Weymouth Lifeguards & Greenhill rafts – update on current provision

The Town Council and RNLI have been in close liaison and have managed to secure a full lifeguard service for Weymouth Central Beach which started on the 13th June.

Sadly, the RNLI have also confirmed that they will not be in a position to provide a full provision at Greenhill this year stating that they are operating in a pandemic and the risks have not gone away. There continues to be a high demand for PPE across the UK and they need to ensure that there is sufficient levels for our lifeboat crew and lifeguards to protect them from infection. There is also a limit to the level of recruitment and training that can be delivered. This had to be paused at the end of March and, while it has restarted, they are unable to reach normal levels to cover all beaches.

Therefore, in line with risk assessments and insurance requirements, the swimming rafts which are usually deployed in July will not be deployed at all in 2020. This will only be the case for this year meaning that the rafts, and Lifeguards, will be back at Greenhill in 2021.