Council approves plan for maritime charity to keep ‘life-saving’ trailer on Filey coast

The National Coastwatch Institution (NCI) has been granted permission for its coastal mobile trailer to be located on Filey’s Royal Parade for another two years.

North Yorkshire Council said that the charity had “strengthened and complemented” local search and rescue services and the presence of the trailer would not negatively impact the area.

The blue mobile trailer provides a base for watchkeepers whose role is to be the “eyes and ears along the coast” providing an accurate picture of events to help speed up rescue operations.

The operations centre enables the volunteers to “spot, plot, and report incidents” to HM Coastguard and other search and rescue organisations.

It provides clear and unobstructed views of Filey Bay in order to identify potentially dangerous situations

The trailer, which has a radio antenna and wind turbine attached for power generation, is 2 metres in width and 3.2 metres in length.

No objections to the plan were raised by Filey Town Council or the Highway Authority.

However, the planning authority said that further applications to retain the unit as a temporary structure “would be strongly resisted and a permanent building of improved visual quality is required to replace it”.

NCI Filey said its eventual objective was the “procurement of a more substantive building and location to operate from” to enhance its operational capabilities and contribution towards sea safety.

The organisation started local operations two years ago with just two qualified watchkeepers but has since expanded and now has twenty additional volunteer watchkeepers.

In that time it has initiated 12 incidents, one of which the RNLI recorded as “lives saved at sea” and commended the duty watchkeepers for their diligent work.

The charity is also aiming to provide daylight watchkeeping services 365 days a year.

North Yorkshire Council approved the plan, subject to conditions, on Wednesday, March 13.