Fowey RNLI lifeboat station and Mevagissey RNLI shop have been chosen as host destinations for the RNLI’s 200th anniversary Connecting our Communities scroll, which will be signed in special ceremonies at Fowey’s lifeboat station and in Mevagissey on Saturday, April 6. 

The scroll left Westminster Abbey on Monday, March 4 for as part of an Olympic Torch-style relay, travelling around the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. The scroll bears the phrase: “Signed in 2024 by representatives of the RNLI’s lifesaving communities, on behalf of all who strive to save every one.” 

This has been translated into Cornish, as well as Irish Gaelic, Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, Ulster Scots and Manx, to represent all RNLI communities. 

Hundreds of communities expressed their interest in hosting the scroll, which will arrive in Fowey on Saturday, April 6. The signing ceremony at 1pm at the lifeboat station forms the highlight of a Water Safety Day from 10am.  

At 3pm, Fowey’s Trent class all-weather lifeboat launches from her pontoon to take the scroll to Mevagissey, where it will be handed over to representatives from the RNLI shop for a signing ceremony on the quay at 4pm. 

This year, Fowey RNLI is commemorating 165 years of lifesaving at Fowey lifeboat station, which opened in 1859 at Polkerris before moving to Fowey in the 1920s.  

Adam Luck, chairman of Fowey lifeboat management group, said: “The signing and water safety day in Fowey is the first of our commemorative events, and we hope as many people as possible can come along to help us witness and celebrate this historic occasion.” 

As part of Fowey’s water safety day, the all-weather Trent class lifeboat will be open for tours from 10am till 2.30pm, and the D class crew will be demonstrating man overboard recovery in Fowey harbour. 

“The coastguard and water safety teams will be giving demonstrations and water safety advice throughout the day, including talks on cold water shock and how to ‘float to live’.  

The lifeboat shop will be open all day and there will be music and refreshments, with RNLI mascot Stormy Stan making a special appearance. In the afternoon, The Press Gang will perform shanty songs at the station and sing to accompany the scroll onto the lifeboat. 

There will be sessions on how to service and check lifejackets, which all sailors should do at least once a year. TMS from Par will sell spare parts for lifejackets and service safety equipment to be booked in and collected from Fowey Chandlery. 

In Mevagissey, the scroll signing will be followed by tours of the Fowey lifeboat and celebrations on the quay and jetty with shanty singers, a treasure hunt and events in the harbour. The RNLI shop will be open to visitors, and the lifeboat will depart at 5.30pm. 

People can find out more about the scroll and this exciting relay event, and also follow the progress of the scroll on its journey around the UK on an interactive map at rnli.org/200relay 

Find out more and get up-to-date information on Facebook at FoweyLifeboat. 

All events on the day will be subject to weather and operational needs.