Lecturer invited to Princess of Wales’ carol service at Westminster Abbey

Claire Backhouse, Lecturer in Sport and Adventure Management, had the honour of attending the ‘Together At Christmas’ Carol Service attended by the Prince and Princess of Wales at Westminster Abbey.

This years’ service shone a spotlight on 1600 individuals from all over the UK who have shown love, kindness and empathy towards others in their communities through work or volunteering.

“I was completely unprepared for how magical the event would be,” says Claire. “To experience performances by such talented artists like Richard E. Grant, the Royal Ballet and Olivia Dean, and rub shoulders with members of the royal family and celebrities like Hannah Waddingham, who I really admire, was incredible. And to top it off I met Chris Hoy, one of the most amazing sports people and someone whose career I have watched avidly. I couldn’t quite believe it. It was wonderful to meet him in person.”

 

Claire also enjoyed meeting the other volunteers and hearing the incredible things they’d achieved, “As volunteers, we put in a lot of time and effort, most of it unseen. We do it because we love seeing its impact. For me, it’s about seeing kids being active in the outdoors, having fun learning new skills and making lasting friendships. I am very lucky in that I know that my effort is valued, so it really was the icing on the cake to be recognised publicly in this way. Simply put, it was an experience I don’t think I will ever forget!”

Over the past year, Claire, who moved to the Isle of Wight in 2020, has been volunteering a day a week at Yarmouth sailing club, to set up and develop a youth sailing programme. The club now has a successful weekly coaching session for local children aged 11-18 years, called the Wednesday Youth Squad.

Claire is also the Development Officer on the club's Management Committee and runs the Yarmouth Sailing Club Youth Engagement Committee, which supports sailing and social activities for local families and younger children. She has also helped organise charity fundraisers such as Sailing to the Needles in the dark and an Auction of Promises, which raised over £1000 for the West Wight Sports and Community Centre.

Claire’s voluntary work for the local community in the West of the Isle of Wight was recognised by the High Sheriff of the Isle of Wight, who put forward her name to attend the glittering event in London.

Passionate about giving more young people the opportunity to get out onto the water, Claire is always looking for ways to help develop and fund the activities at the sailing club, “To ensure the activities are affordable and accessible to local families, the sailing club is entirely volunteer-run, totally dependent on the amazingly supportive people pitching in. If anyone is interested in helping to support setting up a development pathway for junior sailors on the Isle of Wight please contact sailingsecretary@yarmouthsc.org.”

The ‘Together at Christmas’ Carol Service will be broadcast as part of Royal Carols: Together At Christmas on ITV1 and ITVX on Christmas Eve and repeated on Christmas Day.