Apprenticeship summary

Occupation summary

This occupation is found in a wide range of specialist vessels, both commercial and military, carrying cargo or passengers, notably Royal Navy landing craft, tugs, fishing boats, commercial yachts and workboats. These vessels work close to the shore, in waters designated by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) as "Near Coastal": "an area of operation restricted to 150 miles from a safe haven on the coast of the UK and 30 miles from Ireland". Vessels vary considerably in their size, type and use, therefore the responsibilities of a Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal will also vary between different vessels.

The broad purpose of the occupation is to take charge of a vessel's safety and navigation at sea and in harbour as the most senior rank on board a vessel. This is achieved by making decisions about the safe navigation, collision avoidance and security of the vessel, ensuring both the safety of anyone working on the outside decks or in the engine room, and for the protection of the environment. The Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal is also responsible for keeping an accurate record of notable events. All activities undertaken comply with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Standards for Training and Certification of Watchkeepers convention (STCW) through the acquisition of a Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) Master Certificate of Competence. Safety and navigational responsibilities of the Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal will need to be balanced with the business priorities of the vessel's owner, whether they are commercial or other (e.g. public protection in the case of the Royal Navy). A Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal can have a varied work pattern, they can work for several weeks at a time on board or at sea, working at any time of day or night, or may be on board for shorter periods, returning home each week or even each night. Depending on the operation and type of vessel, the day may be split into daywork or watches (shifts) or may be determined by hours of rest requirements when the vessel has a smaller crew or non-continuous operations, for example towage. A Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal may work both day and night at sea and in port seven days a week, in all weathers, and sleeping on board, followed by a similar length of time on leave, though the detail varies between different types of vessels, and different employers. The role of the Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal includes the command management function with responsibility for the safety of the vessel, its personnel, tasks to be performed and the environment. It covers the assurance of the full range of statutory and relevant industry codes compliance. Even when not on duty (off watch) the Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal has the responsibility to act during emergencies to ensure the safety of the crew, vessel and cargo. A Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal also has responsibilities for the supervised maintenance of navigational and safety equipment, and life-saving and fire-fighting appliances and to maintain and operate the vessel in support of the owner's objectives.

In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with the other navigational and engineering officers and crew (depending on the size of the vessel) onboard. They may also interact with other professionals onboard their own vessel who are not members of the crew, such as armed forces on board a Royal Navy vessel, technicians or industrial personnel on an offshore wind Crew Transfer Vessels (CTV), and also seafarers on board other vessels, including pilots. Aside from onboard colleagues, the Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal may interact with colleagues on fixed structures at sea (e.g. oil platforms or offshore wind turbines) and ashore, including owners and their representatives, organisation senior managers, port and navigational authorities, coastguard officers and other Search and Rescue professionals, Classification Societies, insurers, and the regulator. The Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal also interacts with other stakeholders about vessel position, for instance with regional maritime authorities’ Port and Vessel Traffic Service interfaces and with other shipping and marine users nearby. They may also liaise with other organisations that receive services provided as part of operations. This could mean, for instance, co-ordinating with the team aboard a renewable, oil or gas platform, or assisted vessel in respect to a tug.

An employee in this occupation will be responsible for controlling the vessel throughout their duty onboard, having overall responsibility, though may delegate authority to other members of the crew on occasion. The Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal will effectively delegate duties and monitor successful completion of all tasks, working with a small team or alone on the bridge, and on the rest of the vessel, depending very much on its size and purpose. Responsibilities include the safe embarkation or mooring / anchorage of a vessel and the safe handling of a vessel while it is engaged in other tasks, such as towing or pushing other vessels, fishing, or landing/transfer of personnel. Successful conduct of the vessel includes effective delegation of duties, conducting of briefings and toolbox talks, and de-briefings with positive feedback monitoring following completion of tasks. Regarding safety and protection of the marine environment the Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal must work with the legal requirements set by both national and international bodies. During normal operations, and in emergencies the Ship’s Master – Less than 500 Gross Tonnage Near Coastal has full responsibility for safety on board. They must undertake suitable responses as a result of their applied knowledge in relation to vessel manoeuvring, anticipations and reactions to a range of routine, non-routine and contingency scenarios, for example man-overboard recovery, fire-fighting, engine failure.

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