Traditional wooden boat building in Portsoy
Working with schools and young people to preserve Portsoy's maritime heritage.
Portsoy has a long maritime heritage, once home to sail, rope-making and boatbuilding trades. Since 2004, the Boatshed's volunteer team has worked with primary school children on outreach projects, creating over 60 dinghies, several curraghs and a North Sea faering, while Banff Academy students built a St Ayles Skiff.
Case study: Chevron Youth Boatbuilding Project - a two-year, out-of-school programme for 14-16 year olds from Banff Academy, combining boatbuilding, woodworking, teamwork and numeracy and literacy skills, aimed at supporting progression into boatbuilding or construction apprenticeships.
Case study: Secondary Schools - since 2004, partnerships with Banff Academy have produced dinghies, the Portsoy Faering Project boat, Pessimist dinghies and a St Ayles Skiff named Banac, alongside a dedicated boatbuilding course introduced for senior pupils in 2014.
Case study: Primary and Homeschool Students - volunteers have also worked with primary school pupils, building 59 dinghies between 2011 and 2016, and in 2024 ran a course for home-educated students from Aberdeenshire, who built a 3.5 metre Norwegian-design pram dinghy.
Get in touch to find out more or get involved.
