‘I strongly recommend volunteering with the RNLI or joining a surf lifesaving club to gain the experience and confidence required to keep people safe’
Meet Harry
Meet our lifeguards
RNLI lifeguards patrol over 240 beaches in the UK and the Channel Islands. They are qualified in lifesaving and casualty care, highly trained and strong and fit - able to swim 200m in under 3½ minutes and run 200m on sand in under 40 seconds.
A good lifeguard rarely gets wet - 95% of a lifeguard's work is preventative. They monitor sea conditions and set up the appropriate flags, watch the people on the beach and offer safety advice both on the beach and in classrooms through our education programmes.
Most RNLI lifeguards are paid by the relevant local authority to maintain patrols on our busiest beaches, but we also have volunteer lifeguards. Our lifeguard support volunteers help lifeguards with duties on land, such as lookout, radio communications and casualty care.
'You get to work with so many different organisations and people. And you gain so much life experience.'
Meet Rose
'I had no qualifications. I spoke very basic English. And now I’ve been a lifeguard for 9 years.'
Meet Dom
'I’d eventually like to be a paramedic, so I see lifeguarding as a great, progressive step towards that.'
Meet Elise
‘It’s great to know that you're keeping people safe.’
Meet Georgia
'You’ve got to be able to make quick decisions that will save a person’s life.'
Meet Jo
'You have to be ready for anything as a lifeguard.'
Meet Arun
‘I enjoy training, learning new skills, and meeting people.’
Meet Zeph