Why have RNLI beach lifeguards on your beach?

With the flags flying and dedicated lifesavers keeping watch, RNLI beach lifeguard patrols are a reassuring presence on popular beaches across the UK and Channel Islands.

RNLI beach lifeguards rescue people in danger and prevent tragedies. But they also bring a range of social and economic benefits, from strengthened tourism and reduced pressure on health services, to incredible job opportunities for young people.

RNLI beach lifeguards are a professional service, ready to rescue. In 2025, lifeguards on more than 240 beaches around the UK and Channel Islands saved 117 lives. They aided more than 36,000 people in incidents including water rescue, first aid and reuniting lost children with their families.

Lifeguards also carry out millions of preventative actions each year. From flagging safe places to swim to advising beachgoers on local hazards like rip currents, these small but powerful actions combine to prevent countless people from getting into danger.

How we can help you assess and prevent local risks

The RNLI can support you to meet the safety responsibilities for beaches under your care. We bring over 25 years’ experience of setting up and running beach lifeguard services. Combined with your local expertise and insights, we can assess local hazards and beach use data, then recommend interventions to keep beachgoers safe..

This could be a combination of seasonal lifeguard patrols, safety signage, public rescue equipment and water safety workshops with primary and secondary schoolchildren.

Investing in lifeguard patrols boosts tourism

RNLI beach lifeguard patrols could increase the number of tourists who choose beaches in your area – and in turn, boost spending in local businesses.

In 2013, we worked with Oxford Economics to understand the economic and social benefits of a beach lifeguard service, compared to the cost to local authorities of providing the service.

They used lifeguard patrol data and survey responses from a range of beach types and locations in Summer 2013 to build a deeper picture of the impact lifeguards make.

With more beach visitors, the service pays for itself

Of the beachgoers surveyed, 7% said they wouldn’t have visited their chosen beach if it hadn’t had a lifeguard patrol. This means that each season, an urban beach attracts around 5,200 extra tourists, and a rural beach an additional 3,800, thanks to the lifeguards.

Using tourism statistics and spending data from Visit Britain, the report suggests that for every £1 a local council or private beach owner spends on providing a lifeguard service, urban beaches return an extra £7.10 in tourism spending, and rural beaches an extra £5.06 (in 2013).

Lifeguards reduce pressure on healthcare providers

RNLI beach lifeguards are trained in advanced first aid. They can triage and treat minor injuries that may otherwise put unnecessary pressure on the NHS. Their presence also ensures seriously injured or unwell beachgoers get immediate, lifesaving care before being handed to the most appropriate NHS service.

Oxford Economics estimates that in 2012, this saved NHS services £860,000 in unnecessary ambulance journeys and A&E visits combined.

In 2025, RNLI lifeguards responded to almost 10,000 casualty care and minor first aid incidents.

Beachgoers feel safer all round

Lifeguards are a visible, reassuring sign that you’ve chosen a safe beach to spend the day with friends or family.

And our lifeguards know their patch. Through hours of training and observation, they know the spot where bodyboarders get caught out, the rip current that forms at high tide or the shallows where weever fish sting.

Friendly and welcoming, lifeguard teams provide advice that makes a day at the beach memorable for the right reasons.

Lifeguard patrols are perceived as reducing petty crime

Our research has shown that lifeguard patrols contribute to a greater feeling of safety from crime.

The majority of beachgoers surveyed in 2013 said they felt lifeguards’ presence reduced crime and anti-social behaviour. People agreed the impact was greatest in deterring vandalism and graffiti, followed by drunken and rowdy behaviour, petty theft and crime, and littering.

While the research could only report on perceptions rather than impact on crime statistics, these are the same factors that can influence whether a tourist chooses to stay overnight at the coast, and spend money in local businesses.

Create life-changing job opportunities for local young people

Working as an RNLI beach lifeguard is a unique and rewarding job. From the age of 16 (school-leaving age), young people can apply for a well-paid role where they’ll gain valuable work and life experience, learn new skills and have the chance to work at incredible locations.

Lifeguarding opens up a number of career paths, including medicine, healthcare, teaching or fitness training, as well as senior roles in lifeguarding and search and rescue teams.

Wherever lifeguards head next, the role gives young people a range of transferrable skills, with the confidence to work well as a team and make decisions under pressure.

Find out more about 'Working as an RNLI lifeguard'.