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The Rona Trust is a voluntary organisation whose aim is to provide young people the opportunity to acquire the best attributes of seamanship; namely a sense of responsibility, resourcefulness and teamwork. Many trainees return as Watch Leaders and, in due course, can be promoted to Watch Officer, Mate and Skipper. The Trust's fleet of three modern ketches is based on the River Hamble. Rona II (an Oyster 68) and Donald Searle (an Ocean 75) generally operate six day voyages across the English Channel. Helen Mary R (a Bowman 57) operates along the South Coast with the younger trainees. RYA Competent Crew and Watch Leader qualification can be gained. Successful trainees are invited to sail again, helping novices through their first experience at sea. The Trust works closely with RYA Sailability offering voyages for the visually impaired and deaf. There are also opportunities for those with other special needs. The Rona Trust was established in 1960 by Lord Amory and has grown significantly so that around 2,000 people sail with it each year now. Safety is paramount and each vessel holds a MCA Code of Practice Certificate.