Inspired by beach downtime and watching waves cresting in surfer spots, the collection takes it’s name “Ola” from the Spanish word for Wave. To continue their charity work Pureshore had pledged to donate 10% of all profits from this collection to The Wave Project, a charity initiative which focuses on “Surf Therapy” – enabling young people to work through anxiety and social and emotional challenges by embracing the surf. There is a wealth of information about the benefits of the sea and coast on our mental wellbeing. Never has this been more apparent than this particular summer, where after experiencing a prolonged lockdown in our homes, people have flocked to the seaside to feel better and enjoy being outdoors. The sense of freedom that being by the sea gives us is not to be underestimated.

In September 2010, a group of 20 young people sat on the beach at Watergate Bay, Cornwall, for a surfing lesson. They had all been diagnosed with mental health disorders, ranging from mild to severe. Some participants had been self-harming, others experienced severe anxiety, low mood or depression. One participant was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Yet to watch them on the beach, none of this was visible. It was the start of The Wave Project – the world’s first ‘surf therapy’ course funded by a government health service. The NHS had agreed to fund this as a pilot scheme, with a view to providing further funding if it was found to be effective. They assigned a clinical psychologist, Dr Kathryn Lovering, to evaluate the programme, based on data gathered by the project organisers.

The results of self-evaluation showed that wellbeing rose among the group overall, with participants feeling calmer, less angry and more connected to each other, after surfing. Young people experiencing anxiety grew in confidence. One young man, who had a diagnosis of selective mutism, began talking freely again during the course. It was the first time in the UK that surfing had been used to support mental health.