Volunteer life: Sandra Castro, National Instructor

A diver, staunch club committee member and a mentor, Sandra Castro talks about her volunteering journey. Interview by Kristina Pedder.

Sands Castro’s enthusiasm for diving, and everything associated with the sport, seems irrepressible. A BSAC First Class Diver and National Instructor from North Berwick in East Lothian, Scotland, Sands tells me she’s a member of not one but three branches in the Edinburgh area. Let’s shout out to them all, I say: A big hello to Lothian Divers, Divetech and South Queensferry.

As Club Secretary at Lothian Divers, Sands writes the minutes of the meetings, but the whole committee, from Diving Officer to ordinary members, contribute to the running of the club. She’s not a committee member for Divetech or South Queensferry; there she helps out with training and organises dive trips. The three branches often contact each other about spaces on dive trips or training courses, and many of the members also belong to more than one of these branches. 

SKILLS TIP 

My tip is to ALWAYS do a buddy check. This has saved me so many times when kit has not been properly attached (drysuit hoses) or has been left in my goody bag (torches, reels, SMBs.

“When I qualified,” Sands says, “I never expected to still be diving 35 years later. I have made so many friends and been to so many amazing places in the UK and abroad that I would never have travelled to if it hadn’t been for my hobby.”

FAVOURITE KIT

I love my O’Three MSF 500 drysuit. I have had it for 15 years and it has never let me down.

So what brought her to BSAC life? “I got into diving by accident, in 1990,” she replies, laughing. “I took a PADI Open Water course with a boyfriend at the time; his sister ran a PADI Dive Centre in Cornwall.” 

At the time, Sands was studying for her PhD at the University of Kent at Canterbury (UKC) and the following year, was part of a group that set up the UKC BSAC branch. The rest (and her ongoing interest in supporting BSAC branches), as they say, is history. 

I wanted to know what it was that gave her the bug for scuba. “I love so many things about diving,” she replies. “I am mostly into scenic diving. Searching for, and finding, critters during dives is so much fun.” Sands dives with a camera, just a basic point-and-shoot she says modestly, on most dives.  

“I also love the camaraderie of dive trips. It’s fun to plan and then carry out dive trips and spend the day out at sea.” Does she log them all? “I stopped logging my dives a few years ago, but I must have done at least 2,000,” she says. 

At work, Sands oversees and monitors clinical trials, working closely with hospitals throughout the UK. It turns out that her favourite diving is closer to home. “Most of my diving is done in Scotland,” she says. Living on the east coast, means Eyemouth, St Abbs and North Berwick are in easy reach, but her real love turns out to be the amazing diving along the west coast of Scotland, in particular in the Sound of Mull. “I love wall diving,” she says, “so Calve island, the John Preston Wall and the wall that the Rondo sits on are particular favourites. Most divers stay on the wreck of the Rondo and they are truly missing out.”

TEACHING TIP 

When I teach, I make sure to explain to the students why they need to be able to do a particular skill or know that information relative to diving. I believe this helps them understand and learn better. For example, why do we teach about the structure of the ears? To explain why we need to clear our ears as we descend to avoid a burst ear drum. 

Not that long after discovering diving, Sands attended an Instructor Training Course (ITC), the precursor of today’s Instructor Foundation Course (IFC). “I can’t really remember if anyone in particular persuaded me to get into instructing. I did my ITC in 1995, when I was a member of the Cambridge City BSAC branch and being involved in instructing just continued on from there. “When I started working on the Instructor Training Scheme (ITS) in 2000, I found I really enjoyed the role as an Instructor Trainer and Assistant Instructor Trainer coach. It gives me a huge feeling of satisfaction working on these events.”

Finally, I asked what Sands would say to a newly qualified diver or snorkeller: “My advice is to get out there and dive in as many different places, at as many dive sites and with as many different buddies as you can. With each dive, you learn something new and diving with different people is a great way to watch and learn.”

Article ‘’Sun, sea and Sands!’ by Kristina Pedder first published in SCUBA magazine, Issue 155 May 2025.