Tyneside scoop coveted BSAC Wreck Award 2015

The 2015 BSAC Wreck Award winners have just been announced – with Tyneside Branch 114 and their impressive report on the Gun Rocks project scooping first place.

The BSAC Wreck Award was launched in 2014 and aims to celebrate Britain’s underwater heritage by using BSAC members and clubs’ first-hand experiences to bring their favourite wreck sites to life.

Tied for second place in the 2015 Award are Southsea Branch – Mulberry 70 and Pilgrims SAC – A7 Survey project.

Also receiving a special commendation are iDive (Ipswich SAC) – the Live Bait Squadron; Ilfracombe and North Devon branch – the South Australia and Trafford SAC – Scapa Flow.

Wreck Award adjudicator and BSAC Underwater Heritage Advisor Jane Maddocks said that while the standard of entries for the 2015 award was extremely high, the Tyneside entry stood out.

Tyneside have spent decades researching an area known as the Gun Rocks Cannon Site close to the Farne Islands. Led by Diving Officer Nic Faulkes (pictured with other club members), the club’s comprehensive Wreck Award 2015 entry outlined the work members have put into researching the cannons that lay on the bed of the North Sea.

Jane said: “I would like to thank all the BSAC clubs who submitted an entry for the 2015 Award, it was a pleasure to read all of them and I found the whole initiative really inspiring.

“It was a very close run thing as some other entries were also excellent. But Tyneside’s was just special and showed how they had worked with experts and got the whole club involved over many years. The report that was produced was remarkable and it shows what can happen when a BSAC club invests a great deal of time and effort into a project.”

Tyneside Branch 114 will be presented with their Wreck Award 2015 trophy by Jane Maddocks in the near future.

But in the meantime, you can read Tyneside Branch 114’s winning entry, the Gun Rocks project – along with the other 2015 entries – here.

Wreck Award 2016 – could your club be BSAC’s next winner?

BSAC’s Wreck Award will shortly be returning for 2016 and full details on the initiative and how your club can enter will be released soon.

But in the meantime, if you think you or your club could compile an engaging, inspiring and innovative report on your favourite wreck site, then you can start preparing now. You can use the coming dive season to take photos and video of your chosen site or start researching its history.

Ahead of the 2016 Wreck Award Launch, Jane Maddocks has also revealed a few creative report tips.

“While some previous entries have had an academic feel about them they don’t have to be academic. The Mulberry 70 project, as well as the South Australia entry, show how different ways of telling us about the project are lively and good to read and the 2014 winner added seafood recipes and even sea shanties to their entry!”