Let’s start by introducing ourselves. We’re Brit and Phil and we took over at South Beach Surf School at the end of February. Since then we’ve had a whirlwind few weeks of admin, demolition, rebuilding, decorating and first sessions (shoutout to True North ladies on international women’s day). The most important thing in all of this is we have reregistered the surf school so it is now a Community Interest Company. This allows us to apply for grants so we can keep lesson pricing economically inclusive.

When we were looking at taking over South Beach Surf School we did a survey and found that only 20% of the people who surf at Blyth are actually from Blyth, and the other 80% travel from surrounding areas like Whitley Bay, Tynemouth and Newcastle. We love that we have surfers from all over the North East, no localism here, just a shared love for the sport. We also want people from Blyth to know that this is their surf school too. We place so much importance on giving a solid education around open water safety to those growing up by the coast. Phil has a background in swim coaching, has spent his career in the charity sector, and volunteers with Blyth Lifeguards, so he’s well equipped to educate on how to enjoy the water safely.

Brit’s background is in Psychology and adaptive surfing. She got into surf coaching through her interest in the effect teaching neurodivergent people to surf could have on their wellbeing. Her own adaptive surf school was born from her dissertation, which focussed on this exact topic.

We have also recently got our good friend and phenomenal surf coach Clive to come onboard. Clive’s talents in SUP (stand up paddleboard) surfing are top tier, he placed 7th in England in 2024. Clive is also a Team England para coach, which means he’s coaching with England’s top para surf athletes.

So now we have a surf school. We have a base. We finally have somewhere to store the massive adaptive equipment, and we have a community ready to surf with us.

Here we are in the Northumberland Gazette: https://www.northumberlandgazette.co.uk/community/new-owners-of-blyth-surf-school-aim-to-make-surfing-accessible-for-local-community-5627230