The sound of clicking keyboards and ringing phones at RNLI Headquarters is pierced with a long, shrill bleep. It’s a pager alert. Chris Speers, the RNLI’s E-Design Officer, jumps up, gives a nod that means ‘not sure when I’ll be back’, and rushes out the door. He’s a volunteer with Poole lifeboat crew. Within minutes, he’ll be at the station, pulling on kit and jumping aboard the lifeboat. The web page he was designing will have to wait.

Chris is one of many RNLI staff who volunteer for the charity. But, for most of our lifeboat crew members, saving lives at sea is not part of the day job. While there are still fishermen and dock workers who lend their marine skills and local knowledge to lifeboat crews, they are the exception rather than the rule. The spectrum of our crew members’ professions ranges from a tattooist and a horse dentist to scrapyard dealer and TV presenter – with everything else in between. But how do these volunteers juggle their careers with their commitment to saving lives at sea?

‘It’s difficult. I won’t pretend it isn’t,’ says Anthony Harris, who volunteers as a launch and recovery driver at Blackpool Lifeboat Station. Anthony earns his keep as an embalmer. ‘I do carry my pager at all times but it’s often on silent,’ he says. ‘I always try to get down to the station but if it goes off and I’ve got a family coming to see a loved one, then they must come first.’

As Anthony explains, being a volunteer crew member is only possible with the support and understanding of your employer: ‘Even though I’ve wanted to join the RNLI since I was 17, it’s only recently that I reached a point in my life where I was part of a family run business and had a manager who agreed I could go for it. He said he would support me and help make it work, and he has for 4 years now.’

Helmsman Paul Nicholson is in his 20th year on the Sunderland crew. His employers have gone one step further than encouraging him to commit to the RNLI – they have made donations to the charity too. Mid American Energy Holdings donates funds for every hour of volunteering carried out by its workers. Paul gave 476 hours of RNLI service in 2012, which led to a donation of £1,800 in 2013. ‘This will be used to fund our station’s total running costs for a week,’ explains Paul. ‘In fact the total amount pledged over the years exceeds £10,000. On a personal note, it is very pleasing to work for a company that is willing to support its staff in their out-ofwork volunteering roles.’

For self-employed Builder and Contractor Steve Medcalf, 44, getting permission for time off is not a problem. A volunteer helmsman at Withernsea Lifeboat Station, Steve has been juggling work and lifesaving for 16 years. But he still has to keep customers happy and ensure he is earning enough to pay the bills. ‘I don’t often leave a building job suddenly without warning, but if I do, people understand it’s for a good reason and that I’ll be back,’ he explains. ‘I also have to rearrange holidays around the role a little bit. For example, this weekend three of the station’s five helmsmen are off duty so I have to stay local in case we’re needed, especially as the forecast looks bad. I’m proud to say we have never failed to get a crew together and launch.’

In many cases, committing to a lifeboat crew has actually benefitted volunteers’ careers – especially when it comes to the charity’s training. ‘I thought the RNLI’s Command and Communication course was excellent,’ says Dave Jackson, a member of Scarborough’s lifeboat crew. ‘I’m an electrical contractor by trade and I have my own lighting shop so I like to think I’m pretty good at dealing with people most of the time. But this course makes you think of lots of different ways of doing things and handling situations.’

It’s clear from talking to our volunteers that being part of their lifeboating community more than compensates for the difficulties of balancing work and lifesaving. ‘It keeps me fit, gives me something outside of work: a social arena.’ says Anthony. ‘This is my life,’ echoes Steve. ‘I love it. I could never leave it completely.’