What is the RNLI

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is a registered charity that saves lives at sea. It provides, on call, a 24-hour lifeboat search and rescue service to 100 nautical miles out from the coast of the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland and a seasonal lifeguard service on over 100 beaches in England and Wales. The RNLI, which provides nine out of ten sea rescue launches, continues to rely on voluntary contributions and legacies for its income.

Train one, save many

On average, 21 people are rescued every day thanks to crew training. But although the courage and dedication of our volunteers comes free, it costs on average £1,000 a year to train every crew member. Most of the RNLI’s crew members across Scotland are volunteers – that is, they give their time for free. They need to be skilled to go to sea and save lives, but very few join the RNLI with a professional maritime occupation so they cannot become lifesavers with out training.

The train one, save many appeal aims to raise £500,000 over 2 years to pay for crew training for lifeboat stations around the Scottish coastline and its islands. Everyday these ordinary volunteers do something extraordinary – they save lives at sea. Money raised will help supply the training on which lives will depend, whether boathandling, navigation, first aid or communications.

Running costs

As well as training we need to provide a fully functioning lifeboat fleet and the kit to keep our crew safe at sea.

The RNLI's running costs average around £335,000 a day. For every £1 raised, 85p is spent on operations and 15p is spent on generating income.

The RNLI has an active fleet of 332 lifeboats, ranging from 5m to 17m in length, and a relief fleet of 112 additional lifeboats. The fleet also includes four active and one relief hovercraft.

For more information about the lifesaving work of the RNLI, please visit our website www.rnli.org.uk or email scotland@rnli.org.uk

The RNLI is a charity registered in Scotland, England and the Republic of Ireland.