Our Community Hero in the Spotlight for July is The Wave Project Dorset – a local surf therapy charity who harness the power of the ocean to improve the mental health of children and young people.

Utilising the passion and enthusiasm of local volunteers who love the water The Wave Project Dorset provide one to one support to children and young people helping them to learn a new skill or simply have fun in the water. 

The Wave Project Dorset started as a pilot project funded by Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust in the Autumn 2013. After great success the project was offered financial backing from the Big Lottery, enabling the delivery of three years of fully funded courses reaching 240 young people across Dorset, as well as establishing and running a subsidised surf club for past participants of the programme. 

Since then the project has gone from strength to strength combining their fantastic volunteer force and partner organisations to continue to change children’s lives for the better through surfing. 

The Wave Project Dorset helps any child or young person in Dorset to be reminded what it is to be a child, to have fun, play games and meet new friends. To surf and increase awareness of their bodies strength and realise their own courage and determination to catch that epic wave! As well as conquering their fear of water, waves or wetsuits. Learning that they can achieve anything they put their mind to through positivity and praise.

Listen here to CAN’s Liz Soffe and the project’s Tom Donaldson-Browne talking to Ian and Dan at Hope FM about our Community Hero in the Spotlight initiative and the amazing work The Wave Project are doing.

• For more information about The Wave Project Dorset and how you could get involved please visit www.waveproject.co.uk