Scarlett Barnett-Smith: the maritime woman my mother wanted to be
08 November 2024
I was very pleased to read in the last edition of the Telegraph about the success of recently-qualified officer Scarlett Barnett-Smith, whom I first met during her time at the Port of London Authority (PLA).
Sadly I had been retired a number of years when Scarlett came on the scene, but I'm frequently in touch or visiting the old firm. She was involved in making/appearing in several videos expressing her life and aspects of her career when I met her, in the same way that she has demonstrated in the Nautilus podcast Off Course.
My mother's biggest regret in life was she couldn't go to sea, other than perhaps in the laundry on a larger passenger vessel. It is now 117 years since her birth, and I hope she is now looking down on us and celebrating Scarlett's career so far.
In the latter part of my deep sea career I was heavily involved in cadet training. I spent time at Warsash attached to the staff before taking units of cadets deep sea. I then came ashore to administer cadet training – occupying a seat on the Merchant Navy Training Board, and on the board of governors at Greenhithe.
Was it BP Tankers who first accepted female cadets into their company circa 1970? I had a close working relationship with other company training officers of that period, and possibly P&O were considering starting a scheme for female entrants. When I took the idea back to my own 'powers that be', it was accepted as an interesting possibility, but the supposed complications of accommodating young females made it a no from them! Despite my strong motivation from my mother's story, all my efforts finished in the waste bin.
Thankfully the intervening years have given many women the chance for a career at sea and to rise to prominent positions in the industry.
May your work and efforts in supporting the needs of women afloat continue.
Tony White
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