Brighton Lifeboat Station

Brighton Lifeboat Station
Brighton Lifeboat Station (Now under re-development [1] )
Location of Brighton Lifeboat station within East Sussex
General information
Type	RNLI Lifeboat Station
Architectural style	Steelframe Boathouse with brick and block construction
Location	Brighton Marina, East Sussex, BN2 5UF
Country	England
Coordinates	50°48′39.6″N0°06′15.4″W / 50.811000°N 0.104278°W / 50.811000; -0.104278
Opened	1825 - 1931 re-established in 1965
Owner	Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Technical details
Material	Concrete, brick, block and Steel

Brighton Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station located in Brighton in the English county of East Sussex in the United Kingdom. ^[2] It was originally established in 1825 as an all-weather lifeboat station. This lifeboat was withdrawn in 1931, and the station now operates as an inshore lifeboat station. ^[3] As of 2012 ^[update] , the current lifeboat is the B-class (Atlantic 85) Random Harvest (B-852). ^[3]

Location

The station is located in the marina area of Brighton and is co-ordinated from HM Coastguards at Lee-on-Solent. Being an inshore station, the majority of the station's services are within two miles of the station. The station is called to an average of sixty rescues a year. ^[4]

History

The National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck, the forerunner of the RNLI, first opened a lifeboat station in Brighton in 1824. The lifeboat for this station was kept in a cave, close to the Chain Pier. The service operated from this cave until 1837, when the construction of the Madeira sea-wall and Madeira Drive was completed. ^{[5] [6]} At that time, the lifeboat was withdrawn from the town, and it was not until 1858 that another station was opened in Brighton. ^[7]

1858–1931

In 1858, the town council provided an area on the beach for a new boathouse opposite the Bedford Hotel close to the West Pier. ^[7] The station was relocated twice in the next decades, once in 1868 and again in 1886 following improvements to the Brighton seafront. ^[7] After 1886, the station was located on the Western Esplanade between the two piers. The site was used until 1931 when the RNLI withdrew the all-weather boat from the town after nearby Shoreham Station was equipped with a motor lifeboat. ^[7]

1965 - Inshore lifeboats

After 1931, Brighton had no lifeboats of its own until it received an inflatable D-class (IB1) inshore lifeboat in 1965, funded from public donations. D-class lifeboats served until the winter of 1974 and the station was closed in 1975.

In 1978 the station re-opened at the new Brighton Marina where a pontoon was provided for the RNLI at the cost of £10,000. ^[7] A McLachlan-class lifeboat (A-509) was placed on service until the Atlantic 21 Lions International (B-539) became fully operational in 1979. ^[8]

In 1981 a permanent boathouse was constructed and a temporary shelter was installed on the nearby quayside to house the crew facilities. This new permanent station was the RNLI's first floating lifeboat station. ^[7]

In 1997 the station was provided with a larger B-class (Atlantic 75) lifeboat called Thelma Glossop (B-737). ^[8] The new lifeboat arrived on the station on 1 July of that year.

1999 and 2014 improvements

In 1999 work began on the construction of new shore facilities for the station on the quayside within the marina. The work was completed in 2000 at a cost of £299.775. ^[9]

In January 2014, the station's facilities were closed and the station moved to temporary accommodation nearby. The 2000 building was demolished as part of the £235 million ^[1] re-development and expansion of the Brighton Marina.

A new Atlantic 85-class lifeboat, Random Harvest (B-852) was placed on service on 8 September 2011. ^[10] Atlantic 75-class lifeboat Thelma Glossop (B-737) was transferred to Loch Ness where she served for another 2 years. ^[8]

Station Honours

The following are awards made at Brighton ^{[10] [11]}

• RNLI Gold Medal

Captain Digby Marsh, RN, coastguard, - 1840

• RNLI Silver Medal

Charles Watts - 1824

Lt. Edward Franklin, RN, coastguard - 1838

Lt. George Franklyn, RN, coastguard- 1839

Lt. Nathaniel Newnham, RN, coastguard - 1840

Lt. Thomas Henry Prior, RN, coastguard - 1840

Lt. James Pratt, RN, coastguard - 1840

Richard Pearce, Helmsman - 1996

• Bronze Medal

Martin Ebdell, crew member - 1996

Edward Purches, crew member - 1996

• The Maud Smith Award 1995
  (for the bravest act of lifesaving during the year by a member of a lifeboat crew)

Richard Pearce, Helmsman - 1996

• The Walter and Elizabeth Groombridge Award 1995
  (for the outstanding inshore lifeboat rescue of the year)

Richard Pearce, Helmsman - 1996

Edward Purches, crew member - 1996

Martin Ebdell, crew member - 1996

• The Walter and Elizabeth Groombridge Award 1997
  (for the outstanding inshore lifeboat rescue of the year)

Mark Smith, Helmsman - 1998

Mark Hayes, crew member - 1998

• The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum

Alan John Young, Helmsman - 1986

Roger George Cohen, crew member - 1986

Stanley Todd, crew member - 1986

Mark Smith, Helmsman - 1997

Mark Hayes, crew member - 1997

Mark Smith, Helmsman - 2011

• A framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution

G Wheeler - 1967

P Avey - 1967

E C Newman - 1967

Brighton Lifeboat Station - 1996

Mr Peter Apps, Auxiliary Coastguard - 1996

Mr Nick Gilbert, Auxiliary Coastguard - 1996

Berenice McCall, crew member - 1997

Anthony Parsons, crew member - 1997

Marcus Morris, crew member - 2011

• Member, Order of the British Empire (MBE)

Roger George Cohen - 2022 ^{[12] [13]}

Brighton Lifeboats

All-weather lifeboats

ON [lower-alpha 1]	Name	In service [8]	Class	Comments
–	Unnamed	1825–1837	20-foot Norfolk & Suffolk-class (P&S)	[14] Station Closed, 1837
–	Unnamed	1858–1867	30-foot Self-righting (P&S)	Station Opened, 1858 [14]
–	Robert Raikes	1867–1874	33-foot Self-righting (P&S)	[14]
–	Robert Raikes	1874–1888	32-foot Self-righting (P&S)	[14]
145	Sunlight No.2	1888–1904	34-foot Self-righting (P&S)
539	William Wallis	1904–1923	35-foot Self-righting (P&S)
501	Reserve No.6A	1923–1924	35-foot Self-righting (P&S)	Formerly Dash at Blyth
539	William Wallis	1924–1931	35-foot Self-righting (P&S)	All-Weather lifeboat withdrawn, station closed 1931

Inshore Lifeboats

Op. No. [lower-alpha 2]	Name	In service [8]	Class	Comments
D-39	Unnamed	1965–1967	D-class (RFD PB16)
D-158	Unnamed	1968	D-class (RFD PB16)
D-178	Unnamed	1970–1974	D-class (RFD PB16)	Station Closed 1974
A-509	Unnamed	1978	McLachlan-class	Station Reopened 1978
B-539	Lions International District 105 SE	1978–1989	B-class (Atlantic 21)
B-577	Graham Hillier and Tony Carter	1989–1997	B-class (Atlantic 21)
B-737	Thelma Glossop	1997–2011	B-class (Atlantic 75)	[15]
B-852	Random Harvest	2011–	B-class (Atlantic 85)	[16]

1. ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.
2. Op. No. is the RNLI's Operational Number of the boat carried on the hull.

See also

• List of RNLI stations
• Royal National Lifeboat Institution
• Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboats

References

1. "Brighton RNLI relocates while bigger, better base is built". News about the re-location of the lifeboat station. The Argus © 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
2. "Brighton Lifeboat Station – RNLI website". Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Archived from the original on 7 November 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
3. "Brighton Lifeboat – A Brief History". Brighton Lifeboat Station. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
4. "A Little More About What We Do". Brighton Lifeboat Station. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
5. Royal Institute of British Architects (1988). A Guide to the Buildings of Brighton. Macclesfield, Cheshire: McMillan Martin. p. 58. ISBN   1-869865-03-0. OCLC   44523940.
6. "History of Madeira Drive - Brighton". This Brighton. Archived from the original on 18 November 2007. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
7. For Those In Peril – The Lifeboat Service of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, Station by Station. Author: Leach, Nicholas. Publisher: Silver Link Publishing Ltd, First Issue 1999. Work:Part 2, South Coast of England – Eastbourne to Weston-super-Mare, Page 72, Brighton Lifeboat Station. ISBN   1 85794 129 2
8. Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4–132.
9. "Brighton Lifeboat Station – RNLI website". Reference within the History tab on the home page. RNLI © 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
10. "Brighton Station History". RNLI. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
11. Cox, Barry (1998). Lifeboat Gallantry. Spink & Son Ltd. ISBN   0 907605 89 3.
12. "Ordinary Members of the Civil Division of the said Most Excellent Order of the British Empire". The Gazette. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
13. Mellor, Hatti (9 November 2022). "Brighton RNLI volunteer awarded MBE after 40 years service". RNLI. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
14. Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021 (2021 ed.). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–18.
15. "Brighton's Atlantic 75 Named". RNLI. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
16. "Random Harvest: new RNLI lifeboat launched". My Brighton and Hove. Retrieved 24 April 2012.