Challenge Wales has now closed

For further information, please contact the Chair of the Board of Trustees: helen@challengewales.org

For 16 transformative years the Penarth-based charity, Challenge Wales, has inspired young people and led the way in innovative, accredited and award-winning outdoor learning at sea.

Although the Charity is closing, our legacy lives on. The iconic Challenge 72 yacht Challenge Wales | Wales’ Tall Ship has joined the Tall Ships Youth Trust (TSYT) fleet as Challenger 5, safeguarding its sail training legacy for generations of young people in Wales and across the UK.

TSYT will continue to provide youth development on the ocean through their three-voyage journey of Exploration, Empowerment and Leadership, including voyaging from Wales in 2026. Wales will remain a key hub in TSYT’s network, giving young people access to life-changing voyages while benefiting from TSYT’s scale, sustainability, and national reach.

Read on to find out more about the Challenge Wales charity and our impact:

Ready to sail with TSYT in Wales? Book your voyage now: TSYT Youth Voyages in Wales

For corporate sailing and adult voyages, email info@tallships.org

Ready to continue your volunteering journey with TSYT? Please email info@tallships.org

A Legacy that Reaches Further

Impact on young lives:
The award-winning charity has empowered almost 5,000 young people from Wales and beyond through outdoor learning at sea, developing valuable life and employability skills, encouraging environmental stewardship and improving mental health. We’ve worked tirelessly with disadvantaged young people to raise aspirations, reduce inequality, and promote social inclusion through access to sail training, helping them reach their potential and have a brighter future.

Our young people have come from a wide range of backgrounds and abilities. We’ve worked with schools, youth groups, those from disadvantaged backgrounds, care leavers, young carers, those at risk of being homeless, unemployed individuals, those facing financial hardship, those not knowing what they wanted to do in the future and participants of all abilities. Young people left Challenge Wales with greater self-belief, new friends, qualifications and stories of achievement that will stay with them forever.

Powered by volunteers:
Challenge Wales always had volunteers at its heart, creating a dedicated community with over 500 people volunteering for the charity over its 16 year history. With activities ranging from maintenance to crew to shore-based fundraisers and supporters, volunteers brought their skills, patience, kindness and enthusiasm. They helped turn a sailing voyage into a life-enhancing experience while being positive role models. Volunteers donated thousands of hours of their time every year, helping to keep voyages accessible to those who needed it, and we are forever grateful for their support.

TSYT are keen for Challenge Wales volunteers to continue their journey in sail training and have provided a volunteer pathway to help them transfer. To find out how you can get involved, please email info@tallships.org

A legacy that reaches further:
The legacy of Challenge Wales stretches beyond individual voyages; it ripples through schools, communities and families. Young people who once doubted their abilities have gone onto college, employment, university, a volunteering role or have broadened their horizons in a positive way. Everyone who has supported Challenge Wales becomes part of this legacy including volunteers, donors and funders.