Extra pair of eyes for safety as National Coastwatch brings new Watch Station to Cleethorpes

The daylight surveillance organisation has re-purposed its NCI Exhibition trailer into a fully-equipped, mobile surveillance station that will be sited in the car park at Cleethorpes Leisure Centre, operating as a watch station over the beach and the estuary.

Established in 1994 in Cornwall, the organisation has 61 permanent stations around the UK coastline manned by over 2,800 fully trained volunteer watchkeepers, reporting to the Coastguard.

There are East Coast stations in Chapel-St-Leonards, Mablethorpe and Skegness, but this will be the first time there has been a prolonged presence at Cleethorpes.

Twenty four new volunteers have already been recruited and have been attending training sessions at the Black Gull on Grimsby Docks since November last year, conducted by Training Officers from NCI stations at Mablethorpe and Skegness. The Cleethorpes station will be fully operational in time for Armed Forces Day.

The re-purposing of the trailer into a fully-equipped, surveillance operation has been made possible by a generous donation from the Stelios Foundation (EasyJet founder).

Local suppliers have been used for the work and watchkeepers from the two stations have also contributed time and skills to the Cleethorpes project. It will be led by Ian Whalley MBE, NCI Trustee and Station Manager at Skegness, and his colleague NCI Sector Manager Rob Druce, who will be the Interim Station Manager.

National Coastwatch stations act as eyes along the coast and Cleethorpes has been identified as one of 41 locations that could benefit from an NCI service. Last year, 347 people survived incidents as a result of National Coastwatch intervention.

Ian Whalley said: “Cleethorpes is a very popular resort with high footfall. There is clear evidence of a need for an extra pair of hands as this area is acknowledged as a dangerous shoreline.

“The resort is adjacent to busy shipping lanes and there is also a yacht club and an RNLI station, so it is an ideal location for Coastwatch to offer a helping hand.

“We have chosen a location in the car park at Cleethorpes Leisure Centre that gives us a clear sightline along the beach and out into the estuary. During the summer months especially, thousands of people use the beach and, with fast incoming and outgoing tides, some people find themselves in trouble. As the station comes up to full complement, surveillance cameras will be deployed to expand and extend the safety surveillance capability.

“Watchkeepers act as an extra pair of eyes and we have close relationships with His Majesty’s Coastguard, the RNLI, the Border Force and the emergency services so that we can alert them to vulnerable situations. This can be anything from children and adults who get into trouble in the water to vessels in distress, water pollution or hazards to mariners, such as trees or pallets in the water.

“A presence in Cleethorpes is something we have been working towards for some years and we are very happy to be in the resort in time for Armed Forces Day, which will undoubtedly be an extremely busy time, but will also give us the opportunity for vital fundraising and recruitment.”

Cllr Hayden Dawkins, Portfolio Holder for Culture, Heritage and the Visitor Economy, said: “It is a pleasure to welcome National Coastwatch to Cleethorpes. As a busy tourist resort we welcome their presence in providing extra assistance to the coastguard, RNLI and emergency services in keeping our residents and visitors safe as they enjoy our coastline.”