   the royal national lifeboat institution (rnli) is one of several charities that save lives at sea around the british isles (great britain, ireland, the channel islands and the isle of man) as well as on some inland waterways. founded in 1824 as the national institution for the preservation of life from shipwreck, the rnli was granted royal charter in 1860 and is a charity in the uk and republic of ireland. queen elizabeth ii is patron. the rnli operates 444 lifeboats (332 at 236 lifeboat stations, 112 in the relief fleet). crews rescued on average 23 people a day in 2013. most lifeboat crew members are unpaid volunteers. the consistently busiest station is tower on the river thames in london. rnli lifeguards operate on more than 200 beaches. they are paid by local authorities, while the rnli provides equipment and training. the institution operates flood rescue teams (frt) nationally and internationally (ifrt), the latter prepared to travel to emergencies overseas at short notice. considerable effort is put into training and education by the institution, particularly for young people; more than 6,000 children a week are spoken to by education volunteers about sea and beach safety, and over 800 children a week receive trainin
1824_establishments_in_the_United_Kingdom All-Ireland_organisations Emergency_medical_services_in_the_Republic_of_Ireland Emergency_medical_services_in_the_United_Kingdom Emergency_services_in_the_Republic_of_Ireland Emergency_services_in_the_United_Kingdom Organizations_established_in_1824 Poole Royal_National_Lifeboat_Institution Sea_rescue_organisations Sea_rescue_organisations_of_the_United_Kingdom Winners_of_the_Queen\'s_Award_for_Voluntary_Service