Canal Boat Training
We offer a range of NCBA accredited courses and in-house experience days for canal boat handling and trip management.
As a founding member of the National Community Boats Association (NCBA), we were at the forefront of creating nationally recognised training, accreditation and licensing frameworks for community boating operations across the UK. Our NCBA trainers have many years’ experience, so whether you intend to work on a community boat or wish to learn the fundamentals of boating and canal etiquette, The Pirate Castle is the place to come.
Accredited training courses
Accredited training courses generally run over weekends throughout the year, with weekday sessions available by prior arrangement. You will have the option to stay on our boats overnight for certain courses if you wish – mixing with other trainees, sharing experiences and chatting with the trainers is all part of the experience.
Our courses and experience days are run from The Pirate Castle in Camden Town. You might want to have a look around Camden Market or slip into the West End at the end of the day.
Biographies
Andrew Carpenter is our principal Boat Manager and Trainer. He became involved in Community Boating in 1998. He has had wide experience of both wide and narrow craft, and is a registered trainer for both the RYA and the NCBA. He also holds a Boatmasters Licence. Andrew’s other interests include Art, Music, History and Natural History.
Kal Webb is an NCBA Certified Trainer. She’s also our Development Manager and first joined The Pirate Castle as a volunteer in 2004 when she trained with us to become a canal boat skipper to help run our Charity’s boat trips. Kal’s lived on her own narrowboat since 2009 and is passionate about sharing her boating skills and knowledge.
We also have a team of experienced and qualified Skipper/Training Mentors who are available to provide basic training to volunteers and the public.
Certificate in Community Boat Management (CCBM)
The Certificate in Community Boat Management is designed for those people who work with a variety of groups on the inland waterways. It is endorsed by the Canal and River Trust and supported by the Maritime Coastguard Agency.
The course draws on current best practice as supplied by the member organisations of the NCBA, operating a wide variety of craft for use by community groups, often made up of disabled and disadvantaged people. It represents the minimum recommended level of training to become a community boat skipper (or small passenger vessel skipper).
The aims of the course are to give crew of community boats on non-tidal rivers and canals training in boat handling, boat maintenance and the management of group safety and welfare.
Anyone of the age of seventeen or over can obtain a CCBM Certificate. It is however assumed that you will have some experience of working with groups and have previous practical experience of boating. The CCBM Course itself is of 20 hours duration, run by a qualified NCBA Trainer and usually run over a long weekend, typically from a Friday evening until Sunday afternoon, including an evening session on the Friday and Saturday. The maximum number of candidates per course is five. Successful candidates will qualify to operate boats carrying a maximum of 12 passengers on the inland waterways of the UK.
Community Crew Course (CCC)
The Community Crew Course is a foundation course, designed to build the levels of skills and experience needed to crew a community boat.
A Trainer or Mentor will lead the course which is of 20 hours duration. The NCBA CCC course can be delivered over a long weekend or spread out over four 5-hour days or longer if required.
The course will provide you with all the skills and knowledge needed to act as crew on a community boat. You will become the extra eyes, ears and hands of the person in charge of the boat. The maximum number of candidates per course is five and the minimum age requirement is 14.
You can take as little or as much time as you need to complete the course depending on your previous experience and aptitude.
Boat Handling Certificate (BHC)
The Boat Handling Course is designed primarily for those who own their own boats or those who are contemplating a boating holiday. It will give you the foundation skills to operate a boat safely and efficiently on inland waterways, and is suitable for those with little or no experience, be they young or old, or those who would simply just like to brush up on their existing boating skills. The NCBA certificated course is taken over two days with the maximum number of candidates per course being four, and the minimum age 14. Note: This course is not suitable for those wishing to be skippers of small passenger vessels (Please see CCBM above) and is only available by arrangement with us. Please contact us for possible dates.
In addition to the NCBA accredited courses, The Pirate Castle also offers our own in-house Boat Handling Experience Days which offers tuition in basic boating skills but in a more informal setting. These experience days are also suitable for those contemplating a boating holiday, buying a boat, or those wishing to brush up on their current boating skills. This non-certificated one-day attendance experience is available for a maximum of four people per day, with a minimum age of 14. Please see our News section for dates and times of upcoming Boat Handling Experience Days (if the scheduled dates of the Boat Handling Experience Days are not suited to your requirements, then please contact us and we may be able to arrange a bespoke experience on a day of your choosing, subject to availability). We also offer the option for the BHED to be taken aboard your own vessel provided we are satisfied that the boat in question meets all our criteria for suitability (we will provide you with a list of our requirements in this case)
Boat Handling Experience Day (in-house attendance certificate)
Run by our skilled and experienced staff, our Boat Handling Experience Days provide a friendly, hands-on experience which covers all the basic canal boat and lock handling skills required to make your future boating a much more enjoyable (and safe) experience.
Perfect if you’re new to boating, contemplating a boating holiday or just want to brush up your existing boating skills!
The experience day covers the following topics:
- Boat set up and engine checks
- Boat equipment
- Rope-work, knots and mooring
- Steering and ‘Rules of the Road’
- Lock operation, tunnel transit and winding
- General safety
All courses will run with no more than 4 trainees attending.
Cost: £180 per person for the day. Up to 4 trainees per course. Important: (we require a minimum of two trainees attending for a course to run)
Our scheduled Boat Handling Experience Days will run 09:00 – 17:30 on the following dates in 2026, all departing from, and returning to The Pirate Castle in Camden Town.
- Sun 15th March
- Sun 26th April
- Sun 24th May
- Sun 14th June
- Sun 19th July
- August – By request only
- Sun 27th September
- Sun 18th October
- Sun 15th November
Other dates may be available upon request (see below).
Please note that all the experience days above will take place on board our narrowboat, ‘Black Pearl’. If you would prefer your experience day to take place aboard our wide beam, ‘Pirate Prince’ then please contact us to arrange a bespoke experience day. We can also offer a bespoke BHED aboard your own vessel if you prefer (subject to availability and your vessel meeting our training requirements) for £230 per person up to a maximum of four people.
For more information, please email info@thepiratecastle.org or andrew@thepiratecastle.org.
Pricing
The cost of the training courses:
If people are training for the purpose of becoming volunteer skippers for The Pirate Castle then the training costs will usually be subsidised. As CCBM training is costly, our policy is to only take on volunteers who can commit to helping us run our services.
Outside groups or members of the public wishing to do an NCBA training course at the Pirate Castle should email our Boat Manager, Andrew call 020 7267 6605 for availability and pricing.
