Eyes Along The Coast – The NCI
- Allan & Helen
- Sep 23
- 3 min read
On this amazing challenge with the RNLI, we have also been trying to piece together the various agencies involved in keeping us all safe on the water. It’s all part of the learning process and far more complex than we ever imagined.
We have been privileged to have been given fantastic access to lifeboat stations but also the English Channel Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) and HM Coastguard at the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre in Dover. Recently, we added another piece to the enormous jigsaw – The National Coastwatch Institution (NCI). On our travels to RNLI Stations we had come across some curious lookout towers and wondered what they were all about.
We are so grateful to the team at the NCI Station in Newhaven for allowing us to visit and learn about the vital job they do and how it all links together with the other agencies. On a warm and sunny September evening we parked at Newhaven Fort and walked up to the station located at the top of Fort Hill. We rang the doorbell and were met by Bill who took us up to the control room of the former Coastguard Station where we also met Jackie. Both made us very welcome and we spent a very enjoyable hour or so chatting with them and learning about their role.
The National Coastwatch Institution is a charity established in 1994. Its 60 operational stations, covering the coastline of England and Wales from Filey on the Northeast round to Fleetwood on the Northwest coast, are staffed and managed entirely by over 2800 volunteers.
Bill and Jackie are volunteer National Coastwatch watchkeepers, at the Newhaven NCI Station operational since 2004. They provide eyes and ears along the coast, keeping watch and monitoring radio channels to provide a listening watch in poor visibility. When people find themselves in trouble, they are there to alert other authorities such as HM Coastguard who direct the appropriate rescue services to the casualty.
They explained that they keep watch 365 days a year and have a team of around 60 volunteers at Newhaven working a three shift per day pattern during daylight hours. Whilst they are volunteers from all walks of life, they are highly trained and undergo regular assessments.
As we stood with Bill and Jackie they were constantly watching, not only the vessel activity, but people on the beaches, cliffs and a lone windsurfer in the sea. They logged every vessel movement in and out of the port and counted those they could see onboard. They had amazing eyesight as we couldn’t see the windsurfer until Bill kindly pointed them out. A few boats arrived and departed the port of Newhaven and we listened to the radio transmissions between the vessels and the Harbour masters. The cross channel ferry operated by DFDS Transmanche departed on its way to France and we had a birds eye view from our 53 metre vantage point.
Thanking Bill and Jackie for their time we headed back down the tower before taking some photos from the outside of the station and the short walk downhill to the car. Thank you so much to Mick for making the arrangements and to watchkeepers Bill and Jackie for their time.
The NCI rely solely on sponsors and public donation. If you would like to find out more about their work, the history and location of the stations, then please visit their website below. They also have some excellent merchandise.
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