Welcome to Calshot NCI National Coastwatch Institution EYES ALONG THE COAST Calshot Tower Hello...... It’s great to hear that you will be joining, or thinking of joining one of the most iconic NCI Stations, Calshot Tower. With a ‘crew’ of over 100 watchkeepers, we are also one of the largest and most successful stations in the UK with an average annual involvement in some 70 incidents, liaising with Her Majesty’s Coastguard, the RNLI as well private Lifeboats and the Port Authorities. The ‘crew’ you will be joining come from a variety of backgrounds, some with marine experience, Royal and Merchant Navy as well as sailing and motor boating but most importantly a love of the sea and helping others is what really matters. In this document we have tried to make your introduction into the life of a Watchkeeper as easy and enjoyable as possible...so keep on looking! Best wishes from the Station Manager and the rest of 'The Crew'. Just some of us..... 2 Page Call sign: Calshot NCI Registered in England & Wales Charity No. 1159975 www.nci.org.uk National Coastwatch Institution EYES ALONG THE COAST Calshot Tower And there is another way down! Hampshire Fire & Rescue practice an evacuation from our 'Lookout'. 3 Page Call sign: Calshot NCI Registered in England & Wales Charity No. 1159975 www.nci.org.uk National Coastwatch Institution EYES ALONG THE COAST Calshot Tower This booklet contains: 1. Health & Safety 2. Uniform 3. Confidentiality 4. Booking a Shift using 'findmyshift' 5. Access to the NCI Website 6. Station Operations 7. Station Housekeeping 8. Watchkeeper Training 9. Courses 10. Cost of Being a Member 11. Station Location Details 4 Page Call sign: Calshot NCI Registered in England & Wales Charity No. 1159975 www.nci.org.uk National Coastwatch Institution EYES ALONG THE COAST Calshot Tower 1. Health & Safety Location Our station is located at the end of Calshot Spit and is geographically isolated. At Calshot Tower, to access our 'Lookout', there are 8 flights of near vertical ladders going up over 100 feet so it is important for you to be comfortable with these on a continuing basis. Attending the Station Put your Parking Pass on your dashboard. Do NOT park in front of the Lifeboat Station or the access door to the Generator Room. Park in the vicinity of the Station and not in the Activity centre car parks. Remember parking is a courtesy from the Activity centre. There are currently Parking Wardens / soon to be cameras but still display your pass. An ANPR camera system will come into operation during 2018 so it is important that you give your car details and registration number to our Administrator. (Max 2 cars) Enter your name on the Fire Board with pen provided (NCI level 3) Normally you will meet your fellow Watchkeepers at the station entrance. If you are on your own and need to ascend solo, you must phone the Lookout using the door entry phone by pressing the NCI button. (You will have to do this for entry to the station until you are qualified, as you will not have a swipe card). Climb the stairs slowly, pause at each 2nd level, read the notices and take a breath. Only one person should be on each ladder at a time. When leaving, preferably, descend the stairs backwards using both hands on the rails. Rub your name off the fireboard. Medical You must inform us at the outset of any medical condition which might affect your safety or your watch keeping ability. The information you give us will be kept confidential. You must also tell us if, and when, any relevant condition arises in future. At the top of the stairs in the Lookout there is a Defibrillator & First Aid Kit The defibrillator is easy to use should it be needed as it is a variety that speaks instructions as soon as you open it. The First Aid Kit has the usual assortment of items should a small accident occur. Due to the height and access to the station lookout the Emergency Services have designated us as an 'Unusual Location' and thus will despatch the H.A.R.T. team to an emergency. H.A.R.T. = Hazardous Area Response Team Many of our Watchkeepers are First Aid trained and we do offer this as an optional course. 5 Page Call sign: Calshot NCI Registered in England & Wales Charity No. 1159975 www.nci.org.uk National Coastwatch Institution EYES ALONG THE COAST Calshot Tower 2. Uniform As a qualified Watchkeeper you will be expected to wear our uniform. The Uniform is: • Dark blue NATO sweater V Neck with epaulette straps • White pilot shirt or blouse with epaulette straps. (long or short sleeve) • Dark blue or black trousers (Note: skirts are available but not recommended) • Black shoes • Optional black tie or ladies cravat • Optional dark blue NCI Baseball cap or a NCI Breton beret We do pay for our own uniforms. Epaulettes are provided free once you qualify. Motifs, other than an NCI badge or NCI Station Badge should not appear on any clothing. The Uniform can be viewed at the NCI shop on the website The NCI shop provides shirts, trousers, ties, caps, berets, cravats and sweaters which can all be branded with the NCI Logo. The shop also stocks branded Body Warmers, Fleeces, Sweatshirts, Polo Shirts and Jackets. These can all be ordered through the Station Quartermaster. Miller Rayners in Southampton provides good quality woollen jumpers, shirts and trousers. These are not branded and you will need to visit and purchase yourself. There are also several choices for pilot shirts and NATO jumpers on the internet Note: Epaulettes are only issued by the Station Administrator. 3. Confidentiality What you hear on the radios is often confidential to the SAR community. Channel 0 is HM Coastguards private channel which can only be officially monitored by registered SAR Assets. Anything heard should never be discussed outside the station except with another Watchkeeper or SAR member. As shown below you will be issued with two usernames and passwords: For findmyshift – use your Email and password given by the Rota Officer. For the website the username and password issued to you by NCI Head Office. 6 Page Call sign: Calshot NCI Registered in England & Wales Charity No. 1159975 www.nci.org.uk National Coastwatch Institution EYES ALONG THE COAST Calshot Tower 4. Booking on to a Watch or a Course 1. Log in to www.findmyshift.com using your email address and Rota password. 2. On Facility View, right-click on the background area of your chosen watch/course, go to Request on then to your selected Watch and left click. 3. Your first watch must be with a member of the Training Team or Committee member. 4. All subsequent Watches can be when it suits you best. 5. You may request up to 2 Watches per week during your training. 6. Up to 4 persons (W, Wr or SWr) on a Watch, of which only 1 can be a Trainee (T, Tr). 7. So do not book a Watch where there is already a Trainee (T or Tr) (r = VHF qualified) Note: Give as much notice as possible when requesting a Watch - at least 48 hours notice. Remember: You should arrive at the Tower 20 minutes before the start of the Watch so that you can meet the other Watchkeepers at the bottom of the Tower and ascend together. Need help: Call or Email the Rota Officer. If urgent: No response from the Rota Officer, then call the backup number below. To Cancel a Watch (Use If you need to cancel a Watch due to an emergency) 9. Use the Cancel option in Facility View this generates an email to the Rota Officer. Use the comments box for your reason. Do Not: Use the Delete option to cancel a watch. 10. If the Watch you are cancelling is within the next two days, contact the Rota Officer by telephone who will arrange a replacement Watchkeeper. Note: If the Rota Officer is going to be away a message will be sent to all Watchkeepers in advance, giving details of who to contact. 7 Page Call sign: Calshot NCI Registered in England & Wales Charity No. 1159975 www.nci.org.uk National Coastwatch Institution EYES ALONG THE COAST Calshot Tower 5. Using the Station Website The Stations website https://nci.org.uk/calshot has public information pages about Calshot Spit and our local waters, and also private pages for which you have to log in. Logging in After you have joined NCI Calshot Tower, our NCI Head Office will issue you directly with a user name and password to access the National website. Note: This is a different password to the one on 'findmyshift.' Go to www.nci.org.uk Go to the 'Login' area (top right hand side in yellow) and click. Using the 'user name' and 'password' sent to you: Fill in the blank areas under the appropriate headings and press enter. A new screen will give you only one choice to complete your log in. Click on Calshot Tower, which will take you to our website. Job done Scroll down the left hand side to view any information you wish to view. For your training details scroll down to 'Station Training Information' and you can access any training file you require. This site contains: • Training Course Information. • Watchkeeper Exercises. • Training updates and much more. Other information in the private area of the website is mainly administrative, Committee minutes and the like, mainly for future reference.