Beach Safety

North Devon beaches are a wonderful place to be. If you’re heading to the North Devon coast, take a look at our advice and tips from the rnli.org to help you have fun and stay safe.

There are a few things to remember before you hit the beach – and we’re not talking about packing your bodyboard. Choose a lifeguarded beach, where trained professionals are on hand to keep you safe, in and out of the water. Saunton Sands, Croyde Beach, Westward Ho! and Woolacombe all have lifeguards during seasonal peak times.

If you can’t make it to a lifeguarded beach, then read our safety advice. Some simple steps can help you have a safe and enjoyable trip to the beach.

Lifeguarded beaches

When you’re heading to a beach, we urge you to respect the water and visit a lifeguarded beach. On a lifeguarded beach there are trained professionals to help keep you safe – they’ll be on hand if something goes wrong, in or out of the water. It’s easy to search for lifeguarded beaches to make sure you and your family have a safe and fun trip to the coast.

Use our find my nearest beach tool to find a lifeguarded beach near you. You can search by address, post code, or you can use the map to look for the closest beach to you. There will be information on the dates and times the beach is patrolled by RNLI lifeguards, so you know the safest time to head down to the beach. There is also a weather forecast and tidal information.

You can also search on the Marine Conservation Society (UK) or Irish Water Safety (Ireland) websites to find information on beaches near you.

So now you’re ready to hit the beach there are a few important things to remember, whether lifeguards are on duty or not.

Sun safety

Sunburn can ruin your holiday and increase the risk of skin cancer in later life.

So please, keep safe this Summer and follow the Ss of sun safety:

• Sunscreen – slop on SPF 30+ broad-spectrum waterproof sunscreen every 2 hours
• Sun hat – slap on a broad-brimmed hat that shades your face, neck and ears
• Sunglasses – wear wrap-around sunglasses with UV protection to shield your eyes
• Shoulders – slip on a T-shirt or UV protective suit for children and remember to keep your shoulders covered
• Shade – seek shade, particularly during the hottest time of the day between 11am and 3pm when UV penetration is at its strongest
• Slurp – drink lots of water so that you stay hydrated during your time in the sun.

Missing children

Children are safest when supervised.

As soon as you get to the beach, agree a meeting point in case of separation. If the beach runs a children’s safety scheme, using wristbands or tickets, take part. They’re free and they work. If you are on an RNLI-lifeguarded beach, visit the lifeguard hut on arrival and they can give you special wristbands to put your contact details on.

If a child does go missing:

• calmly check your surroundings first, ensuring other children remain supervised
• contact the lifeguards or police and keep them informed
• let all searchers know once the child is found.

The information on this page was sourced from rnli.org