About Wokingham Waterside Centre

Wokingham Waterside Centre is a magnificent and exceptionally well equipped water activity Centre that is set on a particularly beautiful stretch of the Thames.

The aims of this Centre are:

  • To provide accessible and well presented canoe / kayak coaching and courses and prestigious conferencing facilities to all members of the community at affordable prices.
  • To enable everyone to experience the challenge and excitement of water sports in a safe and beautiful environment.

Safety

The Centre is approved by the British Canoe Union (BCU) and aims for extremely high standards in safety. All equipment, complies with the latest British Safety Standards and is regularly checked and any damaged equipment replaced. The Centre operates a rolling equipment replacement programme. Participants in water activities are issued with the necessary safety equipment. Qualified coaches supervise all organised Centre activities and the Centre is subject to inspection by the BCU.

A strict "staff to participant" ratio is maintained that complies with all national governing body recommendations. The governing body for canoe and kayak activities is the BCU.

Insurance

Wokingham Waterside Centre holds a Comprehensive Public Liability Insurance policy and this is available for inspection.

Meet The Team

 

Belinda Blackwell - Centre Manager - Belinda became involved with Marathon Racing 12 years ago through her four children and started marathon paddling herself in 2005. She completed the Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race in 2006 finishing 37th overall and 4th in the Mixed Doubles. Belinda has been involved with the Centre for 12 years and the manager for 6 years. She has a great passion for enabling all members of the community to access the river Thames. 

Dave Foley - Head Coach - Dave is a level 3 coach (and in the 5* kayakclub!) with a passion for white water and passing on skills to others keen to progress in the sport. He has been paddling for 13 years and is multi talented in many canoe and kayak disciplines. He has paddled all over the UK and Europe. He has a thing for real coffee and cheese! Dave 'Baby Face' Foley!

 

Phil Redrup - Coach. Phil has been a coach for more years than he would like to own up to! He has a wicked sense of humour and a diverse range of hobbies. A passion for all things outdoors and great enthusiasm to share it with others. Peter Pan and fix it man! 

John Cooper - Founder of Wokingham Waterside Centre LTD - was awarded The Reading Evening Post award for Service to Sport and the Community (Individual) in 2001.  The award was presented by Cllr Tony Barber, the mayor of Wokingham.  "This is a great achievement for John and justifies the perseverance and bloody minded tenacity of someone who had the dream of the Centre so many years ago."