The seas, beaches and waterways watched over by our lifesavers are enjoyed by millions of people every year. But the water remains an unpredictable environment that can catch people out. People will always need our help and – thanks to you – we will always be there to answer that call.

9,141 lifeboat launches

In 2024, RNLI lifeboat crews launched 9,141 times around the coasts of the UK and Ireland, aiding an average of 23 people a day. It's clear that our volunteer lifesavers are still needed to help keep our coastline safe.

As our frontline rescue service continued to keep thousands safe, we also looked at how to support and sustain this lifesaving work long into the future.

Being an RNLI lifesaver takes huge personal commitment and sacrifice from our volunteers, and you help to keep them safe by equipping them with everything they need for the demands they face.

Aiding 17,068 beachgoers

We provided lifeguard cover on 238 UK and Channel Island beaches in 2024. Our lifeguards aided 17,068 people and responded to 13,135 incidents.

For the latest information, please visit our beach safety page.

Drowning prevention

In 2024, your support also helped us reach people with water safety messages, preventing them from getting into trouble in the water in the first place.

Water safety volunteers continued teaching young people lifesaving skills, and RNLI lifeguards gave water safety advice to over 130,000 schoolchildren.

Around 19,000 young people took part in Swim Safe. This outdoor swimming session teaches children skills that help them stay safe in and around open water.

Every other minute, someone around the world drowns. That's why, in 2024, we continued to work with international partners to help prevent drowning. In Bangladesh, we developed pilot interventions that could help prevent drowning for children under 2 years of age, as part of a research group. We also worked with an online humanitarian learning platform to create an international Flood and Water Safety course, which has been completed by over 2,000 individuals in more than 100 countries.

We couldn't do any of this without you

This was lifesaving powered by you.

Your support today will help train and equip our lifesavers so that they're ready for anything.

If you’d like to find out a bit more about the numbers, head to our annual report and accounts pages.