Young Officers' Committee Press Release
Over the last few months, much of the world has been locked down and prevented from working due to the COVID pandemic. During that time, the maritime industry has kept our and other nations fed, fuelled and supplied – and we have been proud and privileged to do so. But we have done so, quietly, efficiently, and for the most part, out of sight and mind.
In the midst of that huge logistical effort – in the UK at least - was a small cadre of maritime officers, who, in the heat of the crisis, felt isolated, forgotten and lacking a platform to either voice concerns or give recognition where it was due.
Supported and encouraged by the Honourable Company of Master Mariners (HCMM), we are pleased to announce the formation of a Young Officers Committee (YOC) which will allow us to address many of the issues and concerns that assail our industry today. There have been many people involved in realising this important development, and we would like to thank them for their help, support, advice, and encouragement – in particular, the Master and Wardens of the Company.
Inevitably, as their careers develop, many seafarers move ashore - becoming the movers and shakers of the maritime world – this is the way of the world. Those remaining at the coal face, so-to-speak, will encounter first-hand the effects of their colleagues’ policies and legislation, changing commercial currents, and, of course, the impact of new technology. The relationship envisaged by the YOC and the HCMM will create a unique information-flow and feedback mechanism that is resistant to distortion by commercial pressure or politics. From this dynamic platform, truth and unvarnished up-to-date facts from the coal-face will be the order of the day. If you want to know what is really going on out there - at sea - this is now the place to come.
Young Officers are the future of the Honourable Company, and the industry at large. By encouraging and enabling Young Officers to become more involved with, benefit from, and contribute to the Honourable Company – and by extension, the industry – we are enriched by their collective wealth of knowledge and experience.
That said, this is a two-way transaction: the Honourable Company has a lot to offer Young Officers by way of opportunities, experience, guidance, and collective influence. It amplifies the voice of the Young Officers Committee, in volume as well as in credibility. This, therefore, is a win-win situation, where the Honourable Company’s knowledge and experience base, and links to industry, fuelled by the technological know-how, enthusiasm and drive of the Young Officers can, and will, benefit the maritime industry as a whole.
The Young Officers Committee is excited and grateful to have been afforded this opportunity. We look forward not only to working within the Livery structures of the Honourable Company of Master Mariners, but also to engaging with other young Livery, and the young maritime-related groups that comprise our shipping and seafaring industries.
YOC Officers
Chairman – Stuart Smith
Vice-Chairman – Phil Cave
Minutes Secretary – Fergus Walker
Correspondence Secretary – Kyle James
YOC Elected Committee Members
Events Coordinator – Peter Young, Haydn Robert Clark
Social Media Liaison – Rachel Arnold
Careers at Sea Liaison – Ross Cleland
Women at Sea Ambassador – Chloe Sandell
Diversity and Inclusion at Sea Ambassador – Patrick Alan Bingham
Mentoring Scheme Liaison – Robert Goodall
Outport Engagement Liaison – Ieuan Carwyn Clark
YOC General Committee Members
- Aiden Bates-Porter
- Andrew Hines
- Andrew Mabbett
- Christopher Chafer
- Clive Austin
- David Alexander Johnstone Pirie
- Emily Hannah Andre Grassby
- Emily Kyle
- Felix Nellen
- George Gough
- Graham Fisher
- Henry Andrews
- Jack Henry Prendergast
- James Alexander George Ryder
- James Morgan Edwards
- Joel Moxon
- John Alun Clifford Thompson
- Maja Čizmić
- Muhammad Fahd Tamimy
- Oscar Sebastian Brann
- Paul Shepherd
- Samuel James Williams
- Thomas Boyd Williams
- Thomas Liam Hopkins
- Thomas Perks