HMS Sidlesham

HMS SIDLESHAM M2729 Built 23.11.55 P.K. Harris

1956-7 Operational Reserve,Hythe/Gosport

1958 - 63 Operational Reserve, Rosneath

1964 Sold to Sussex Constabulary as HQ for their Sailing Club

 

A dit from Paul Jeacock posted on Ton class mcmvs facebook page, and taken from another site with permission - The author was my old Sergeant from the Sussex Police Underwater Search Unit.

Annual Inspection of the ‘ Gerald Daniel. ‘

The ‘ Gerald Daniel ‘was a former minesweeper named H.M.S Sidlesham  M2729 that was donated to Sussex Police in memory of Gerald, a member of Sussex Police, by his parents following his tragic death in the early 70’s . The vessel was used by Police Cadets as a base for water activities.

Every year the unit were ‘ tasked’ with checking the moorings of the vessel . The event always coincided with the last training day before Christmas. Whether this was anything to do with the tidal range or phases of the moon,  I was not told.

Once the task was completed the team were invited aboard by the crew where we took lunch consisting of Christmas dinner prepared by Mick Grisbrook - an excellent cook.

The water on board was not considered to be fit to drink, so this necessitated bringing our own. Gym Cannon obliged by supplying a barrel of liquid which he had kept fermenting at home to kill off any bacteria ….

On 14 September 2025 Kevin Kindeysides advised that Sidlesham had sunk at her moorings on the River Thames and was potentially a total loss.

Kevin brought us up to date with the recent history of the ship. In 1985 Susex Police closed the training unit and sold the ship, with lease of adjacent land to CYE Sailing Centre, a Christian Youth Charity, which ran activity camps for young people. Showers, Offices and staff accommodation were built on the adjacent field. A "box" replaced the bridge and charthouse in 2002 to provide better accommodation for instructors and youth leaders, who lived aboard with the youngsters.  

The centre offered dinghy sailing to RYA standards, kayaking, a climbing wall, assault course and educational visits to nearby historic sites. The youngsters would stay for a week. All meals up to 50, were cooked in the original galley. However by 2008 it became apparent that a more advanced and flexible base was required, so an MoD Support Barge was purchased and modified and Sidlesham was sold to a private individual who arranged to have her towed to  Chiswick Reach in London, where she became somewhat of a party venue. It is not clear whether any regular maintenance was carried out. The vessel took on water in 2017 but was pumped out, hull planking repaired and she was returned to her berth until this latest sinking.