Civil Service lifeboats

Last updated May 05, 2024

Civil Service lifeboats are a group of lifeboats belonging to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution which have been funded by The Lifeboat Fund. They usually have the Civil Service designation and number included in the name, such as RNLB E-001 Public Servant (Civil Service No. 44), which was on service at Tower lifeboat station on the Thames between 2002 and 2012.

Since it was formed, The Lifeboat Fund has donated over £26 million to the RNLI, making it the most regular and significant donor for the institution. Civil servants across the UK organise fundraising collections and promote the lifesaving work of the RNLI. All money raised by the fund goes directly to support the RNLI.

The Lifeboat Fund is an official charity, formerly CISPOTEL, established in 1866 by civil servants, and is run by the Civil Service. It raises funds through donations from both serving and retired employees, from Royal Mail and BT staff, and from legacies.

In addition to providing (so far) 55 lifeboats of all different class types, the money is also put towards training, purchasing kit, and refurbishing lifeboat stations, most recently providing a £400,000 contribution to the new Tower lifeboat station and pontoon on the Thames.^[1]^[2]

Numbering

The first 29 lifeboats share the designation (Civil Service) and numbers 1–11. When a boat was replaced, the new boat would receive the number from the previous boat, and often carry the same name. In the 1950s, this was changed, so that the boats were consecutively numbered, starting with Greater London II (Civil Service No. 30).

Fleet

ON^{[lower-alpha 1]}	Op. No.^{[lower-alpha 2]}	Name	C.S.No. ^[3]	Class	In service ^[4]	Station	Comments
–	–	Civil Service	(No. 1)	32-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1866–1878	Wexford	^{[Note 1]}
301	–	Civil Service No. 1	No. 1	34-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1878–1897	Wexford No. 2	^{[Note 2]}
415	–	Civil Service No. 1	No. 1	40-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1898–1925	Margate No. 2
688	–	The Lord Southborough	No. 1	45ft Watson	1925–1951 1951–1955	Margate Relief fleet
–	–	Charles Dibdin	No. 2	37-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1875–1888	Tynemouth	^[5]
204	–	Charles Dibdin	No. 2	37-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1889–1905	Tynemouth
552	–	Charles Dibdin	No. 2	43-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1905–1932	North Deal
762	–	Charles Dibdin	No. 2	41ft Watson	1933–1959	Walmer
284	–	Civil Service No. 3	No. 3	37-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1877–1899	Portpatrick
437	–	Civil Service No. 3	No. 3	37-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1900–1922 1922–1924 1924–1926 1926–1927	Portpatrick Relief fleet Montrose Relief fleet
704	–	Greater London	No. 3	Ramsgate	1928–1941 1941–1943 1943–1945 1945–1955 1955–1957	Southend-on-Sea Relief fleet Yarmouth Southend-on-Sea Relief fleet
34	–	Civil Service No. 4	No. 4	40-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1884–1895	Walmer	^{[Note 3]}
394	–	Civil Service No. 4	No. 4	40-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1897–1912	Walmer	^{[Note 4]}
756	–	Civil Service No. 4	No. 4	35ft 6in Self-righting motor	1932–1948	Whitehills	^{[Note 5]}
867	–	Lady Scott	No. 4	46ft 9in Watson	1949–1981 1981–1986	Portrush Relief fleet
80	–	Civil Service No. 5	No. 5	34-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1886–1905	Maryport
544	–	Civil Service No. 5	No. 5	38ft Watson	1905–1931	Maryport
753	–	Civil Service No. 5	No. 5	45ft 6in Watson	1932–1950 1950–1956 1956–1958	Donaghadee Port St Mary Relief fleet
273	–	Civil Service No. 6	No. 6	42-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1890–1895	Douglas No. 2	^{[Note 6]}
384	–	Civil Service No. 6	No. 6	42-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1896–1924	Douglas
784	–	Civil Service No. 6, Swn-Y-Mor	No. 6	46ft Watson	1936–1963 1964–1967 1967–1972	St Davids Eyemouth Relief fleet
289	–	Civil Service No. 7	No. 7	42-foot Self-righting (P&S)	1890–1895	Kingstown No. 2	^{[Note 7]}
409	–	Dunleary	No. 7	45ft Watson	1898–1913	Kingstown No. 2
658	–	Dunleary	No. 7	45ft Watson	1919–1938 1939–1951	Kingstown Lytham St Annes
828	–	The Princess Royal	No. 7	46ft Watson	1939–1968 1968–1969 1969–1976	Hartlepool Humber No. 2 Relief fleet
853	–	Winston Churchill	No. 8	46ft 9in Watson	1948–1979 1979–1982	Blyth Relief fleet
884	–	St Cybi	No. 9	Barnett	1950–1980 1981–1986	Holyhead Relief fleet
897	–	St. Andrew	No. 10	41ft Watson	1952–1959 1959–1961 1961–1968 1968–1973 1973–1976 1976–1977 1977–1982	Whitehills Relief fleet Girvan Arklow Relief fleet Girvan Relief fleet
888	–	North Foreland	No. 11	46ft 9in Watson	1951–1978 1978–1981	Margate Relief fleet
921	–	Greater London II	No. 30	46ft 9in Watson	1955–1976 1977–1989	Southend-on-Sea Beaumaris
920	–	Dunnet Head	No. 31	47ft Watson	1956	Thurso	^{[Note 8]}
940	–	Pentland	No. 31	47ft Watson	1957–1970 1970–1974 1974–1985 1986–1990	Thurso Relief fleet The Mumbles Workington	^{[Note 9]}
948	–	Charles Dibdin	No. 32	42ft Watson	1959–1975 1975–1977 1977–1979 1979–1982 1982–1988	Walmer Relief fleet Eastbourne Aldeburgh Relief fleet
952	–	Duke of Cornwall	No. 33	Barnett	1960–1984 1984 1984–1989	Lizard-Cadgwith Padstow Relief fleet
971	–	Joseph Soar	No. 34	47ft Watson	1963–1985 1986–1988 1988–1990	St Davids Dunbar Shoreham Harbour
987	70-001	Charles H. Barrett	No. 35	Clyde	1966–1968 1968–1975 1975–1988	Trials Clovelly Relief fleet
1026	44-008	Eric Seal	No. 36	Waveney	1974–1996	Eyemouth	Eric Seal
1037	54-03	Edward Bridges	No. 37	Arun	1975–1994	Torbay
1046	37-33	Silver Jubilee	No. 38	Rother	1978–1991 1991–1993	Margate Relief fleet
–	B-527	Percy Garon	No Number	B-class (Atlantic 21)	1976–1986 1986–1996 1996 1996–1998 1998	Southend-on-Sea Relief fleet Red Bay Relief fleet Arran (Lamlash)	^{[Note 10]}^[6]
1070	52-16	Richard Evans	No. 39	Arun	1981–2000 2000–2003	Portrush Relief fleet
1095	47-004	St Cybi II	No. 40	Tyne	1985–1997 1997–2006	Holyhead Relief fleet
1167	12-009	The Princess Royal	No. 41	Mersey	1990–2015 2015–2016	St Ives Relief fleet
1204	14-06	Windsor Runner	No. 42	Trent	1995–2004 2004–2008 2008 2008–	Blyth Relief fleet Dunbar Relief fleet
1237	17-17	Fraser Flyer	No. 43	Severn	1999–	Relief fleet
–	E-001	Public Servant	No. 44	E-class Mk1	2002–2012	Tower
–	H-003	The Hunstanton Flyer	No. 45	Hovercraft	2003–	Hunstanton
–	D-654	Angel of Holyhead	No. 46	D-class (IB1)	2005–2016 2017–	Holyhead Boarding Boat (BB-654)
–	D-655	Guardian Angel	No. 47	D-class (IB1)	2005–2015 2015–	Relief fleet Training
–	B-806	Mudeford Servant	No. 48	B-class (Atlantic 85)	2006–	Mudeford
–	D-697	Stranraer Saviour	No. 49	D-class (IB1)	2008–2019 2019–	Stranraer Boarding Boat (BB-697)
–	B-826	Sgt. Bob Martin	No. 50	B-class (Atlantic 85)	2008–	Poole
–	B-837	Charles Dibdin	No. 51	B-class (Atlantic 85)	2009–	New Brighton
–	D-738	David Roulston	No. 52	D-class (IB1)	2010–2022 2022–	Portrush Relief fleet
1353	13-46	Duke of Edinburgh	No. 53	Shannon	2023–	Wells-next-the-Sea
–	D-868	Mr Eric Sharpe	No. 54	D-class (IB1)	2022–	Cromer	^[7]

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

Notes

↑ Not numbered, but it was the first Civil Service funded lifeboat. Later named Harriott Forteath at Whitby
↑ Later named Helen Blake at Fethard
↑ Damaged beyond repair, 1895
↑ Later in Reserve fleet to 1919, and at Selsey as Reserve No. 3, and then as James William and Caroline Courteney at Fowey
↑ Damaged beyond repair, 1948
↑ Wrecked, 1895
↑ Damaged beyond repair, 1895
↑ Dunnet Head (Civil Service No. 31) was destroyed by a fire on 10 December 1956 at the boathouse in Thurso, in its first year on service. It was replaced by Pentland (Civil Service No. 31), keeping the same Civil Service number, but this time funded entirely by the RNLI.
↑ Provided by the RNLI to replace Dunnet Head (ON 920)
↑ The 1981 Report of the Civil Service and Post Office Lifeboat Fund has Percy Garon listed as No 39. However, 52-16 Richard Evans was designated No. 39 in 1981, Percy Garon now designated (Civil Service) with no number.

Related Research Articles

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Sheringham Lifeboat Station is an RNLI operated lifeboat station located in the town of Sheringham in the English county of Norfolk. Since 1992, the station has been inshore operations only - currently with an Atlantic 85 rigid inflatable - offshore lifeboats are to the east at Cromer and the west at Wells-next-the-sea.

Wells-next-the-Sea Lifeboat Station is a lifeboat station in the town of Wells-next-the-Sea in the English county of Norfolk. The station, run by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), operates both inshore and offshore lifeboats. The inshore boat is a D-class (IB1) lifeboat named Peter Wilcox (D-707), whilst the offshore lifeboat is Shannon-class 13-46 named Duke of Edinburgh . The station boathouse is located at the beach on the western side of Wells Harbour mouth.

The Southend-on-Sea lifeboat station is a lifeboat station at Southend-on-Sea in the English county of Essex, operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) since 1879.

Aldeburgh Lifeboat Station is an RNLI station located in the town of Aldeburgh in the English county of Suffolk.

Southwold Lifeboat Station is an RNLI operated lifeboat station located in the town of Southwold in the English county of Suffolk.

Newhaven Lifeboat Station is an RNLI station located in the town of Newhaven in the English county of East Sussex in the United Kingdom. The original station was established in 1803 and taken over by the RNLI in 1854.

Royal National Life Boat Lord Southborough , was a Watson Class motor lifeboat of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's (RNLI) fleet, which was stationed at Margate in the English county of Kent in the United Kingdom from 1925 to 1951. From 1951 she served in the RNLI Relief Fleet.

Margate Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station located in Margate in the English county of Kent. The station is over 160 years old. Its crews have earned a number of gallantry awards, including five silver and 1 bronze RNLI medals for bravery.

Sheerness Lifeboat Station is an Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station located in the town of Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey in the English county of Kent. The station is on the north coast of the county, strategically placed at Garrison Point at the mouth of the River Medway and close the busy Thames estuary. The RNLI first stationed a lifeboat here in 1969.

Hunstanton Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution operated lifeboat station located in the village of Old Hunstanton in the English county of Norfolk. This is the only lifeboat station on the east coast of England which faces westward, being positioned on the east side of the square-mouthed bay and estuary known as The Wash.

Happisburgh Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) Inshore lifeboat station close to the village of Happisburgh in the English county of Norfolk in the United Kingdom. Since 2003 the station boathouse has been re-located from the village to an area south called Cart Gap. This is because the beach below Happisburgh disappeared due to coastal erosion and the stations slipway and access was washed away. The original boathouse in the village is now used for training.

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Thurso Lifeboat Station is located at Scrabster Harbour, in the NE corner of Scotland, near the town of Thurso, Highland, in the historic county of Caithness.
A lifeboat was first stationed here by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution in 1860.

Douglas Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station located in Douglas, capital of the Isle of Man.

Grimsby Lifeboat Station is a former Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station, which was located at the Port of Grimsby, in the county of Lincolnshire. A lifeboat was first stationed here in 1882.

Wick Lifeboat Station is located at the harbour town and royal burgh of Wick, Highland, in the NE corner of Scotland, in the historic county of Caithness.

Alnmouth Lifeboat Station is a former Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station, which was located at the village of Alnmouth, near the town of Alnwick, in the county of Northumberland.

References

↑ "The Lifeboat Fund and the RNLI". RNLI. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
↑ "The Lifeboat Fund". Civil Service LF. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
↑ "125 years of CISPOTEL support for the RNLI" (PDF). CISPOTEL. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
↑ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4–132.
↑ "The Civil Service Life-Boats". The Lifeboat. 28 (312). November 1932. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
↑ "Annual Report of the Civil Service and Post Office Lifeboat Fund" (PDF). Civil Service. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
↑ Parker, Clare. "Cromer RNLI's new inshore lifeboat named during special ceremony". The Lifeboat Fund. Retrieved 13 February 2024.

External links

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[3] ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.

[4] Op. No. is the RNLI's Operational Number of the boat carried on the hull.

[7] Not numbered, but it was the first Civil Service funded lifeboat. Later named Harriott Forteath at Whitby

[8] Later named Helen Blake at Fethard

[10] Damaged beyond repair, 1895

[11] Later in Reserve fleet to 1919, and at Selsey as Reserve No. 3, and then as James William and Caroline Courteney at Fowey

[12] Damaged beyond repair, 1948

[13] Wrecked, 1895

[14] Damaged beyond repair, 1895

[15] Dunnet Head (Civil Service No. 31) was destroyed by a fire on 10 December 1956 at the boathouse in Thurso, in its first year on service. It was replaced by Pentland (Civil Service No. 31), keeping the same Civil Service number, but this time funded entirely by the RNLI.

[16] Provided by the RNLI to replace Dunnet Head (ON 920)

[17] The 1981 Report of the Civil Service and Post Office Lifeboat Fund has Percy Garon listed as No 39. However, 52-16 Richard Evans was designated No. 39 in 1981, Percy Garon now designated (Civil Service) with no number.

[The_Lifeboat_Fund-1] "The Lifeboat Fund and the RNLI". RNLI. Retrieved 11 February 2024.

[CSLF-2] "The Lifeboat Fund". Civil Service LF. Retrieved 11 February 2024.

[Cispotel-125-5] "125 years of CISPOTEL support for the RNLI" (PDF). CISPOTEL. Retrieved 12 February 2024.

[LBES-6] Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4–132.

[Civil1-9] "The Civil Service Life-Boats". The Lifeboat. 28 (312). November 1932. Retrieved 12 February 2024.

[1981Report-18] "Annual Report of the Civil Service and Post Office Lifeboat Fund" (PDF). Civil Service. Retrieved 12 February 2024.

[D-868-19] Parker, Clare. "Cromer RNLI's new inshore lifeboat named during special ceremony". The Lifeboat Fund. Retrieved 13 February 2024.

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