21/08/2026
Latest update from Jes Wooton regarding the use of Hydrofoils on the estuary. It's a long read we know but it's one that's trying to sort out a difficult problem.. which is you are effectively breaking a law, all be it an old one, if you use a hydrofoil on the estuary and unless that can be removed by the Harbour Master / Port Authorities consent, woe betide anyone who is involved in an accident, insured or not insured, as your insurance most likely won't be valid anyhow (Jez goes into this aspect of why we need to resolve it).
I'm amazed how long Jes has stuck with this, so any feedback you have he will be grateful to hear, as he does need the support of those using the estuary. Right, here we go....
July / August 2026 Update.
This is going to be a lengthy post and probably raise some questions.
First, a recap on the background and how we've got to where we are The reason we're making an application to the Harbour Master (HM)for written consent to wingfoil on the river Adur is two fold, firstly there is a 6 knot speed limit in place within the Port of Shoreham and secondly, Paragraph 21 of the Shoreham Port Authority 2021 prohibits the use of 'hydrofoils' without the written permission of the HM.
The Port extends up river as far as the Old Toll Bridge.
Some may say, why doesn't the HM just turn a ' blind eye' to the wing foiling, after all, it hasn't been an issue so far. However, if the HM did this and there was a collision between a wing foiler and say someone on a SUP or swimming, there's a fair probability the SUP'er or swimmer could be injured. In such a situation, a lawyer acting for the injured SUP'er/swimmer would obviously claim against the wing foiler who may or may not have 3rd party insurance. Assuming there's no 3 rd party insurance and the wing foiler hasn't any significant savings or property ownership/assets. There's every likelihood the lawyer may look to see who else (of substance/wealth) could be to blame and therefor sued for damages! It follows that if it's established there's a speed limit and also ban on 'hydrofoils' within the Port, the lawyer could claim against the Port arguing that it knew the wing foiling was taking place and did nothing to stop it, thereby the Port is vicariously liable to the injured SUP'er/swimmer!
Regular readers will know we submitted an application to the HM for written consent some time ago, there were some delays when it became known that Natural England had commissioned an Ecological Management Report for the River Adur Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The report was published early in 2026 and contained recommendations for forms of use and activity within the SSSI. So far as wingfoiling is concerned, the main issue is damage to the salt marshes and foliage on the banks which form part of the habitat and feeding of resident and migratory birds. In particular, these salt marshes are important 'stop off' for migrating birds with the nearest similar sites being Rye to the east and Chichester Harbour to the west. The report recommends looking for ways to limit the damage caused to the foliage and salt marshes by wing foilers and goes on to suggest the option of constructing an elevated entry/exit ramp above the salt marshes and foliage.
Natural England has asked the Friends of the River Adur SSSI Group ( Friends Group) to help facilitate the implementation of the report's recommendations. We're fortunate in that we have a good relationship with the Friends Group.
There are some specific issues with the construction of a ramp. Firstly we need the consent of the land owners, WSCC own the river bank and land that forms the Downs Link path and the Norfolk Estate owns the river. Secondly, we'd need funding, a ramp is going to cost thousands of pounds. Thirdly, we'd probably need building regulations and or planning permission and fourthly we'd need to agree a lease with the land owners for the ramp and pay an annual rent. Lastly, we'd need someone from the wingfoiling community to lead on this programme and that person would doubtless need help from others.
When we met with the HM earlier this year, we discussed the proposal which we had submitted. The meeting was helpful and productive. Consent wasn't given, but we were asked to go away and address some concerns. In particular, within the port there is a 'navigable channel', a plan is attached showing the approximate location of this channel. When wingfoiling we obviously cross this navigable channel. Navigable channels are subject to Maritime Law and in particular the COLREGS which includes specific rules and requirements to be observed when crossing the navigable channel to avoid collisions with any other vessel. We've submitted a revised proposal to the HM which in brief terms, includes a provision that wing foilers must give way to any other vessel within site between the Old Toll Bridge and the Railway Bridge ( SIte) as well as observe 'starboard tack priority' and also the duty to avoid collisions in any event.
Our updated proposal also addressed other issues highlighted including having specific parameters on when wing foiling would be permitted, namely two hours either side of high water and when the Shoreham NCI is showing 17knots + ( Force 5). The discussion behind this wind speed point is that when it is over 17 knots, there likelihood of other vessels being on the river such as SUP's and kayaks is greatly reduced.
The HM also expressed a preference that the wingfoilers form a club or association with another organisation or club based on the river Adur to provide a specific point of contact for the Port to communicate with. Forming a separate club is going to involve quite a bit of time and input, if any of you reading this are interested in taking on this responsibility, please let me know. The club would need a bank account, be affiliated to the RYA and/or BKSA to provide compulsory 3rd party insurance for all members, have a constitution and committee as well as a website.
Within our updated proposal we also addressed other water safety concerns explaining that club members would be tested on knowledge of 'maritime safety rules' as well as the club's own rules for water safety ( starboard tack etc) as well as actual wing foiling skills such as being able to taxi in both directions, turn the board around and enter/exit the river safely.
Assuming no one wants to take on the task of forming a stand alone club, we've been looking at other clubs/organisations and the possibility of forming an affiliation or sub category of membership for wing foiling. To this end, we've met with the Adur Outdoor Activity Centre (AOAC) who are interested in progressing the idea. During the conversation with AOAC we explained the point about the current access point on the east bank and the issues this presents in terms of entering and exiting the river. One idea which hadn't been previously considered that came out of the meeting was to use the AOAC's ramp for launching/landing. Obviously this is about 150 metres south of the Railway Bridge and will suffer from wind shadow in south westerly winds, but assuming most people launch on the incoming tide and exit after the tide has turned, taxiing to and from the ramp shouldn't be too much of an issue. There are several other benefits, there's free off-street car parking immediately to the east of the AOAC building, Membership would enable us to use the cafe facilities and changing facilities as well as the meeting room.
We've updated the HM on all of the above and offered to have another meeting. Fingers crossed that we can move this part of the project forward with the Port Authority along these lines.
Separately I shared the latest proposal with the Friends Group and had the following response from the Friends Group;
''What will make everyone’s life easier re the SSSI is the proposal to use the AOAC ramp - this removes any possibility of damage to the mud and saltmarsh which are some of the special features of the SSSI.
I had a meeting with WSCC by the river some weeks back and it has transpired that the current launch location is owned by the Angmering estate [ Norfolk Estate} right up to the fence/gate posts and WSCC probably wouldn’t agree to a formal access point there because of the convergence of too many paths in one place.
Interestingly, if WSCC holds firm on their position regarding 'the convergence of too many paths in one place', that's another reason to relocate the launch location to the AOAC ramp.
That's it for now, doubtless there will be questions and we'll do our best to answer them.
Jes
