Duke and Duchess of Cambridge receive a warm welcome at Mumbles Lifeboat Station

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited one of Wales’ busiest lifeboat stations to talk with crew members and fundraisers about day-to-day life as part of the 24/7 charity that saves lives at sea. This formed part of Their Royal Highnesses' trip to South Wales to visit organisations and businesses at the heart of local communities.

Whilst at the lifeboat station, Their Royal Highnesses boarded the all-weather Tamar class lifeboat and spoke with crew members about their voluntary roles with the charity.

Their Royal Highnesses presented a long-service award to crew member James Bolter, who has been a member of the volunteer crew for over 20 years. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge also saw a lifeboat launch down the slipway on a training exercise.

The ladies fundraising guild, who work tirelessly to keep the RNLI afloat, also had the privilege of meeting The Duke and Duchess and spoke about their roles during the visit along with volunteers who work in the RNLI souvenir shop.

Mumbles RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager Tim Conway said: ‘It was an absolute privilege to welcome The Duke and Duchess to The Mumbles RNLI Lifeboat Station. We were able to show them the roles of all our volunteers who all make a valuable contribution to saving lives at sea.

‘I’m sure a highlight of the visit for them was seeing our all-weather lifeboat launch down the slipway. It has been a fantastic morning and something which will stay with us all for a very long time.’

Their Royal Highnesses have a long-standing relationship with the charity and were honoured guests of Trearddur Bay in Anglesey back in 2011 where they named the community’s lifeboat, Hereford Endeavour.

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, X, TikTok and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.