Lifeboats facing £20 million funding shortfall over Covid-19

Volunteer lifeboat crews in the East fear a £20 million funding shortfall as as a result of Covid-19. 

The RNLI say events which would normally bring in cash have been cancelled due to restrictions.

The team in Harwich in Essex say the pandemic has had a huge impact on their work. 

With more of us holidaying at home this summer the work of the RNLI has never been more important, but lockdown has meant a slowdown in fundraising.

Nationally there's a predicted shortfall in funding of £20 million this year. Projects are on hold to save money.

Graeme Richardson, RNLI Lifesaving Manager in Harwich, said: “We’ve basically stopped all face-to-face fundraising.

"Right now in August in the beautiful weather we’d be in the big reaches of the fund raising effort, with fundraising teams, shops etc. All our stations are closed, all our shops are closed. No events are taking place so it’s had a huge impact on income." 

Over 8,000 people are rescued by the RNLI each year - 23 a day on average.

But it's a service which costs:

• Some of the all weather lifeboats used cost over £2 million

• Kit for a single volunteers costs upwards of £1,800

• Training alone exceeds £1,500 hundred per person

Mr Richardson added: “We’re in the privileged position that we do have some finances, but like all charities we have been really hit and we’re expecting to be significantly down on previous years.

"We’re currently running our summer appeal which is being run online. Also our online shop is still running and people who’d normally use the shops in stations can actually allocate a shop online and the money that they spend will be sent to that station."