlight the impact The Voyage of Recovery can have on service users