🚣 Welcome to the Wonky Boats Initiative

At Silverbirch Canoes, we believe every canoe deserves a chance to get on the water — even the slightly wonky ones.

Not every boat we build makes it to retail. A scratch here, a dent there. Nothing that affects performance, but not quite up to our usual-high standards. Rather than recycling them, we give them purpose. Through the Wonky Boats Initiative, we donate these boats to paddling clubs, youth programmes, and grassroots groups who will put them to good use.

This isn’t about clearing shelves. It’s about giving back.

🌿 Built on Quality. Driven by Sustainability.

We are proud of our reputation for obsessively high standards. We develop our own materials. We implement some of the most rigorous quality control processes in the industry. That means we sometimes reject a canoe for a minor cosmetic flaw, even when it’s completely safe and functional.

Historically, these boats were recycled. Now, we're giving them a second life where they're needed most. Because reuse is always better than recycling — especially when it helps get more people paddling.

🤝 Supporting Youth Access to Paddling

We know that opportunities for young people to access outdoor adventure are becoming increasingly limited. Risk-aversion, funding cuts, and access issues are creating barriers that didn’t exist when many of us first got on the water.

We believe that paddling builds confidence, resilience, and perspective. And we believe young people deserve those experiences.

If your organisation helps make that happen, we especially want to hear from you.

🔒 Guidelines

• Applications open: Now!
• Entries close: Never! We'll continue this initiative as long as we're making boats.
• Winners announced: Periodically, as the wonky rack fills. The next round of winners will be shared on Monday 7th July.

We judge entries based on: You don’t need to be perfect. Just passionate.

❓ FAQs