People’s Choice Award 2023 Bronze £100 million plus
Covid was a wave that nobody expected - and for the RNLI that led to the cancellation of crucial fundraising events, higher PPE costs, and an increase in people staying in the UK and Ireland for summer holidays. And when the coastal visits go up, so do the rescues, so it was an even tougher, busier period for the lifesavers than usual. In 2021 our supporters, fundraisers and volunteers responded with incredible generosity and loyalty. Our 2021 Christmas Appeal, Save Every One, was our most successful ever.
So our focus from mid-December was to thank supporters who stayed by our side and show their impact with a heartwarming, festive video that could be shared through our email newsletter, social platforms and website. A donorcentric film that summed up the themes that come to the forefront of the RNLI at Christmas - the fact that volunteers will leave their own family to save someone else's, even in the worst of sea conditions. What drives them? Our vision To Save Every One. What is it that brings them home safe? The kit and training provided by supporters. That's why this crew member makes it home safe to his own family - all thanks to you.
This video was written, directed and edited in-house by the RNLI Creative Services team, and features a real volunteer lifeboat crew member making his acting debut!
For 200 years, the RNLI has saved lives at sea. Our volunteers are on call to launch lifeboats to the rescue around the UK and Ireland, 365 days a year. Our lifeguards patrol busy beaches in the summer. And our water safety campaigns keep people safe by sharing lifesaving messages that prevent drowning tragedies. We're driven by our vision - to save every one. It inspires us to save more lives in more ways - from rescue hovercraft and inland lifeboat stations, to international lifesaving interventions alongside partners overseas. And, because we're a charity separate from government, we rely on kindness to power our lifesavers' work. The training, the equipment, the facilities, the campaigns - all made possible by a very special kind of lifesaver: you.
NOTE: RNLI work that aligns with the UN Sustainable Development goals includes its international projects delivered alongside other organisations, such as our partnership with CIPRB (centre for injury prevention and research Bangladesh). We have worked together with funders to help to set up a sustainable lifeguard service and community SwimSafe sessions in a country where 40 children drown a day.
