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Headcam footage from a lifeboat crew member jumping into the water to save a man and child
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You can help crews get there in time

Will you be the difference between just in time and too late? Donate to our Mayday Appeal.
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We are the RNLI

The charity that saves lives at sea

A side view of a fully clothed man floating on his back in the water

how to float to live

If you get into difficulty in the water, follow five simple steps to float. 
An Atlantic 85 B class lifeboat cruises across the water

join a force for good

Become a member of the RNLI and you'll be joining a lifesaving family, working together to save every one we can.
RNLI beach lifeguard carries a red and yellow flag on the beach

Find your nearest lifeguarded beach

Keep you and your loved ones safe at the seaside by choosing a lifeguarded beach.
Launch a Memory Lifeboat illustration

Launch a Memory

Add your loved one's name to Exmouth's Shannon class lifeboat and their memory will help save lives at sea
Four RNLI lifesavers stand in a wet Trafalgar Square. From left to right: An RNLI lifeguard, all-weather lifeboat crew member, inshore lifeboat crew member, and a face-to-face fundraiser.

RNLI 200: A story of kindness

With your support, this story of kindness can continue. Will you help us mark 200 years of lifesaving?
Flat lay of shop RNLI 200 products including socks, cap and keyring

Shop and save lives at sea

Everything you buy from the RNLI shop helps support lifeboat crews and lifeguards in their mission to save every one they can
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RNLI 200 voices

Listen to our new podcast as we share true tales of how the RNLI has touched lives for almost 200 years

Rescue stories your support made possible

An RNLI inshore D class lifeboat in rough seas with three crew aboard, two lean out to reach for a child in the water on the port side of the lifeboat
Watch the moment a girl’s life is saved
Dun Laoghaire RNLI volunteers rescue a child from rough seas.
Watch the video
Yarmouth’s Severn class lifeboat passes by The Needles. There is one crew member at the front of the boat on the lower deck, and five crew looking out from the upper deck.
‘It was like looking for a needle in a haystack’
When two paddleboarders go missing, seven lifeboats launch to their rescue. Will the crews find them before darkness falls?
Read the story
Two crew members from Fowey RNLI in their inshore lifeboat
Stuck on the rocks
What would you do if you saw your 13-year old daughter pulled out to sea on an inflatable paddleboard? 
What would you do?
Stephen Manson, an all-weather lifeboat crew member, smiles at the camera next to a dock
A battle against the storm
7 crew members. 16 hours at sea. Force 10 winds. 3 lives saved.
 
Read the dramatic story

In a emergency at the coast, call 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard.

Float to live campaigner Simon Chrisp on the 200 Voices podcast

200 Voices: Simon Chrisp

Hear Simon tell how Float to Live saved his son's life in Episode 177 of the RNLI 200 Voices podcast

Listen nowMore podcasts

Latest lifeboat launches

Latest launches
D class inshore lifeboat launches from a tractor into heavy surf

True stories of courage

Visit our online magazine to read some of the most thrilling, dramatic and inspiring rescue stories carried out by RNLI lifesavers
Read now

For 200 years, RNLI volunteers have counted on kindness

Today, they’re still braving wild waters to save people in need