It’s taken them 11 years to create their 59ft ketch, which is now about to take to the Irish Sea. And she’s now been moved from Bolton School, in Bolton, Greater Manchester, to Glasson Dock, near Lancaster, according to the Daily Telegraph.

Teams of youngsters over the last decade have worked on the vessel. The first group in 1998 began by using a steel frame, concrete and chicken wire.
Adam Greenhaulgh, 13, who’ll be among the first to sail in her, said: “It’s really exciting and the yacht is really cosy.”

The yacht was the idea of Mike Whitmarsh, the school’s former head of technology.
Students have done much of the work with the help of their teachers, often in their spare time. Professional craftsmen have helped ensure the boat was seaworthy.
Alexander Boulos, 13, said: “I am really looking forward to sailing and to spending nights on the boat. It’s really exciting.”

Max Whitham, also 13, said: “It doesn’t look very big from the outside but there is quite a lot of room when you get below deck.

“We’ve got everything we need including plenty of food and we’ve been doing lots of practising, tying knots and getting ready. It’s a great experience and I’d love to do this again some time.”

Every Year 8 student at the school will get a chance to sail the yacht. The aim is to develop team-working and leadership skills as well as teaching them how to sail.
Colin Wright, 35, the yacht’s skipper, said: “The students who worked on her at the beginning would have been aware that they might not be able to sail on her, but this is their legacy.

“She’s called Tenacity of Bolton. It’s been a tenacious project and it required a lot of tenacity to get where we are today with a boat that’s ready to sail.”