Mark Taylor received a 20-year long service medal, and Tom Clark the first 10-year award ever presented at West Kirby. Both came on crew night, 2 September.

Two West Kirby RNLI volunteers have been recognised for 30 years of service between them, and one of the awards is the first of its kind the station has handed out.

Mark Taylor was presented with his 20-year long service medal. Tom Clark, the station’s helm and head launcher, received a 10-year award. Both were presented by West Kirby’s Lifeboat Operations Manager, Richard Diamond, during crew night on Wednesday 2 September (news release, West Kirby RNLI, 11 September).

Tom is the first West Kirby crew member to receive the RNLI’s 10-year long service award, which the charity introduced this year.

Mark has spent two decades at the station in several roles: boat crew, casualty carer, launch vehicle driver and shore crew.

“The award speaks volumes about not just a crew but family,” he said. “I’ve shared experiences over the years that will never be forgotten. What we do truly is a privilege.”

Tom’s connection to the lifeboat runs back further than the ten years his award covers. He grew up around the station, because his dad was boat crew too.

What long service actually means at a lifeboat station

Richard Diamond, the station’s Lifeboat Operations Manager, put the awards in terms of the hours nobody sees.

“Long service within the RNLI is about far more than the call outs themselves,” he said. “Throughout the year, the crew give countless hours to training, exercises, boat preparation, maintenance, events and a wide range of other activities, all alongside their everyday lives and responsibilities.”

He added that the commitment is shared by families, “who sacrifice their own time, provide support and understand that their loved one may be called away at any time at the sound of the pager”.

The call-outs behind the awards

West Kirby’s lifeboat has launched ten times in the period the RNLI lists on the station’s own page, between 29 May and 30 August 2026 (West Kirby Lifeboat Station, RNLI).

Every one of them was the station’s D class lifeboat, D-883, named the Leonard Pownall (West Kirby’s lifeboat, RNLI).

West Kirby lifeboat launches listed by the RNLI, 29 May to 30 August 2026 Timeline of the ten most recent West Kirby lifeboat launches listed on the RNLI station page. 29 May 2026 at 8.34pm. 31 May at 10.32am. 11 June at 9.37pm. 24 June at 7.32pm. 29 June at 11.07am. 14 July, two launches, at 10.36pm and 11.09pm. 17 July at 2.29pm. 30 July at 12.11pm. 30 August at 11.25am. Every launch used the D class lifeboat D-883. Ten launches in three months at West Kirby Every launch the RNLI lists for the station between 29 May and 30 August 2026, all by the D class lifeboat D-883. Two of them came 33 minutes apart on the night of 14 July. Then nothing for the 31 days to 30 August. 29 MAY8.34pm 31 MAY10.32am 11 JUN9.37pm 24 JUN7.32pm 29 JUN11.07am 14 JUL10.36pm and 11.09pm 17 JUL2.29pm 30 JUL12.11pm 30 AUG11.25am Source: RNLI, recent lifeboat launches from West Kirby Lifeboat Station, read 16 September 2026. Graphic by Wirral Online

The pattern in that list is the one the awards are really about. Five of the ten launches were after 7pm, and two were close to midnight. A pager can go at any hour, and somebody has to be within reach of the boathouse when it does.

The station

West Kirby Lifeboat Station sits at Coronation Gardens on South Parade, CH48 3JU, looking out over the Dee estuary towards Hilbre. An inshore lifeboat has covered the north west tip of the peninsula from here for 40 years, and the current D class is a re-engineered version of the original design.

The RNLI is independent of the coastguard and of government, and depends on donations and legacies. Its crews are volunteers.

The station is not the only Wirral recognition this year. In June, West Kirby helm Jono Dodd was made an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours after nearly 40 years with the charity (West Kirby RNLI volunteer to receive MBE, RNLI, 12 June).

What it means for you

  • In an emergency on the coast or at sea, dial 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard. The RNLI asks people not to contact stations directly, because it delays the response.
  • The Dee estuary is the reason the station is busy. Tides come in across sand faster than people expect, and the launches above are spread right across the day and night.
  • Visits to the station can be arranged by appointment, subject to volunteer availability. The station number is 0151 625 1800.
  • If you want to see the boat rather than the boathouse, West Kirby’s shoreline and marine lake are on our things to do in Wirral page.

Corrections and additions: get in touch.