A PARLIAMENTARY motion has been tabled to express praise and congratulations to the volunteers of Minehead’s Royal National Lifeboat Institution station.

The Early Day Motion has been laid by West Somerset MP Rachel Gilmour, following a visit to the station’s open day earlier this month.

It will help to mark the 125th anniversary year of the Minehead station, which was established in 1901.

The motion congratulates the volunteers and staff who have given their time to the station since then, and recognises the 202 years aross which the charity has operated in the UK.

It also names three men from the station’s history who gave their lives saving others at sea, coxswain John Slade, shore signalman Tom Escott, and crewman William Porter Slade.

The motion separately recognises helmsmen David James and Chris Rundle and their crews for their work in the line of duty.

Mrs Gilmour said: “I am proud to have tabled this motion to mark Minehead RNLI’s 125th anniversary and put their work on record in Parliament.

“The crews who head out into the Bristol Channel, often in atrocious weather, are putting their own safety at risk to bring strangers home safely.

“That kind of sacrifice and hard work deserves recognition.

“Much of what Minehead RNLI does comes down to volunteers who train week in, week out, and drop everything when the call comes.

“I am hugely grateful to all of them, and to everybody who has served the station.

“I look forward to seeing colleagues from across the House add their names to the motion in support of Minehead RNLI.”

Minehead’s lifeboats have been launched nearly 1,500 times in the station’s 125-year history and have directly saved 356 lives.

The boathouse saw a £1 million refurbishment completed in 2023 to modernise its facilities, including providing the first proper changing rooms for crews.