News : The RNLI working in the Southport area

The RNLI working in the Southport area

Earlier this year the RNLI took over the beach lifeguard service that runs along our coastline from Southport to Crosby.

Their job is that of the former Sefton lifeguards. Provide a basic cover of our beaches during the day, and help anyone in need.

However their services do not continue during the night, or out to sea.

Although the RNLI is a voluntary charity, the lifeguards that will be working off our coastline are not volunteers, but full time, paid staff.

It is worth remembering that the RNLI left Southport  in 1925, and to this day still believe that there isn’t a need for a lifeboat here, despite the Southport Lifeboat saving the lives of around 200 people over the past 21 years.

The Southport Lifeboat remains the only lifeboat service on our stretch of coast. We are built up of unpaid volunteers from the local area and offer protection 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

As you know the Southport Lifeboat is a 100% independent from the RNLI, and we must stress that this is still the case, and we still need your help.

We have spent the past 21 years trying to tell people that we are not the RNLI. It has been a very difficult task that will now with no doubt become harder with a presence of the RNLI in the town.

Without the help of the people of Southport, we would not have been able to buy our new Lifeboat three-years-ago, or cover the rising costs of fuel, insurance or overheads that we face every year.

We still need your help as we look to raise funds to build a brand new boathouse.

At the end of the day both organisations are here for safety and to save lives. We will work closely alongside the RNLI Lifeguards, however we want the people of Southport to understand that we will still be carrying out our service voluntarily along our coastline.

Please continue to support us.