Volunteer lifeguards unable to protect Blyth Beach swimmers after eviction from Dave Stephens Centre

The volunteer lifeguards have been based out of the Dave Stephens Centre since it opened in 2008, but their access rights to the centre have now been revoked.

Management of the building was taken over by not-for-profit development trust Blyth Valley Enterprise Ltd (BVEL), which also runs Blyth Community Enterprise Centre, in April after the previous operator, council-run leisure provider Active Northumberland, was wound up.

According to the lifeguard club, they were informed that they would be required to pay for storage facilities they previously made use of for free, would not have unrestricted access rights to the building, and would be required to share some spaces within the centre.

Attempts to reach an agreement on use of the Dave Stephens Centre that would allow lifeguard services to continue have proved unsuccessful and lifeguards were told last week they had to leave the facilities.

An online fundraiser has now been set up to help the club find a new permanent home that would allow it to restart lifeguard provision at the beach, as well as its youth and community activities.

In a statement, Blyth Lifeguard and Swimming Club (BLSC) said: “We appreciate and respect all the work being done to utilise the centre to its full potential. The positive impact on the local community, the creation of new jobs, and the increase in tourism are all very exciting for Blyth.

“We genuinely wanted to be part of this initiative and are devastated that we have not reached an agreement.

“Our offer represented the minimum needed to run a safe and effective service, ensuring the safety of our members and the public.

“As a voluntary organisation with no regular income, we could not commit to any financial liability given the uncertainty over available funding.”

The club’s volunteer lifeguards need unrestricted access to rooms in the centre to care for casualties, store decades-worth of equipment safely, and run its training activities, including for younger people.

Lifeguard captain Michele Weedy said the outcome of the discussions “hurts” but that support has been “amazing from all areas of the community.”

She said: “I would say a large percentage of people, I have no idea who they are, but it is really nice to see that they are behind us.

“We just want to get back down there and do what we enjoy doing as a club, and make sure that the community is safe.”

The dispute over the facilities has also led to the club’s beach festival being cancelled in what would have been its thirtieth year, which Michele described as “heart-breaking.”

She said: “We put a stop to it for the moment. Whether we run something smaller towards the end of the summer, I do not know.

“This year we were doing it slightly bigger and better because it was 30 years, but we will do it next year and it will be even bigger.”

Michele, who has been involved in BLSC for 42 years, believes the beach will be less safe without lifeguards in place.

She said: “It is not just about that one rescue that you might have, it is the interventions that you do.

“We probably do far more interventions than we do actual physical rescues, which is good because that means our interventions have worked.”

A spokesperson for Northumberland County Council said: “BVEL provided an offer to BLSC to ensure continuation of a voluntary lifeguard provision. However. BLSC refused to accept it and suspended all lifeguard activity until such time as a compromise or resolution could be reached.

“Earlier this month all parties met to try and progress a shared usage agreement but no compromise could be reached that would permit BLSC to continue to occupy the centre. Unfortunately the county council had no choice but to terminate BLSC’s tenancy at will.

“The county council is now looking at whether there are options to support BLSC with alternative accommodation and in support of voluntary lifeguard provision.

“BVEL has also confirmed that they wish to discuss terms with other lifeguarding organisations to help maintain some form of provision at Blyth Beach, and those discussions are underway."