At the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents’ Water Safety Congress in November, a new UK-wide database was launched that will allow the RNLI to share information easily with agencies including the Ambulance, Police, Fire and Mountain Rescue services, local authorities, HM Coastguard, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch and the Royal Yachting Association.

WAID, the Water-related Accident and Incident Database, will be a powerful web-based resource for every organisation involved in water safety in the UK. It aims to help all members of the forum to develop strategies and policies based on statistics, analysis and research.

Every lifeboat station and lifeguard unit sends detailed records of every incident to RNLI Headquarters. This information is vital when it comes to planning operational coverage, shoreworks, public education, training and prevention messages, as well as providing fundraising resources and an historical archive.

Provisional figures for the Summer 2009 lifeguarding and lifeboating season can be found in your issue of RNLI Compass. Final figures for the year will be reported in our next issue of the Lifeboat and at the RNLI's AGM (see page 53).

See page 18 for more on the RNLI's work with other search and rescue organisations.