Lifeboat service outlines plans for new site

An independent lifeboat service has been explaining its plans to develop a site it purchased to relocate its station which is under threat from coastal erosion.

Hemsby Lifeboat, near Great Yarmouth, began searching for alternative sites in 2024, after annual storms washed away the ramp access to the beach, leaving the existing station about 20m (65ft) from the edge.

In November, it bought the former Hollywood Diner in Beach Road, Hemsby, which had been up for sale for a guide price of £250,000.

In a social media post, the organisation said the building would include a lifeboat station, a shop and café for the public, and a community space.

Hemsby Lifeboat said the conversion of the site "will take time".

"We also have a contingency plan for a fallback station if we need to move quickly, ensuring we can remain on active service for His Majesty's Coastguard and continue our search-and-rescue objectives, just as we have done for the last 50 years," it said on Facebook.

The service said on average it responded to 47 requests for help annually.

The lifeboat charity has been fundraising for the past 10 years, initially to upgrade the station, but once this was no longer viable, to find a new property.

Architects had now been appointed to convert the former diner into a "community lifeboat station, a place that supports lifesaving operations and gives something back to the wider community", the lifeboat service said.

In November, Dan Hurd, coxswain of Hemsby Lifeboat, estimated it would cost about £500,000 to convert Hollywood Diner into a lifeboat station.

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