John Kemp (1926–1987) created and ran the East Coast Sail Trust, a charitable institution devoted to both character building for young people through education at sea, and preservation of Thames sailing barges. The Trust has been running for over 40 years, during which time many thousands of young people from Britain and around the world, have benefited from the experience that is provided. His earlier work on the preservation of Thames sailing barges was instrumental in the continued existence of the fleet today. He was also the author of three books and a prolific writer of newspaper and magazine articles.
Biography
John Kemp was born in London. Before he was old enough for full-time military service, John Kemp served in the Home Guard, wearing the capbadges of the Gloucestershire Regiment and the Essex Regiment. He was conscripted into the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment in 1944, and served until 1946.
During and immediately after the Second World War Kemp and his mother, Lucy, lived in Essex and in the West Country. His father, Arthur, who was once Larry Lynx, racing correspondent for The People newspaper, died soon after the war ended. John Kemp married Monica in 1957, and they had three sons and a daughter. Before taking full-time responsibility for his schoolship scheme, he was involved in the construction of Bradwell nuclear power station, and was employed by Shell Oil and by E H Bentall and Co, agricultural machinery manufacturers, at Maldon, Essex. He died in command of the sailing barge Thalatta, near the Bench Head at the entrance to the River Blackwater, in September 1987, aged 61.
Author
Kemp was the author of three books. His first, A Fair Wind for London, was a memoir of his life and times on the East Coast, recalling his experiences at sea in working Thames barges, his efforts to preserve sailing barges, and his establishment of the East Coast Sail Trust. The second, God's Hungry Sheep, was a religious novel about the traditionalist movement within the Roman Catholic Church. His final work, At the Wash of Oysters, was a collection of short stories set on the Essex coast and marshland, in a manner not dissimilar to S. L. Bensusan, whose work he greatly admired.
He wrote columns and articles for the local press spanning many years and covering a wide range of subjects. This began when, as a young man in the West Country, he produced a series of political articles. In later years his work, mainly published in the Essex press, included pieces on coastal and marshland life, obituaries, reviews of amateur dramatics and musicals, and short stories.
Schoolship scheme
Built at the naval yard in Harwich, the Thalatta was purchased in February 1906 by F W Horlock. Purchased by Kemp she became, from 1967, a sail training barge for children. In 1971 the East Coast Sail Trust was formed to provide 5-day educational cruises and to preserve the Thames sailing barge. The East Coast Sail Trust owned and operated two sailing barges (known in the Trust as schoolships) the 150 burthen ton Thalatta and the 200 ton Sir Alan Herbert, both coasting spritsail barges, rigged with ketch mizzens. The latter vessel was procured through an appeal made in memory of the famous humourist, novelist, playwright and one-time MP, A.P. Herbert.
The programme was dubbed 'A Week in Another World'. During their stay on board the schoolships, children and their teachers or youth leaders explored the east coast from the North Foreland in the south to Orfordness in the north, living on board and working the vessels under sail. The concept, developed by John Kemp and Jane Benham, was not sail training of the type practised by many similar organizations, nor was it overtly character-building.
Both of these however formed pasrt of an innovative educational concept: the 'floating classroom', in which children explored the communities, geography and ecology of the Thames estuary. Each crew-member had a study project, designed to challenge children of every ability and background. Pupils, generally aged between 13 and 18, voyaging under the East Coast Sail Trust flag, came from comprehensive schools in the most disadvantaged inner London boroughs, leading public and selective schools; and from Germany, the United States of America and Australia.