cLose up meet the family Building a strong and happy family can be a tough task for anyone but this is exactly what The Lifeboat College is attempting to do for the RNLI. Four members of this charity ‘family’ tell Liz Cook and Carol Waterkeyn what it means to them The Principal sue Hennessy ‘When I heard the first tentative ideas about a college for the RNLI, I knew exactly what the potential was,’ says Sue Hennessy, glowing with the remembered excitement. ‘Yes, it should be a centre of excellence for training our crews and lifeguards – of course! – but there was so much more.

Perhaps it would be the place where everyone who has any connection with the RNLI could come, share the same space and some of the same experiences.’ Sue explains further: ‘My vision was that a crew from the west of Ireland might bump into a fundraising branch from the east of England. Or a couple of Shoreline members eating lunch would see kitted-up crews joining their training boats for exercises. Staff from a corporate donor might meet the RNLI’s sea survival experts face to face … How inspiring and strengthening that would be to the whole RNLI family.’ But this was no pipe dream – Sue is now both Head of Training and College Principal in Poole, living every working day (and sometimes night) the reality of The Lifeboat College. She sees the building and all that it offers as a powerful tool in distance management: ‘The RNLI is literally a peripheral service – it is largely coastal, on the edge. Even our Headquarters is by the sea. How do you hold that all together?’ The Principal is a hands-on woman, personally hosting tours of the site and inducting new staff. Being part of the College and thence the wider RNLI is ‘so compelling and a constant thrill,’enthuses Sue.

‘From the beginning we were going to be world leading. ‘The RNLI is literally a peripheral service … on the edge ... How do you hold that all together? I researched the very best in conference centres and agonised over the right furniture, lighting, beds … It would all have to stand up to heavy use but still be attractive and comfortable for a wide range of people.

‘Now we strive every day to perfect everything we do, whether that be training, the food, the reception or the technical services that visitors receive – if any of those aren’t right, the family just won’t want to come and stay!’ The Crew Member tim edwards For 37 weeks of the year, The Lifeboat College is teeming with volunteer lifeboat crew members from all over the UK and RoI. With courses ranging from basic boathandling to command and control, the diversity of trainees is extraordinary. Probationers routinely rub shoulders with crew of many years’ standing and everyone is stretched by the expert tuition.

Just one of several courses underway in October last year was D class Helm – a chance for existing helms to both brush up their skills and learn new techniques and for others to gain relevant knowledge from scratch. Five students had travelled from afar, taking time off from their ‘day jobs’ to live and breathe lifeboats for a week. Classroom work and practical ? exercises went hand-in-hand, in both the indoor survival pool and the open waters of Poole Harbour and beyond.

Volunteer Tim Edwards from Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, explains: ‘We’ve worked on handling the lifeboat itself and towing other craft. Practising recovering weighted dummies from the water simulates rescuing casualties but also prepares us for any “man overboard” emergency. We’ve carried out complex searches and improved our teamwork and leadership.’ The trainees certainly gain high-level knowledge and skills from their time in Poole but living and working so closely together also builds confidence and an increased sense of belonging to the wider RNLI family. ‘It’s hard work but the instructors are top notch!’ Tim and his fellow trainees sum up: ‘It’s been a very satisfying week.’ The Customer John Green Nowadays, only 10% of lifeboat volunteers have had a professional maritime occupation so training is even more important if they are to fulfil their lifesaving roles and keep safe themselves. Training is expensive but The Lifeboat College offsets the expense in two ways. Large savings are made through providing catering and accommodation on site. Income is generated by marketing the building’s facilities to other organisations.

The latest string to this commercial bow is the RNLI Sea Survival Experience. This corporate team-building event comprises some components of the real-life training the charity’s volunteers go through and can genuinely be said to offer something unique.

There is surely no better environment in which to demonstrate the importance of working well together, trying to survive ‘the elements’.

Starting with a thorough briefing from instructors and dressing in RNLI kit, these novice ‘crew’ undergo poolside drills and then gain skills in the survival pool that RNLI crew members rely on every day. Clambering into liferafts in a powerful swell and ‘rain’, ‘thunder’ and ‘lightning’ before rescue by ‘helicopter’ form the heart of the event, all under the watchful eye of RNLI trainers.

Participants recover with a hearty meal before returning to their workplace with a new understanding of the RNLI’s work. ‘It was an awesome experience ... revitalising.’ PLEASE SIMPLY John Green, Vice President of Telesoft Technologies, and 11 colleagues were the first to try out the Sea Survival Experience.

They were bowled over. ‘It was an awesome experience,’ he reports. ‘It was totally different and revitalising in comparison with other corporate days we’ve tried. The RNLI has tremendous staff, great communicators and fabulous facilities.’ The Member tony Holkham When the College has spare accommodation, it is open to members to sample. RNLI supporter Tony Holkham and his wife weren’t sure what to expect. Tony explains: ‘Would it be a hotel? Exclusive club? Campus? Each conjures different, not necessarily positive, images. We found something else. ‘Greeted by friendly staff, the peaceful atmosphere impressed us. Our room was spotless, spacious, and warm; you could open the window for fresh air; and the view of Holes Bay was lovely, especially early morning and evening. Dinner on Friday was so tasty, and the service so good, that we looked no further THESE PAGES ARE NOT THE FINAL LAYOUT.

CHECK TEXT on Saturday, despite Poole being awash with eating places. It was home-cooked food at its best, with plenty of variety (and quantity!).

‘After a superb breakfast on Saturday we ventured further into Dorset and visited Monkey World, then returned to stroll round Poole town (just a few minutes from the College) with its shops and entertainment to suit every possible taste; on Sunday, we found the Old Lifeboat Station Museum and other attractions on the quayside.

‘If we had any criticism, it was the unnecessary background music in the restaurant, and the cigarette butts outside (stub bins being few and full). But I nit-pick – we had a lovely, relaxed weekend, and we must congratulate the approachable, helpful and happy staff for making it so, and the unobtrusive way they kept it immaculate without being sterile, as hotels can be.

Everyone was chatty and complimentary, whether there for work, training or leisure, and it was lovely to see people of all ages enjoying the facility.

‘So, hotel, club or campus? To its credit, the College tries to be none of these. It has found the perfect balance, a home-fromhome that we were delighted to visit, and certainly will do again; these few words aren’t enough to do it justice.

‘Value for money? Certainly. Tell your friends – if they aren’t RNLI members, or haven’t yet stayed at the College, they don’t know what they’re missing.’ ‘It’s a home-from-home.’ .