# West Kirby Lifeboat Station

West Kirby Lifeboat Station is located at Coronation Gardens, in the town of West Kirby, on the Wirral Peninsula in Merseyside.
A lifeboat was first stationed at West Kirby in 1966 by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).
The station currently operates a D-class (IB1) Inshore lifeboat, the Leonard Pownell (D-883), on station since 2023.

## History

A rise in coastal leisure activity, bathers, dinghies, small boats, etc. prompted the RNLI to introduced their small fast D-class (RFD PB16) Inshore lifeboats in 1963. Launching an All-weather lifeboat was a time consuming act, and often too slow in these circumstances.
A tragic accident in the River Dee brought about discussion between the RNLI and local authorities, and it was decided to place Inshore lifeboats at both Flint and West Kirby. D-100 was placed on service at West Kirby in June 1966, the responsibility of which was assigned to the Hoylake RNLI Honorary Secretary. The boat was temporarily located at West Kirby Sailing Club, until a boathouse could be constructed on the promenade.
Only 2 months later in August 1966, she was proven as a necessary resource, when the crew were able to resuscitate a man, unconscious in the water from a capsized small boat.
As was usual at the time, Inshore lifeboats were on station seasonally, so a different boat (D-14) was provided in 1967, but she was swiftly followed by D-155, which then became the station boat from 1967 to 1975.
A training session was held in March 1980 on the techniques of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. A call came in at the end of the session, for two canoeists in the water, being swept away in the fast tide. The D-class (Zodiac III) lifeboat Miss Winfield (D-230) was launched within two minutes. Arriving on scene to find one man unconscious, and the other in poor condition, crewman Robert Lydiate immediately put his training to use. Both men recovered, with Helmsman Ronald Jones, and crew members Robert Lydiate and John Curry receiving 'Letters of Thanks' signed by the RNLI Chief of Operations.
Two horses got stuck in the mud in 1988. The D-class lifeboat was carried over the sand to the location, and thus ensued a 2-hour battle to release the horses in the rising tide, the crew ending up waist-deep in water. Both horses were finally released only 20 minutes before high-water. For this rescue, the 11 crew were collectively awarded a bronze medal by the RSPCA.
In 1991, following flooding on the promenade and into the boathouse, a new boathouse was constructed at Coronation Gardens.
In the 2020 New Year Honours list, the British Empire Medal was awarded to Carole Ann Jackson, for her fundraising efforts over 50 years.

## West Kirby lifeboats
### Inshore lifeboats

| Op.No. | Name | In service | Class |
| D-100 | Unnamed | 1966 | D-class (RFD PB16) |
| D-14 | Unnamed | 1967 | D-class (RFD PB16) |
| D-155 | Unnamed | 1967−1975 | D-class (RFD PB16) |
| D-230 | Miss Winfield | 1975−1987 | D-class (Zodiac III) |
| D-332 | Unnamed | 1987−1994 | D-class (EA16) |
| D-473 | Thomas Jefferson | 1994−2003 | D-class (EA16) |
| D-612 | Dave and Trevor Jones | 2003−2012 | D-class (IB1) |
| D-751 | Seahorse | 2012−2023 | D-class (IB1) |
| D-883 | Leonard Pownall | 2023− | D-class (IB1) |
* ↑ Op. No. is the RNLI's Operational Number of the boat carried on the hull.