It’s Scottish Women and Girls in Sport week and we are celebrating a great initiative, breaking down barriers and bringing women and girls together to get active, make friends and have fun! 

Halima contacted us, following a post we put out trying to reach different communities who might be interested in paddling. We supported her to organise a session of paddleboarding. Halima runs a group for muslim women who enjoy adventuring in the outdoors @solesisters_scotland. We hope to continue to support her and the group with a series of sessions next summer and supporting some on their journey to become Paddlesport Instructors. 

Here's what the group have to say about the experience:

"The staff were excellent, very patient and ensured everyone had fun and knew what to do.  The beautiful lake alongside the great service really made it a lovely experience for all"

“The paddleboarding session with Sole Sisters has been the highlight of my year! The whole day was full of smiles and laughter as the instructors were making us try challenges and races which was so fun! Through this opportunity I  got to meet some amazing girls and have a great paddlebording session. Would definitely recommend”

“The staff at Willowgate were extremely helpful and friendly. This was my first time paddleboarding and it certainly won't be my last. I would recommend it to anyone!"

“Honestly one of the MOST freeing and liberating experiences” 

“Paddleboarding at willowgate was a thrilling experience! I faced my fear of falling into the water and ended up enjoying jumping on the board to standing on one leg on the board! Thoroughly enjoyed it and I left the centre with joyful memories”.

“It was my first time paddleboarding and it was a lot of fun. The instructors made sure we got the most out of our time on the boards which was great, I think it was a really good experience and value for money” 

A big thank you to Halima for bringing this together and to the team at Willowgate Activity Centre in Perth for supporting such a great session on the water.