SEA Safety

People go afloat for leisure for all sorts of reasons – relaxation, adrenaline, fun. Whatever the reason, an incident at sea can ruin what would otherwise be a good day.

The RNLI offer you a completely free, friendly and confidential service that looks at safety aspects involved with your boat. SEA Check is neither a test nor an inspection and there is no pass or fail. Conducted by one of our highly trained volunteers, SEA Check is a personal face-to-face safety advice service that takes place on board your own craft. You set the time and we tailor our visit to your vessel and the type of boating that you do.

The check will be conducted by an RNLI volunteer, who will also be able to provide additional safety advice and suggestions for any additional improvements that can be made to the vessel or its operation.

The Sea Safety team also provide Talks, Presentations and Demonstrations on various subjects and can be booked to attend your own club or venue free of charge. You will also find some of our Sea Safety volunteers in attendance at some events around your area. To book or enquire about a demo or presentation, use the contact details further down the page to get more information.

Your local point of contact:
Roger Gillett is the appointed Lifeboat Sea Safety officer (LSSO) at Dungeness Lifeboat Station and can be contacted through the Station.  Roger will be happy to help with any of your queries about safety on the water in any one or more of the following ways.

A quick informal chat
If you want to talk about any aspect of sea safety, or have any queries or want to know more about any particular issue or item of safety equipment, just call us and we'll be happy to help.

Sea Check – a bit more formal. If you want us to have a look at your kit on the boat, then this is the ideal thing for you. This free friendly and confidential service offers audit of your safety equipment. Our team use a form to keep them on track, as it were, but the items listed on the form are items for discussion, it's not just a box ticking exercise. The advice given includes what should be carried for particular uses and areas, where and how equipment should be stowed and how to operate and maintain the equipment.

Lifejacket presentations and clinics. Wearing a lifejacket or buoyancy aid, generically known as Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs), saves lives. That simple fact has been proven over the years and RNLI statistics and experience backs this up. On average around the coasts of Ireland and the UK it takes a half an hour for the lifeboat to reach a casualty. Wearing a PFD will buy that time, and more. The presentation offered by the RNLI's trained lifejacket presenters highlight the importance of wearing the PFD. In addition to the presentation, we offer a lifejacket clinic, where you can bring your lifejackets along and we will show you how to look after them, how to fit them properly and what to look out for.

You can contact the Dungeness RNLI SEA Safety Team by completing our SEA Safety Check form, or by telephoning the Lifeboat Station during office hours on 01797 320317, or by Email.

• Sea Safety, the complete guide
• Lifejacket Campaign
• Sea Safety Advice
• Download Centre
• Book a Sea Safety Check
• Email the Dungeness RNLI Sea Safety Team