SIR Ben Ainslie dropped into Sea View Yacht Club to help launch the club's summer schools sailing programme.

Ben and Lady Georgie Ainsley, the former Sky Sports News presenter, headed out on the water for an afternoon of sailing with children on Friday, then held a question and answer session.

Members of the 1851 Trust, which supports the programme, gave a presentation about the education work it does with young people.

The Seaview Schools Sailing Programme aims to encourage and teach Year 5 children to sail under the supervision of Sea View Yacht Club and its Royal Yachting Association (RYA) qualified instructors.

Although participating children all live on the Island, they typically have no experience or opportunity to learn to sail.

They will now take to the water during their ten-week school curriculum at no expense to either themselves or their school.

Each of the five Isle of Wight schools involved will receive weekly three-hour sessions, with RYA qualifications on offer.

Sea View Yacht Club’s head of the training academy, Jon Curtis, said: "We are absolutely delighted to develop and grow the Seaview Schools Sailing Programme and fully utilize our facilities and share our RYA instructors skills with the local pupils of the Island.

"We are looking to see how we can expand this programme even further as we generate more support from our partners from across the Isle of Wight."