Rachel Kitley Sails Away with Prestigious Maritime Award

Staff and students at Cowes Enterprise College are celebrating after the school’s principal, Rachel Kitley, sailed away with a prestigious prize at the Maritime UK Solent Awards 2023.

Ms Kitley was honoured with the night’s major prize – the Maritime Legacy Award – as part of a black-tie celebration at the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

The annual awards seek to celebrate the employers, apprentices, and innovators who champion the maritime industries across the region.

Ms Kitley, who joined the school  in 2017, was awarded the prize thanks to her “significant impact to the strength of the Solent Maritime Sector,” and “legacy of achievements”

These include “having had a positive impact on the regional sector; having constructively supported young people and apprentices; and having been an ambassador for the Solent’s maritime sector.”

On receiving the award, Ms Kitley said:

“I am hugely honoured to receive this award, and really humbled to be in a room with such champions of the Maritime industries.

“Tonight’s awards have been hugely inspiring, and showcased not just the brilliant work which is underway at the moment, but the exciting future we all have ahead of us.  

“It has been such a joy to be part of this journey, and to gain an insight into the incredible work you all do every day.”