The Merchant Navy, Maritime and Coastguard Agency and HM Coastguard

The UK’s geographical position make our waters some of the world’s busiest for shipping, with 95 per cent of UK trade by weight arriving or leaving at sea. Britain’s fleet has increased by 150 per cent during the last seven years, and is now around 1,000 ships, employing 25,000 British seafarers at sea and supporting 17,000 jobs ashore for which seafaring experience is required.

Here are some more facts about shipping:

• ships carry 90 per cent of world trade
• seaborne trade is forecast to increase substantially by 2015
• shipping is the UK’s fifth largest service-sector earner
• shipping contributes £2.3 billion net to the UK’s balance of payments each year – more than telecommunications, films and television, and computer services.

The Master or Captain is in charge of a ship and is fully responsible for the ship, the crew, the cargo, passengers, safety of the ship and everyone on board, and for navigation. The Chief Engineer runs the engineering and technical systems while other ship’s officers have responsibility for tasks in the deck or engine department. Some dual roles cover both departments. Officers may control the work of Ratings, who perform a wide range of technical and non-technical jobs but have a lower level of responsibility.

Deck Officers control navigation, communications, cargo handling and stability, while Deck Ratings assist in navigation, operate deck machinery such as winches and cranes, and carry out maintenance tasks. Engineer Officers manage provision and maintenance of all technical services, including propulsion and auxiliary machinery. Engineer Ratings are involved in routine maintenance, engine operation and machinery repair.

Life on board a ship is a 24/7 operation. The work is divided into watches, which are typically four hours on followed by eight hours off watch. At busy times this may increase to six on/six off. Leave time is generous – for example, two months at home after a voyage of around four months.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) manages the UK Shipping Register and its technical surveying staff undertake regular, detailed surveys of UK ships to ensure that safety standards are maintained. They also inspect foreign registered ships visiting UK ports and detain unsafe ships.

The UK has 10,500 miles of coastline with 25 million holidays and 110 million day trips to the seaside being taken each year. The MCA’s six Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centres, 12 Maritime Rescue Sub-Centres and over 60 Sector Bases operate around the clock to respond to incidents.

The Armed Forces

Royal Navy watch-keeping skills are now recognised by the MN, without individuals having to start again from the beginning. The RN has audited its internal training, and it has been accepted by MN representatives as meeting its requirements. Subjects specific to the MN, like cargo and commercial aspects, will need to be done by RN Officers in their own time or as resettlement activity, but this will only take a few months’ distance learning.

Some RN shore establishments are already offering approved MN certificates, so there are opportunities for RN leavers who want to continue at sea, and it is intended that the cross-certification of other areas of employment like engineering will follow. An MN career also provides a natural progression into employment ashore in related occupations.

Employment

There is no central controlling body for the MN since each company runs its own ships and employs its own crews. There are numerous trades but time away from home tends to increase the further from shore the individual is serving – ranging from about six months at a time for a deep-sea sailor to around five weeks for a coastal one.

Vessel types include large tankers carrying oil, gas or chemicals plying between production centres to distribution hubs, cruise ships going wherever tourists wish to travel, cable-layers, tugs, research and survey vessels, refrigerated ships, salvage specialists, and bulk carriers hauling up to 150,000 tons of coal, gain or ores. The new container ships are some of the most modern vessels afloat. Other vessel types include roll-on/roll-off (ro/ro) ferries, Naval support ships – the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, marine mining vessels (dredgers), cable layers, heavy lift ships, deep sea tugs and pollution control vessels.

Closer to home, high-speed catamarans and conventional ferries make dozens of daily sailings across the Irish Sea and the English Channel. The oil industry has a host of specialised ships such as survey vessels and pipe layers, supply vessels and standby ships, and anchor handlers and dive support vessels. Pilot vessels, fish farm workboats and pollution control vessels are just a few of the smaller craft. Only large passenger vessels with a high volume of radio traffic still carry specialist Radio Officers.

Training

For Service leavers without MN qualifications, training is usually carried out at one of the nautical colleges or at university, with practical experience at sea. Students are sponsored throughout their training for work in deck, engineering or dual roles as an Officer or Rating. Entry points are:

• Marine Traineeship
• Marine Apprenticeship
• Officer Cadet Training
• Undergraduate Officer Trainee
• Graduate Officer Trainee.

Training is overseen by the Merchant Navy Training Board, with representation from the MCA, Chamber of Shipping, the seafaring unions and the nautical colleges. The latter then deliver approved courses. Government funding is available to companies to train seafarers. Courses and qualifications may be academic or vocational, or – more usually – a mixture of both.

In general, Deck and Engineer Officers have a three-level certificate structure, based on sea service and examinations. The most junior position is Officer of the Watch (OOW), followed by Chief Mate or Second Engineer Officer, followed by Master or Chief Engineer. Deck Ratings are either Category 1 or 2, with a single level of Rating in the engine room.

Ratings with sufficient sea service on deck can take a certificate of competency to become a Deck Officer, but engine room Ratings need a special conversion course.

To operate smaller craft of less than 24m waterline length and a maximum of 12 passengers, the MCA publishes Codes of Practice, but only RYA qualifications are required. People working in vessels carrying up to 250 passengers in sheltered waters need a Boat Masters Licence issued by an MCA Marine Office.

Before joining the MN all RN personnel are assessed, but will normally be granted exemption from basic training. Officers and Ratings will have their sea-time counted in full, but will need a period of familiarisation in a merchant ship. Officers with bridge experience will get a number of exemptions from the Deck Officer examinations.

Marine Engineer Officers and Artificers, and Artificers with common mechanical or electrical apprenticeships from HMS Sultan can become a MN Engineer Officer directly. POMEMs with at least 24 months of Craft Engineer duties in a fleet maintenance base may also be considered.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency

The MCA employs 1,000 staff in three main categories: ship surveyors, coastguards and administrators. Its headquarters is in Southampton, but its people are spread around the UK. Operational staff can be on call and are expected to respond to an incident at any time of the day or night involving search and rescue, or the threat of a vessel polluting, grounding or sinking.

Marine surveyors and technicians

A key area of the MCA’s work is reviewing, developing and setting standards in ships, equipment and carriage of cargoes. It also develops, promotes and enforces seafarer standards. Marine surveyors are drawn from:

• naval architects/ships surveyors
• engineers
• nautical specialists.

Their main responsibility is to inspect ships and crew to ensure they comply with standards. Many surveyors are in a second career, having served in the RN or the MN. Marine technicians assist them in this activity. Fishing vessel surveyors inspect fishing vessels and crew using UK waters.

HM Coastguard

Her Majesty’s Coastguard provides a vital co-ordination service for search and rescue incidents at sea and on the coastline through a network of maritime rescue co-ordination centres and sub-centres. The service is supported by 3,000 volunteer auxiliary coastguards, organised into response teams.

Sector managers manage and train the Coastguard service in their sector, and carry out some fishing boat inspection. Watch Officers are men and women with extensive experience of the sea. Although training is given, relevant experience is a necessary preliminary for co-ordination of maritime rescue services. Academic qualifications and physical fitness are required. All applicants must be qualified to drive Group A–E vehicles, and hold a valid UK driving licence.

Coastguard Watch Assistants do not require any formal qualifications or previous experience. Recruitment is through local Coastguard stations, which can be found in the telephone directory under ‘HM Coastguard’.

How to join

Senior and specialist posts are advertised regularly, often in local media; recent examples include communication specialist, press and marketing, accounting and IT.

Contact details

Maritime & Coastguard Agency, Infoline, Tutt Head, Mumbles, Swansea, West Glamorgan SA3 4EX Tel: 0870 600 6505 Website: www.mcga.gov.uk

Merchant Navy Training Board, Carthusian Court, 12 Carthusian Street, London EC1M 6EZ Tel: 020 7417 2800 Website: www.mntb.org