The Club was formed in 1960 to reduce the significant number of drownings that were occurring every year on Bantham Beach.
The club is committed to patrolling the beach on Sundays (May to September) and developing and training its members, adults, juniors and nippers, whilst having some fun.
The Club’s operational side is lead by the Club Captain Pete Lawrence whilst the training of the Seniors, Juniors and Nippers is managed by other committee members and parents.
Whilst the focus of activities is during the summer months on the beach, the club also has all year round sessions at Kingsbridge Swimming pool used to develop swimming abilities and technique. Thanks to lottery funding, the Club has one of the best clubhouses in the UK.
The club is proud of it voluntary ethos providing patrols on the beach on Sundays alongside the paid lifeguarding service provided by the RNLI Monday to Saturdays. The club has a close working relationship with the RNLI and in combination delivers the best service to beach users throughout the season.
Although the beaches at Bantham and Bigbury are used by tens of thousands of families every summer in perfect safety, it was not always that way. In older days - and some not so long ago - Bantham had a dreadful reputation for deadly currents. Tombstones - "Drowned bathing at Bantham", - in nearby churchyards show that the risk to swimmers was not exaggerated by locals warnings.
All that changed in 1960 when Mr Maitland, the local expert on beach safety, formed the Bantham Surf Life Saving Club. A small number of local residents and strong swimmers joined at once and started training. At first they had to learn from established surf life saving clubs. A team from Perranporth, Cornwall, came to Bantham to demonstrate the latest use of the Reel and Line. Gradually the members became expert in all methods of saving lives at Bantham.
The club is committed to patrolling the beach on Sundays (May to September) and developing and training its members, adults, juniors and nippers, whilst having some fun.
The Club’s operational side is lead by the Club Captain Pete Lawrence whilst the training of the Seniors, Juniors and Nippers is managed by other committee members and parents.
Whilst the focus of activities is during the summer months on the beach, the club also has all year round sessions at Kingsbridge Swimming pool used to develop swimming abilities and technique. Thanks to lottery funding, the Club has one of the best clubhouses in the UK.
The club is proud of it voluntary ethos providing patrols on the beach on Sundays alongside the paid lifeguarding service provided by the RNLI Monday to Saturdays. The club has a close working relationship with the RNLI and in combination delivers the best service to beach users throughout the season.
Although the beaches at Bantham and Bigbury are used by tens of thousands of families every summer in perfect safety, it was not always that way. In older days - and some not so long ago - Bantham had a dreadful reputation for deadly currents. Tombstones - "Drowned bathing at Bantham", - in nearby churchyards show that the risk to swimmers was not exaggerated by locals warnings.
All that changed in 1960 when Mr Maitland, the local expert on beach safety, formed the Bantham Surf Life Saving Club. A small number of local residents and strong swimmers joined at once and started training. At first they had to learn from established surf life saving clubs. A team from Perranporth, Cornwall, came to Bantham to demonstrate the latest use of the Reel and Line. Gradually the members became expert in all methods of saving lives at Bantham.
