A LOCAL sailing charity is set to be the toast of a beer and cider festival.

Weymouth Sailing Club has announced that the chosen charity for this year’s beer festival will be Chesil Sailability.

The charity provides opportunities for people with disabilities to sail for fun, to learn to sail or to progress to sailing competitively.

It caters for people with physical disabilities, learning difficulties and longterm health conditions.

Sailing gives participants the opportunity to take part in a healthy, sociable and outdoor activity, and provides a freedom on the water regardless of their disability.

The sailing club’s beer festival takes place on Friday, March 10 and Saturday, March 11 at its Nothe Parade headquarters, next to the Weymouth RNLI.

The indoor event will be serving local ales and ciders with a few offerings from slightly further afield.

The Six Nations rugby will also be shown and hot food will also be available.

Tickets are £5 per person for each day which includes a commemorative glass and two beer tokens.

Sailability was inspired by the London 2012 Paralympic and Olympic Games and was set up in 2013.

It is entirely volunteer run and is based at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy.

Chairman of trustees at the charity, Hugh de Iongh, said he was delighted that Chesil Sailability would benefit.

He said: “Without the support of local sailors through volunteering and by raising funds, Chesil Sailability would struggle to survive. We thank Weymouth Sailing Club for their support in the past and for making us their recipient of monies from their excellent beer festival, we wish it well”

Weymouth Sailing Club commodore, Euan McNair, said that while the club has excellent facilities it is not wheelchair friendly and adaptation for disabled sailors is beyond the means of the club, which is run by volunteers.

He said: “The main object of the club is to promote sailing for all, by raising funds for Chesil Sailability, this helps achieve our aims” Monies are being raised by getting the barrels of beers sponsored by local businesses and other generous supporters.

“We hope to raise at least £500 for Chesil Sailability”

With two cranes with a maximum lift of eight tonnes, moorings in the River Wey plus a fully serviced yard Weymouth Sailing Club has some of the best facilities on the south coast for keel boat sailors and is also a recognised RYA training centre.

To buy tickets go to www.wsc.org.uk/weybaybeer