Atlantic College Lifeboat Station

Atlantic College Lifeboat Station opened in 1963 as one of the first experimental inshore lifeboat stations established by the RNLI.The RNLI withdrew the lifeboat from Atlantic College in June 2013. The college now concentrates on training beach lifeguards.HistoryB-class developmentAtlantic College was instrumental in the design and development of the RNLI's first fast rescue boats under the supervision of the headmaster, Rear Admiral Desmond Hoare. He was the pioneer of the Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) and of the first lifeboat which was named after the college and entered service in the 1970s. In the early 1960s the college had designed a rigid inflatable boat which subsequently became the basis for the B-class. The college sold the patent to the RNLI for £1 in 1973. An early example was discovered in Barry in 2012 and restored in 2014.First female crewmemberOn 20 May 1971, the station recorded the first service at any station involving a female crew member took place. Penelope M. Sutton was a member of the crew when the ILB was launched to investigate a Swedish motor cruiser, reported to be at anchor and flying a distress signal. The incident was a false alarm, as the courtesy Red Ensign flown on the cruiser had been misinterpreted.RNLI lifeboat stationIn 1973, the station received its first official RNLI Atlantic 21 lifeboat. Previous lifeboats operated by the station were owned by the college with the RNLI paying expenses.In 2000, the station received an lifeboat.