Please see the update below to read about Joyce.  "Joyce had left them a generous gift in her Will, which will not only fund the launch and recovery system for their new Shannon lifeboat but also help with shoreworks to prepare the station for its new craft in 2022. Following Joyce’s wishes, the state-of-the-art rig will be named Ralph." 

Saving lives at Sea – Stop putting people in unnecessary risk.

A few years ago, a RNLI press release clearly stated that Aldeburgh RNLI would be having a Shannon Lifeboat, this news was widely celebrated as it confirmed and recognised the importance in having an All-Weather Lifeboat permanently sited on this stretch of coastline.  It also recognised nationally, the imperative importance in having an All Weather Lifeboat (ALB) that can be launched directly from the beach into the North Sea was paramount, especially as tourism, water sports and energy projects increase.

This Shannon lifeboat was funded through legacies left locally, and you have u-turned on peoples wishes, yet you ask people to leave gifts to the RNLI within their Wills!

The RNLI are backtracking on their own press release, Aldeburgh RNLI lifeboat crew’s delight at Shannon lifeboat allocation news. See the RNLI press release: https://rnli.org/news-and-media/2016/june/23/aldeburgh-rnli-lifeboat-crews-delight-at-shannon-lifeboat-allocation-news 

The pre planning application discussed was favourable but you have failed to submit an actual planning application. 

You have failed to liaise with the community and it’s MP, Therese Coffey.  We therefore call upon you to keep to your pledge and listen to the actual people that know the sea and rivers conditions, those that have the hands-on experience, knowledge and expertise.

Ms Coffey, who is also environment secretary, had called for an urgent meeting with Mark Dowie to talk about the future of Aldeburgh lifeboat station, but posted on her Facebook page that the discussions will not be taking place. "I previously wrote to him to ask for an urgent meeting after I was informed of a possible ‘downgrade’ of the local lifeboat capabilities via a RNLI review."

However, in her post, Ms Coffey said she was concerned that a review only a few years ago, determined that a new all-weather lifeboat was needed, while a public fundraising campaign had collected sufficient funds for a Shannon-class boat.

She and the community understood there was a 'restricted fund' of £2.4m for a lifeboat, while a Shannon-class vessel costs £2.5m. She added: "Not only is it concerning that there appears to be little progress in considering this preferred option, there now seems to be a real risk of a downgrade, which is not helped by the lack of transparency from the RNLI."

We call on you to meet with the members of the community and wider public along with our MP in a public and transparent meeting without delay, answering questions including explaining where the money has gone.