SENTRY BOATS

Safety Boat Services FAQs

Planning work on, over, under or near water raises important questions about safety cover, vessel suitability, crew qualifications and emergency arrangements.
Sentry Boats provides professional safety boat, rescue boat, guard boat and survey support services throughout the UK. Below are answers to the questions we are most often asked by construction companies, survey teams, utilities, environmental organisations, broadcasters and other organisations working around water.

About Sentry Boats

What does Sentry Boats do?

Sentry Boats provides professional safety boat and commercial marine support for projects taking place on, in, over, under or near water.
Our services include safety and rescue boat cover, guard boats, hydrographic survey support, workboats, environmental sampling platforms, pollution-control support and boats for film and media production. We support projects on rivers, canals, lakes, reservoirs, estuaries, harbours and coastal waters throughout the UK.

How experienced is Sentry Boats?

Sentry Boats has more than 25 years of experience supporting commercial operations around water.
Our crews have practical backgrounds in marine operations, ports, rescue work, boat handling and water safety management. This experience allows us to support both planned projects and changing site conditions while maintaining a professional, safety-focused approach.

Where does Sentry Boats operate?

We provide safety boat and marine support services throughout the United Kingdom.

Our vessels can be deployed to inland and coastal locations, including rivers, canals, reservoirs, lakes, ports, harbours and estuaries. Site access, launch facilities, tides, water conditions and project requirements are reviewed before mobilisation.

What types of projects do you support?

We support projects involving civil engineering, bridge construction and maintenance, utilities, ports, flood defences, environmental monitoring, surveys, diving, dredging and waterside infrastructure.
We can also provide boat support for events, film and television production, scientific work, pollution response and emergency operations. Each deployment is planned around the risks, working environment and operational needs of the project.

Safety, Rescue and Guard Boats

What is a safety boat?

A safety boat is a professionally crewed vessel positioned near people working on or around water.
Its crew monitors the working area, maintains communication with the site team and remains ready to respond if someone enters the water or another marine emergency occurs. Safety boats can also help manage vessel movements, identify changing hazards and support a project’s emergency arrangements.

What is the difference between a safety boat, rescue boat and guard boat?

The terms overlap, but each can describe a slightly different operational role.

A safety boat provides preventative cover and emergency standby for people working near water. A rescue boat is equipped and crewed to respond rapidly to a person in the water or another emergency. A guard boat monitors a defined marine area, warns approaching vessels and helps maintain an exclusion or safety zone.

The appropriate vessel and operating plan will depend on the project’s risk assessment.

When might a project need safety boat cover?

Safety boat cover may be appropriate whenever workers could fall into water or need emergency assistance from the water.

Examples include bridge repairs, scaffolding above water, quay and harbour work, waterside construction, inspections, diving operations, flood-defence projects and maintenance carried out from pontoons or temporary platforms.

The need for a dedicated safety boat should be established through a suitable, project-specific risk assessment.

Is a safety boat legally required when working near water?

There is no single answer that applies to every project. The required precautions depend on the hazards, location, working method and findings of the project’s risk assessment.

UK health and safety guidance requires appropriate measures to prevent people falling into water and, where necessary, arrangements to achieve a safe rescue. A competent health and safety professional should determine whether a dedicated safety or rescue boat forms part of those arrangements.
What does a safety boat crew do during a project?

The crew maintains an active watch over the work area and remains ready to respond throughout the operation.

Depending on the project, the crew may monitor personnel, water conditions and vessel traffic; maintain communication with site teams; help enforce exclusion zones; recover people or equipment from the water; and provide immediate assistance during an emergency.

The crew can also report changing conditions that may affect the safe continuation of the work.

Can Sentry Boats help with risk planning?

Yes. We can provide practical marine input, mitigation advice and vessel-specific planning for the proposed operation.

This may include reviewing access, launch arrangements, tides, currents, navigation hazards, communications and rescue requirements. Our input can support the project’s wider risk assessment and method statement, which should remain under the control of the appropriate project duty holders and competent safety professionals.

What qualifications do your crews hold?

Our deployments are crewed by experienced marine professionals with qualifications appropriate to their assigned roles.

These may include relevant boat-handling, rescue and first-aid certification. Crew selection is based on the vessel, location, operating conditions and nature of the work. Qualification and competency requirements can be discussed and documented during project planning.

What equipment is carried on your boats?

Equipment is selected according to the vessel and proposed operation.

Our safety and guard boats may carry VHF communications, GPS and navigation equipment, first-aid supplies, life-saving equipment and rescue or recovery gear. Additional equipment can be arranged where a project presents specialist operational requirements.

Are your vessels MCA coded?

The Sentry Boats fleet includes vessels coded in accordance with applicable Maritime and Coastguard Agency requirements.

The correct vessel will be selected according to the operating area, passenger and equipment requirements, intended use and expected conditions. Vessel documentation can be discussed as part of the quotation and mobilisation process.

Availability and Deployment

Are your boats supplied with a crew?

Yes. Our safety, rescue, guard and survey support services are normally provided as professionally crewed operations.
This gives clients access to both a suitable vessel and experienced personnel who understand boat handling, marine hazards, communication procedures and emergency response. Crew numbers are determined by the vessel, assignment and project requirements.

Can I hire a safety boat for one day?

Yes. We can provide short-term safety boat cover for individual shifts, inspections, events or planned tasks, subject to vessel and crew availability.
We also support long-term construction, maintenance, survey and infrastructure projects. Tell us the anticipated dates and working hours when requesting a quotation, even if the programme is still provisional.

Do you provide night and weekend safety boat cover?

Yes. Sentry Boats can support daytime, night-time, weekend and continuous operations.

We offer 24/7 availability for projects that require work outside standard hours. Night operations and extended shifts require suitable planning for visibility, lighting, communications, crew welfare and operating conditions.

Can Sentry Boats deploy at short notice?

We can often mobilise at short notice, depending on vessel availability, crew requirements, travel distance and launch arrangements.
Providing the site location, dates, working hours, scope of work and required service as early as possible helps us identify the most suitable vessel and deployment plan.

Can you reach remote or difficult launch sites?

Our fleet and support vehicles allow us to operate from a wide range of locations, including sites with restricted or challenging access.

Before confirming a deployment, we will assess launch facilities, slipways, water depth, access routes, tidal restrictions and any permissions that may be required. Where a normal slipway is unavailable, we will discuss practical alternatives with the project team.

Can you supply more than one boat?

Yes. We can provide a single vessel or coordinate multiple safety and support boats for larger or more complex operations.

Projects with separate work areas, wide exclusion zones, high personnel numbers or different operational tasks may require more than one craft. We will recommend an appropriate arrangement after reviewing the scope and site conditions.

Survey and Specialist Marine Support

Do you provide survey support boats?

Yes. We provide stable survey support boats and experienced crews for hydrographic, environmental, structural and infrastructure surveys.

Our vessels can support work on rivers, canals, reservoirs, lakes, harbours, estuaries and coastal waters. Typical assignments include bathymetric surveys, bridge inspections, flood-risk studies, environmental monitoring and port or harbour surveys.

What survey equipment can your vessels support?

Our vessels can be configured to support specialist equipment such as multibeam sonar, acoustic Doppler current profilers, GPS systems, LiDAR and environmental sampling equipment.

Available deck space, mounting arrangements, power requirements, payload, vessel movement and required survey speeds should be discussed in advance. We work with the survey team to select a practical platform for accurate and efficient data collection.

Can your boats carry surveyors and project personnel?

Yes, subject to the selected vessel’s capacity, coding, operating limits and the project risk assessment.

We can provide space for surveyors, engineers, environmental specialists, camera crews and other authorised project personnel. Passenger numbers and equipment loads must be confirmed before mobilisation so that an appropriate vessel can be supplied.

Do you provide workboat services?

Yes. Our multipurpose vessels can support equipment transport, personnel access, inspections, deployment work and general marine operations.

Workboat requirements vary considerably, so we will review the size and weight of equipment, lifting or handling needs, deck-space requirements, water depth and intended operating area before recommending a vessel.

Can you support diving and underwater inspection work?

Yes. We can provide safety, standby and workboat support for commercial diving and underwater inspection operations.

The precise service will depend on the dive plan, site conditions and responsibilities of the appointed diving contractor. We coordinate with the project team to establish vessel positioning, communications, exclusion zones and emergency arrangements.

Do you support environmental sampling projects?

Yes. We provide vessel platforms for water sampling, ecological surveys, river monitoring and other environmental work.

Our boats can carry project personnel and sampling equipment to designated locations, including areas that are difficult to reach from the bank. Vessel selection will consider stability, deck space, water depth, access and the need to minimise disruption to the surrounding environment.

Can you assist with pollution-control operations?

Yes. Our vessels can support pollution monitoring, containment, debris management and environmental response work.

The required boat, crew and equipment will depend on the pollutant, location, water conditions and response plan. Any specialist containment or recovery equipment should be identified when the operation is being planned.

Do you provide boats for filming and media production?

Yes. We can provide stable, professionally operated platforms for film, television, photography and other media work on the water.

We can discuss camera positions, crew numbers, equipment loads, operating speed, tracking requirements and safety cover. Every filming operation remains subject to vessel capacity, weather, water conditions and an appropriate production risk assessment.

Can one vessel provide both operational support and safety cover?

In some situations, one vessel may be able to perform more than one function. In others, a dedicated safety boat must remain immediately available and should not be occupied with another task.

The correct arrangement depends on response times, personnel numbers, equipment, operating area and project risk assessment. We will help identify whether separate vessels are advisable.

Pricing and Booking

How much does safety boat hire cost?

Safety boat hire is quoted according to the individual project rather than at a single standard rate.

The price will depend on the type of vessel, number of crew, location, working hours, duration, mobilisation distance, operating conditions and any specialist equipment required. Providing detailed project information allows us to prepare a more accurate quotation.

What information do you need to provide a quote?

Please provide as much of the following information as possible:

• Project location and launch point
• Proposed dates and working hours
• Nature of the work
• Number of workers or passengers
• Required safety, rescue, guard, survey or workboat role
• Expected equipment and payload
• Water type and known access restrictions
• Tidal, weather or navigation considerations
• Required documentation or site competencies

Do not worry if every detail has not yet been confirmed. We can discuss the project and identify what additional information is needed.

How far in advance should I book?

Booking as early as possible gives the best choice of vessel and crew, particularly for long-term work, night operations or projects requiring specialist survey configurations.

We also understand that marine and construction programmes can change. Contact us even when dates are provisional, and we will discuss availability and possible mobilisation options.

How do I book a safety boat or request a quotation?

Call Sentry Boats on 0776 578 1577 or email Ken Miles at ken.miles@hotmail.co.uk.
Include the project location, proposed dates, working hours and a brief description of the work. We will review your requirements and discuss the most suitable vessel, crew and operating arrangement.

Discuss Your Project With Sentry Boats

Every project around water presents a different combination of risks, access requirements and operational challenges.

Whether you require a rescue boat for a single shift, long-term safety cover for a construction project, a guard boat for an exclusion zone or a stable platform for survey and environmental work, speak to Sentry Boats about a solution tailored to your site.

Call 0776 578 1577 or email ken.miles@hotmail.co.uk to request a quotation.