Steering and navigation

Any person steering a boat takes on a highly responsible role. Before appointing a person as Coxswain of a boat the club has a responsibility to:

1. Provide advice and training to those who steer boats.

2. Ensure steering equipment is suitably maintained.

3. Check that Crews and particularly those steering know the location of all hazards and how to avoid them.

In return those responsible for steering boats must be able to satisfy their club that they are in good health with adequate vision and hearing.

Coxswains must at all times:

1. Communicate effectively with their crew.

2. Be aware of their position at all times relative to other water users

3. Maintain high level of attention both visually and aurally in order to be able to assess situations and take appropriate action to avoid accidents.

4. Learn to use concise commands for boat control and be able to use these correctly, clearly and instructively.

5. Understand and observe the audible and visual signals given by others with whom the water is shared.

6. Know how to stop the boat safely in an emergency.

7. Practice Collision avoidance at all times and know how to take evasive action when a collision is likely. The Association will discipline coxswains who blatantly disregard the principle of collision avoidance.

8. When visiting unfamiliar water, take particular care to learn of local hazards and tidal conditions.

9. Be conversant with safety and rescue procedures in case of an accident.

10. Recognise and respect the rights and needs of other water users.

11. Watch out for swimmers at all times and be alert to unexpected floating objects.

12. Know what to do in the case of an accident. For this purpose an Accident response procedure has been outlined in appendix 3. All Coxswains must be familiar with this procedure before taking charge of a boat.

The existing rules of the association adequately deal with the age of a coxswain relative to the crew they are taking charge of, the attire the coxswain should wear and that the coxswain should remain seated at all times. This safety policy recommends one addition:

All Coxswains should carry a whistle on a breakable lanyard around their neck, which is to be blown to summon the safety boat or indicate that the boat or a crew member is in need of assistance.