Ken Francis Receives His RNLI Long Service Award

Growing up in Brixham, Devon, he was surrounded by fishing boats, harbour bustle and the ever-present sight of the local lifeboat. “When the maroons went up, every kid ran to watch the launch,” he laughs. “It was just part of growing up.”

After leaving school, Ken joined the Merchant Navy and travelled widely. A port of call in Portland brought an unexpected change of course when he met the woman who would become his wife, a chance encounter that eventually anchored him in Dorset. He settled in Weymouth, began a long career with the fire service and built a life close to the sea.

The opportunity to join the RNLI arrived when Ken noticed a poster in his local Sailing Club seeking volunteers for the Weymouth Inshore Lifeboat crew. “I was 43 at the time,” he recalls. “I thought I’d give it a go for a couple of years. I’d always loved the idea of being part of the lifeboat.”

He joined at a moment of real transition. The Arun-class Tony Vandervell lifeboat was being retired, and the station was restructuring its volunteer teams into a single, fully integrated crew. It meant training on two different boats and adapting to new ways of working, something Ken embraced enthusiastically.

Alongside his RNLI commitment, Ken balanced a demanding career with Dorset Fire and Rescue, serving 30 years as a full-time firefighter and officer, followed by 10 years as a retained firefighter. “For seven years I had two pagers on me,” he says. “One for the RNLI and one for the fire station. Luckily, they only went off together once!” Balancing two emergency roles inevitably meant sacrifices at home, and Ken is quick to acknowledge the support of his wife. “You give up a lot of family time, Sunday lunches, evenings out, but my wife was incredibly understanding.”

In the early days, callouts were triggered by maroons, explosive rockets that produced a loud bang and bright flash to alert volunteers across the town. “If the maroons went off and I didn’t come home,” he says, “my wife knew exactly where I’d gone.”

When Ken reached the RNLI’s mandatory retirement age for crew, he wasn’t ready to step away completely. Determined to remain part of the station, he moved into the role of Volunteer Press Officer, taking responsibility for writing press releases, sharing rescue updates and representing the station publicly. “I thought, ‘Well, I can read and write, and I want to stay involved,’” he says. He went on to spend the next decade helping to keep the community informed about the station’s work, a role he thoroughly enjoyed.

Throughout his 17 years on the crew and 10 years as Press Officer, Ken witnessed enormous change: faster and more capable lifeboats, advances in technology and increasingly specialised training. “Training never stops,” he says. “It takes years just to become a competent crew member, and after that there’s always more to learn.”

Ken may have completed 30 years of service, but his connection to the RNLI remains as strong as ever. He continues to stay actively involved, having spent the past four years giving talks to local adult groups and sharing the history of Weymouth Lifeboat Station, the charity’s values and the lifesaving work he cares so deeply about.

Now receiving his RNLI Long Service Award, Ken looks back with immense pride on a lifetime shaped by service, community spirit and an enduring bond with Weymouth Lifeboat Station.

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI is the charity that 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 146,700 lives.

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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.