Sunderland RNLI volunteers put to the test at Lifeboat College

15/12/2008

Two RNLI Lifeboat volunteers from Sunderland have successfully completed a specialist training course at the RNLI’s purpose-built training centre.

Martin Andrew and Anthony Jobling have both returned from ‘Lifeboat College’ in Poole, Dorset, with a week’s specialist inshore lifeboat training under their belts.

The Inshore Lifeboat Helmsman’s course covered all the core skills required to take command of the station’s Atlantic 85 Class Inshore Lifeboat during any rescue mission. This included boat handling, emergency drills (inc. Capsize Procedures), Navigation, as well as specialist Search and Rescue skills. All of which will be invaluable to Martin and Anthony’s role of saving lives at sea.

Martin, a Planning Engineer at Nissan has been part of Sunderland’s RNLI crew for almost 12 years; but is required to re-attend the course to refresh his skills to ensure that he is still capable of taking command of any search and rescue mission.

Martin said: “The Lifeboat College is an excellent facility. I’ve been a volunteer with the RNLI for almost 12 years now but, like all of the crews, I need to attend regular training sessions to ensure that I keep up to speed with the equipment and procedures. The training we receive at the college makes sure we can carry out the job of saving lives at sea as safely and effectively as possible.”

The College was opened in 2003 by Her Majesty the Queen and is equipped with an integrated survival centre, a full size lifeboat simulator, a live engine workshop, and a wave tank which is used for rescue scenarios and to train crews to right a capsized inshore lifeboat. Annually over 2,000 lifeboat volunteers take part in residential training courses at the college.

Anthony, a Care Worker for Sunderland City Council added “Me and Martin are both extremely grateful to Northumbrian Water for providing the funding for us to attend the college. During the course I learnt lots of new skills which will allow me to step up into a Helmsman’s position when one becomes available.”

Each year it costs the RNLI £20,000 to provide essential training for the 18-strong Sunderland based volunteer lifeboat crew, all of which is funded by voluntary donations.

In July the charity received a £7,000 donation from Northumbrian Water to help cover the cost of training volunteers based at Sunderland.

The donation is the third the lifeboat charity has received from Northumbrian Water since 2006, bringing the total amount handed over to more than £17,000. The money was raised by the water company’s Care for Safety Challenge, which uses charity fundraising as an incentive for employees to think more about health and safety at work by spotting and reporting risks, resulting in reduced accidents and improving the standard of accident and incident reports.

Each time a genuine potential health and safety issue or incident is reported correctly, a donation is made to the reporting department’s chosen charity. Since the scheme started in 2004, more than £207,000 has been handed over to a number of charities.

Jeff Graham, Chair of Northumbrian Water's Health and Safety Committee, said: ‘Northumbrian Water's Care for Safety scheme raises money for charity whenever employees follow health and safety procedures at work correctly. We're thrilled to be supporting a local life-saving charity that campaigns for safety at sea.’

RNLI media contacts

For more information please telephone either:

Paul Nicholson, Sunderland RNLI Press Officer on 07957 494 077 or email - pauldnich@yahoo.co.uk or

Anthony Jobling, Sunderland RNLI Assistant Press Officer on 07977 152 399 or email – Anthony.jobling2@btinternet.com

As an alternative please contact Alison Levett, Media Relations Manager North on 07786 668 912 or alevett@rnli.org.uk or RNLI Headquarters Public Relations on 01202 336000.

RNLI online

For more information on the RNLI please visit www.rnli.org.uk. News releases and other media resources, including RSS feeds, downloadable photos and video, are available at the RNLI Press Centre www.rnli.org.uk/press

For specific information relating to Sunderland RNLI visit www.rnlisunderland.org
 
Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates over 230 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and has more than 100 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824 its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 137,000 lives.

A charity registered in England and Wales (209603) and Scotland (SCO37736). Charity number CHY 2678 in the Republic of Ireland.