RNLI Visit

The RNLI lifeguards came in to deliver a Sea Safety talk to Reception, KS1 and KS2. They discussed how to stay safe and who could help them/others if they were unsafe by the coast. 
 
They reminded the children that 999 can be used for the police, fire services, ambulance and coast guard. 
 
We were told that Lifeguards and Coast Guards (Lifeboat crew) have different roles. Lifeguards work 10am-6pm and they are active on the beaches, where as Coast Guards/Lifeboat Crew are volunteers, so they have normal jobs but when their pager alerts them, they attend the emergency on the lifeboat. 
 
The life guards came with lots of equipment and flags to help show the children all the different things that are involved. The first flag we looked at was the red & yellow, which tells us where is safe to swim. An all-red flag shows us that the water is unsafe. A black and white flag shows the area that is safe for those using hard craft (ie. surfboards, bodyboards, kayaks etc) and that this area would not be safe for swimmers due to the hard crafts. We looked at the windsock and that this helps lifeguards determine the strength and direction of the wind, and that an offshore wind would make it difficult/possibly dangerous for those using inflatables, due to the offshore wind pushing you further out. The lifeguards also discussed their lifeguard flag which flies on the beach/above the hut, letting people know that a lifeguard is on duty.