Announcing our 2023 Appeal
The Communications and Public Service Lifeboat Fund (The Lifeboat Fund) has today - Tuesday 25 April - announced its 2023 appeal to raise funds for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).
In its 157th year, The Lifeboat Fund has set an ambitious appeal target of £90,000 to help the RNLI save lives at sea at home and abroad. The total raised will be split between four lifeboat stations – Whitby, Tower, Blackpool and Stonehaven – and water safety projects in Tanzania. In 2022, these four stations cumulatively launched 898 times, coming to the aid of 186 people and saving 29 lives, contributing to the 9,312 times RNLI lifeboats launched and the 506 lives saved last year. The improvements and development of facilities at the four lifeboat stations using the funding from this appeal will make a huge difference to the RNLI’s lifesaving volunteers. The money raised will provide RNLI volunteers and crew with the environment they need to maintain a world-class lifesaving service and continue to launch to those in trouble at sea.
The RNLI’s work in Tanzania, in partnership with local organisations, helps give vital water safety education to children at risk of drowning and to support fishers in the country to help make the industry safer. 109,000 fishers in the African nation rely on Lake Victoria for their livelihood, yet artisanal (small-scale, low-tech) fishing can be particularly hazardous as fishers work alone or in small groups, often with no protective or communications equipment. A portion of the money raised in this year’s appeal will go towards improving weather information transmission, interpretation and use by these fishers as well as supporting community water safety and awareness projects.
Chair of The Lifeboat Fund, Sir Jeremy Fleming, said: ‘I’m pleased to be announcing the start of our 2023 fundraising appeal. The diversity of the projects reflects our geographical presence in the Civil Service. Our trustees and fundraisers have worked hard to reposition the charity, building on past successes and gaining new supporters. I am delighted the RNLI regards us as the principal conduit for civil servants supporting its work, and I look forward to some great fundraising efforts throughout the year.’
RNLI Chief Executive, Mark Dowie, said: ‘We are extremely grateful The Lifeboat Fund has chosen to support some of our busiest lifeboat stations in the UK and is pledging support for one of our international projects to promote water safety in Tanzania, a country which has suffered a series of large-scale tragedies in its waters.
‘The Communications and Public Service Lifeboat Fund has generously supported the RNLI since 1866, providing vital funds to keep our volunteers safe when they risk their lives to assist others. Supporting The Lifeboat Fund charity is the best way for civil and public servants to help save lives at sea. I encourage all civil servants, both serving and retired, to show their support for the RNLI by donating to their very own Lifeboat Fund charity.’