Rob Giles
Rob Giles -The New Harbourmaster
Rob Giles beams as he stands in his office with its sweeping views of the River Dart. The former Royal Navy Lieutenant Commander, an experienced warfare officer who has travelled the world, couldn’t be more delighted to be the new man in charge at the Dart Harbour and Navigation Authority.
“I can’t think of any other job that I would rather do – I’m still pinching myself,” said the 41-year-old Harbour Master.
It’s not the first time Rob has been based in Dartmouth. As a 19-year-old, fresh from school at Blundell’s in Tiverton, Rob joined Britannia Royal Naval College in 1989. He has fond memories of the town and his delight at coming back is clear.
Always keen on the water, Rob grew up beside the River Exe at Lympstone. He said: “My mother had a sailing school which she ran with my grandmother, the Blue Peter Sailing School in Exmouth.
“She used to take me sailing all the time and was a keen dinghy racer. Because I was under 10, she would use me as her crew-come-ballast, and I wasn’t old enough to be registered so we qualified for the all-female category. With her I won loads of trophies – all of them in women’s events!”
At Blundell’s School, rugby and cricket dominated, and when Rob left he set his sights firmly on a career as a Naval officer. His training included sponsorship by the Navy of a mechanical engineering degree course at Liverpool University, and as a warfare officer he enjoyed a varied career on surface ships all around the world.
“As a watch keeper I drove a frigate, I was a mine clearance diving officer, I worked in fishery protection, and that interest in the fishing industry has stayed with me. I am keenly aware of the plight of fishermen at the moment. Of course there is the need to balance conservation with the industry, but life is particularly hard for the fishermen at this time.”
Rob’s first Command came when he went back to Liverpool University to run the Naval unit there. The post took him to 74 different ports in 11 different countries – the chance to gather a wealth of experience of all types and sizes of working ports, invaluable in his new post as Dart Harbour Master.
“It gave me a great deal of knowledge of port operations, overseas but particularly in this country. I circumnavigated the UK twice visiting all sorts of different ports.”
Rob added: “It was interesting preparation for this job. It was an autonomous unit with its own budget and a team of full time staff and volunteers working in a port environment, so a lot of similarities.”
A warfare course followed and Rob joined HMS Argyll as Operations and Gunnery Officer, spending two years at sea including a spell in the Gulf in the year before the Iraq invasion. He recalled: “Our role was not invasion preparation but enforcement of UN Security Council resolutions. We detained a lot of dhows smuggling oil and dates. The dates were worth more by weight than the oil, because they are such a delicacy.”
In a post that mirrors current UK plans, Rob worked closely with the French Navy and then became operations officer for a squadron of eight mine sweepers and hunters based in Portsmouth. But a wind of change was beginning to blow through his life. Rob decided to face new professional challenges in his life, and met his wife, Vicki. He decided the time had come to leave the Navy.
“I have started my family a lot later than some did in the forces. I admire anyone who can serve in the Armed Forces away from their family, and it must be even harder for the family left at home. I made the decision that that wasn’t for me.”
The couple bought a house in Ermington where they still live, with children Maisie, 9, Tilly, 3, and Seb, 16 months, plus dogs Marley and Monty. It’s a handy 25 minutes from Dartmouth.
Since leaving the Navy, Rob has worked in strategic asset management for Devon County Council, and as a construction project manager for Devon and Cornwall Police. Both rewarding jobs, but when the Dart Harbour Master post became available, Rob jumped at the chance to land his dream job.
“I have a strong connection with Dartmouth and I can now take the time to develop my relationship with this unique town and the river.”
The trust port has certainly taken its time to train Rob, who first discovered he had landed the job in the summer, and who spent four weeks with retiring Harbour Master David White undergoing a highly detailed handover before taking over.
“I have to pay tribute to David for the work he did over the past six years. I join at a time where the financial position of the authority has benefitted from a lot of hard work, which has paid off. David came here as an experienced Master Mariner and grasped the nettle. He has generated this harbour’s reputation, and I am really glad that he will continue to work with us as a pilot. I only hope I can do justice to this post.”
Rob described the task ahead as one of balance. In overseeing the stewardship of the tidal River Dart he will have to weigh up big events on the river, such as Regatta and the arrival of huge visiting cruise ships, with the leisure life of the harbour and the requirements of the working port. Environmental and conservation concerns, the importance to the area of the beauty of the river, will lead to a close working relationship with the estuaries officer for the South Hams. There are statutory requirements that must be complied with, and UK and international regulations that must be followed. The role will also include preparing for unlikely, but highly reactive scenarios such as oil spills, and ensuring the health and safety of those using the river, as well as safe navigation.
“One of my key wishes is to make the Authority sustain itself and be independent as much as possible. I’m already working on that and looking at ways in which we can achieve it. With mooring fees and harbour dues I’m looking for sustainability and value for money for river users, and to make sure their money goes in exactly the right direction.”
Rob added: “This is one of the most beautiful rivers in the UK and we have to make sure it stays that way. We are here to work with everyone who uses the river, and it is a huge raft of responsibility. I’m lucky to have a very forward thinking and energetic Harbour Board, and an extremely dedicated and hard working staff. The welcome I have received has been out of this world.”
First published December 2010 By the Dart