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Contact Us
Find Us

Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE

Connect with us
Other Links

Stand up paddleboarding

We cater for all levels of experience and ability from complete beginners who have never been on a paddle board before, to those who are more experienced and perhaps have their own paddle board but want additional coaching support or guidance on improving their skills and techniques. 

You'll usually take part in a SUP journey from one point to the other, which may include a competitive element racing against others, completing a relay race or challenging races around obstacles in the water.
Group image of children and adults on land with paddles and lifejackets

Stand up paddle boarding (also known as SUP) is fast becoming a popular watersport and an excellent way to get outdoors and experience the UK waterways. It involves standing or kneeling on a large stable board and using a paddle with a single blade to move through the water.

Our instructors will kit you up in one of our wetsuits to ensure you keep warm, and fit you with a buoyancy aid; you don't need to be able to swim to take part in our SUP sessions as we provide buoyancy aids for all participants and this will keep you afloat should you fall into the water. 

Our instructors will show you how to get onto the board, how to keep your balance and demonstrate how to use the paddle and equipment. There’s always a chance you’ll fall into the water and just in case you do, we will demonstrate how to get yourself back up onto the board; its easier than you think! Then it's time to get out onto the water and try SUP for yourself. You'll start by kneeling on the board and once you're feeling more confident you can progress to standing up.

You'll usually take part in a SUP journey from one point to the other, which may include a competitive element racing against others, completing a relay race or challenging races around obstacles in the water. SUP is a great way to travel along the UK waterways and see some waterside fabulous scenery.

We cater for all levels of experience and ability from complete beginners who have never been on a paddle board before, to those who are more experienced and perhaps have their own paddle board but want additional coaching support or guidance on improving their skills and techniques.

We provide all the equipment needed for the session; boards, paddles, buoyancy aids and wetsuits.

We offer stand up paddle boarding sessions on lakes, rivers, canals, reservoirs, and even on the sea!

For groups and beginners we tend to stay on calm flat waters, with lots of location options to choose from across the UK. For more experienced SUP groups we can offer more advanced open water journeys, river trips or coastal adventures including surfing.

  1. Improving self confidence: by staying afloat, keeping straight and managing your board
  2. Improving communication skills: by listening and following instructions and gaining understanding of how to paddle both kneeling and standing up, and what to do if you end up in the water
  3. Building teamwork: by motivating each other through the activity and to encourage others to try standing up once they are confident kneeling
  4. Developing leadership: by leading the way across the water, giving support and encouragement to those in the team who may be less confident
  5. Mood booster: depending on where you are stand up paddle boarding the session can be peaceful and meditative or fun and exciting. There can be a real sense of achievement from standing up on the board for the first time and maintaining your balance
  6. Low impact fitness: stand up paddle boarding is a low impact water sport which can help to build balance, strength, flexibility, and cardiovascular fitness
  7. Encouraging creativity: some of the activities encourage you to get creative with designs and ideas and think outside of the box

If you're looking to build your skills in this area, or even become a coach or instructor yourself, our team are accredited by British Canoeing to deliver a range of paddlesports courses and qualifications. 

Outdoor qualifications

Through our affiliation with British Canoeing and our partnership with the Canal and River Trust we have access to over 3000km of canals throughout England and Wales including the famous Leeds to Liverpool canal stretching 204km across the North of England. This access gives us the opportunity to journey along some of these magnificent waterways and provides opportunities for more fun or developmental sessions in beautiful, local sheltered areas.

Most of the large bodies of open water in England are concentrated in the Lake District National Park. These magnificent bodies of water, including the longest and deepest lakes in England, Lake Windermere at 17km long and Wastwater at 74m deep, can be accessed by the public at many locations. Through our partnership with the Youth Hostel Association (YHA) we have preferential access to some of the best locations in the lakes. Why not combine any of our activity sessions with a stay at one of 150 YHA hostels located across England and Wales?

Stand up paddle boarding (also known as SUP) is fast becoming a popular watersport and an excellent way to get outdoors and experience the UK waterways. It involves standing or kneeling on a large stable board and using a paddle with a single blade to move through the water.

Our instructors will kit you up in one of our wetsuits to ensure you keep warm, and fit you with a buoyancy aid; you don't need to be able to swim to take part in our SUP sessions as we provide buoyancy aids for all participants and this will keep you afloat should you fall into the water. 

Our instructors will show you how to get onto the board, how to keep your balance and demonstrate how to use the paddle and equipment. There’s always a chance you’ll fall into the water and just in case you do, we will demonstrate how to get yourself back up onto the board; its easier than you think! Then it's time to get out onto the water and try SUP for yourself. You'll start by kneeling on the board and once you're feeling more confident you can progress to standing up.

You'll usually take part in a SUP journey from one point to the other, which may include a competitive element racing against others, completing a relay race or challenging races around obstacles in the water. SUP is a great way to travel along the UK waterways and see some waterside fabulous scenery.

We cater for all levels of experience and ability from complete beginners who have never been on a paddle board before, to those who are more experienced and perhaps have their own paddle board but want additional coaching support or guidance on improving their skills and techniques.

We provide all the equipment needed for the session; boards, paddles, buoyancy aids and wetsuits.

We offer stand up paddle boarding sessions on lakes, rivers, canals, reservoirs, and even on the sea!

For groups and beginners we tend to stay on calm flat waters, with lots of location options to choose from across the UK. For more experienced SUP groups we can offer more advanced open water journeys, river trips or coastal adventures including surfing.

  1. Improving self confidence: by staying afloat, keeping straight and managing your board
  2. Improving communication skills: by listening and following instructions and gaining understanding of how to paddle both kneeling and standing up, and what to do if you end up in the water
  3. Building teamwork: by motivating each other through the activity and to encourage others to try standing up once they are confident kneeling
  4. Developing leadership: by leading the way across the water, giving support and encouragement to those in the team who may be less confident
  5. Mood booster: depending on where you are stand up paddle boarding the session can be peaceful and meditative or fun and exciting. There can be a real sense of achievement from standing up on the board for the first time and maintaining your balance
  6. Low impact fitness: stand up paddle boarding is a low impact water sport which can help to build balance, strength, flexibility, and cardiovascular fitness
  7. Encouraging creativity: some of the activities encourage you to get creative with designs and ideas and think outside of the box

If you're looking to build your skills in this area, or even become a coach or instructor yourself, our team are accredited by British Canoeing to deliver a range of paddlesports courses and qualifications. 

Outdoor qualifications

Through our affiliation with British Canoeing and our partnership with the Canal and River Trust we have access to over 3000km of canals throughout England and Wales including the famous Leeds to Liverpool canal stretching 204km across the North of England. This access gives us the opportunity to journey along some of these magnificent waterways and provides opportunities for more fun or developmental sessions in beautiful, local sheltered areas.

Most of the large bodies of open water in England are concentrated in the Lake District National Park. These magnificent bodies of water, including the longest and deepest lakes in England, Lake Windermere at 17km long and Wastwater at 74m deep, can be accessed by the public at many locations. Through our partnership with the Youth Hostel Association (YHA) we have preferential access to some of the best locations in the lakes. Why not combine any of our activity sessions with a stay at one of 150 YHA hostels located across England and Wales?

Booking information

  1. What's available?

    • Half day activity session
    • Incorporated into full programme
    • Qualifications

  1. Who can book?

    • Youth and community groups
    • Schools
    • Universities and colleges
    • Businesses

Interested in stand up paddleboarding sessions?

Get in touch with our team using the link below to book or find out more.

Book now

We are accredited by:

Why choose  Carnegie Great outdoors

  • We are part of Leeds Beckett University with extensive experience working with external clients and groups
  • We hold Public Liability Insurance of £25,000,000
  • We provide all specialist outdoor activity equipment, which is thoroughly checked, cleaned, serviced and maintained by our team. We hold trade accounts with the leading outdoor equipment manufacturers and replace our activity equipment in line with manufacturer and National Governing Body Guidelines
  • We tailor our activities to meet your personal aims and objectives, or to fit the requirements of the group; meeting curriculum requirements, corporate learning aims, identified skill sets or learning objectives 

Contact us

All sessions are run by our friendly instructors who:

  • Hold specialist qualifications issued by the National Governing Body for each of the activities
  • Have excellent working knowledge of the activity locations
  • Are DBS enhanced checked
  • Hold a specialist 16-hour Outdoor Emergency First Aid qualification which is renewed every three years and covers the care of casualties in remote settings, in line with Government HSE regulations
  • Hold professional indemnity insurance
  • Have extensive experience working with a variety of client groups in the outdoors
  • Have a sound understanding of the outdoor sector including relevant legislation
  • Maintain a high standard of customer care