Launch of ADMIRALTY Small Craft Chart Service

Last year, the UK Hydrographic Office announced the launch of its ADMIRALTY Small Craft Chart Service – formerly known as ADMIRALTY Leisure Chart Folios.

Safety 28 Mar 22

A group of men are sailing on a yacht on the Solent.

In future small craft charts will be available to purchase individually and will include the most up to date information at the point of sale, an important safety and flexibility benefit for all marine users who depend on these charts.

The launch of this new service follows the announcement in May 2021 that UKHO will withdraw the regional folio structure. Instead users only need to purchase those charts in A2 format that are relevant to their needs in order to support their navigational decision making without being required to purchase the full regional folio.

The UKHO say that key features of the new Small Craft Charts include weekly Notices to Mariners (NMs) to ensure you have the latest safety-critical information, information clearly highlighting coastal areas, slipways and racing marks to aid navigation, as well as harbours and marinas, tidal information, abbreviations, radio services and symbols and durability.

The updated product provides users including small fishing craft , leisure yachtsmen, workboats, motorboat cruisers and other small craft mariners with access to the most up to date data required to support their needs and maintain safety of life at sea. All small craft charts are aligned with the new editions of SOLAS-compliant ADMIRALTY Standard Nautical Charts (SNCs), ensuring users have the same access to the latest navigational information for safe passage in UK waters.

Users will have the latest updated versions of chart images, which may be as frequent as after every Notices to Mariners (NM) update, meaning users can purchase a new chart instead of manually applying NMs to an existing chart. However, users will also be able to apply the standard NMs using NMWebsearch which can be obtained via a QR code on the chart.

Pre-existing ADMIRALTY Leisure Chart Folios will continue to be supported until at least October 2022 with NMs, either through the continued publication of Leisure NMs or by using the link between the Folio charts and SNCs to apply the standard NMs. However, Folio charts should be replaced by the equivalent new edition Small Craft Chart once a new edition of the source SNC has been published to ensure users have the latest navigational information.

A list of Small Craft Charts is available at NP109A - Small Craft Chart Catalogue and can be purchased through a Print-on-Demand (POD) service from an ADMIRALTY Distributor or local chandlery.

For further information about the ADMIRALTY Small Craft Charts, please visit the ADMIRALTY website.