Make a Gift to Cambridge Sailing Support Funds
The Club maintains five Cambridge sailing support funds so that alumni can direct their gifts to different purposes – see below for details. The funds also support surfing, both wind and kite. Alumni gifts, single as well as regular, are normally made through the University’s philanthropic website – accessed via the buttons on this page. Gifts can also be made by other means – please ask the Alumni Administrator for details of how to proceed.
We will contact you for the designation of your gift after receiving notice of your support. University giving arrangements do not provide designation facilities, but the University ‘CUDAR’ service is provided free of charge and all of your gift, plus any Gift Aid, is paid into our bank account on a monthly basis. The service uses safe and simple direct debit facilities for regular gifts, or uses online credit card payments for single gifts.
Use this link to email CUDAR of any changes you wish to make to your existing direct debit. Include your full name and college to insure correct identification. Do NOT use the link to say how you want your gift allocated – the Alumni Administrator will approach you separately on that matter.
Details of how we handle your data are set out on the alumni Privacy Notice page. Details of how the University handles your data will be found on the CUDAR website. CUDAR in no way interposes itself between the Club and its alumni supporters. Emails and newsletter despatch remains entirely under our control, using our own secure alumni database. The funds we currently maintain are as follows.
- Dinghy Fund: The Dinghy Fund accumulates money so that the Club’s dinghies and gear can be refurbished and replaced regularly, for Team Racing and recreational dinghy sailing.
- Board Fund: The Board Fund assists the annual refurbishment and replacement of the Club’s windsurfing boards, rigs, and gear.
- Entry Fees Fund: The Entry Fees Fund accumulates money to reduce the high entry fee costs incurred by sailors and windsurfers in attending university and other events around the country.
- Hardship Fund: The Hardship Fund accumulates money to assist team sailors who experience unexpected financial difficulty and would otherwise be unable to continue competitive sailing at Cambridge.
- Dinghy Sailing Fund: The Dinghy Sailing Fund assists recreational (casual) dinghy sailing activities as distinct from team racing.
Support Fund Administration
The Support Funds take a long term view and therefore have their own bank account, ring fenced from general CUCrC funds. The Club’s Trustees, the Commodore, the Senior Treasurer, the Senior Secretary, and a senior Windsurfing representative manage the Dinghy and Board Funds. Alumni supporter donations go directly into the Support Funds bank account.
Dinghy and Board Funds
Currently the Club replaces each of its two flights of Fireflies every six years. The difference between the price of a new flight and the proceeds of selling the old flight is around £35,000. As a result, we need to generate Dinghy Fund income of at least £12,000 a year. Furthermore, the Dinghy Fund also pays for major refurbishments such as professional repair of damage or for a new rudder. A different approach has been adopted for windsurfing; items are refurbished and replaced regularly – as needed.
Entry Fees Fund
Participating team sailors and windsurfers pay the entry fees BUSA and SWA championships, and other weekend events during the year. In addition, they also pay travel, subsistence, and overnight expenses. Team racing entry fees alone, including the costs of hiring boats and facilities for the Varsity Match, amount to over £10,000 a year. The purpose of the Entry Fee Fund is to help defray the entry fee costs that sailors and windsurfers incur. The Fund is managed by the General Committee
Hardship Fund
Because of its nature, the Hardship Fund is a somewhat private fund, managed by the Senior Treasurer, Senior Secretary, and two Senior Committee Members who live in or near Cambridge. Applications are made in confidence to the Senior Treasurer in a set format.
Dinghy Sailing Fund
This fund gives direct support to recreational (casual) dinghy sailing as distinct from team racing; for example, enabling the purchase of buoyancy aids.
Summary Accounts
An historic summary of support fund accounts is shown below, followed by the accounts for the current year. Email the Alumni Administrator if you would like more detail about any support fund.
| Year | Start Funds Total | Income | Expen-diture | End Funds Total | Notes |
| 2010/11 | 6,919 | 9,051 | 124 | 15,846 | Expenditure was for a ‘Just Giving’ website page, subsequently discontinued. |
| 2011/12 | 15,846 | 7,102 | – | 22,948 | |
| 2012/13 | 22,948 | 15,237 | – | 38,223 | |
| 2013/14 | 38,223 | 15,744 | 42,303 | 11,664 | Purchase of 6 new Fireflies and 6 new covers for old Fireflies. |
| 2014/15 | 11,664 | 17,438 | – | 29,102 | |
| 2015/16 | 29,102 | 27,209 | 46,468 | 9,843 | Sale of 25-year-old Firefly flight and purchase of a new flight, plus 7 replacement sails, plus some windsurfing expenditure. |
| 2016/17 | 9,843 | 18,252 | 505 | 27,590 | Windsurfing items. |
| 2017/18 | 27,590 | 18,128 | 9,118 | 36,600 | New 3-tier road trailer. Initiation of event entry assistance for student sailors. |
| 2018/19 | 36,600 | 39,582 | 52,882 | 23,300 | Sale of 2013 Firefly flight and purchase of a new flight. Entry fee assistance, dinghy refurbishment, hardship assistance. |
| 2019/20 | 23,300 | 12,772 | 4,245 | 31,827 | Entry fee assistance, dinghy refurbishment, hardship assistance. |
| 2020/21 | 31,827 | 11,190 | 3,502 | 39,515 | Entry fee assistance and some dinghy refurbishment. |
| 2021/22 | 39,515 | 14,121 | 7,497 | 43,741 | Sails for new flight, spare rudder stocks and dinghy refurbishment, one hardship disbursement, buoyancy aids, accounting correction. (Income includes £805 from closure of obsolete bank accounts.) |
| 2022/23 | 43,741 | 42,498 | 56,167 | 30,072 | Purchase of new flight, sale of 2018 flight, sale of Laser, recreational dinghy sailing and windsurfing support. |
| 2023/24 | 30072 | 12260 | 2000 | 40332 | Entry fee support |
CUCrC SUPPORT FUNDS HISTORICAL SUMMARY
Further details of Support Funds income and expenditure are in the Annual Accounts, which may be obtained from the Senior Treasurer (see Club Officers page for email address). The Annual Accounts are available each year – after they have been approved by the AGM, which is held towards the end of November or in early December.
Contributions to Support Funds by Alumni Decade
(Lump sum gifts amortised over 10 years)
| Decade | Contribution |
| 1940’s & 50’s | 15% |
| 1960’s | 29% |
| 1970’s | 23% |
| 1980’s | 10% |
| 1990’s | 15% |
| 2000’s & 10’s | 8% |
