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Water safety charity the Royal National Lifeboat Institute - RNLI for short - wants families to leave inflatables at home and be 'beach safe' if visiting the coast this summer.

They say: "Inflatables are not designed for open water and it takes very little breeze for them to be swept out to sea - much quicker than you can swim or paddle back to the beach."

This year is the first time the RNLI has explicitly said "don't use inflatables." There have been several rescues recently involving inflatables and in 2019 they had to help 346 people who got into difficulties with them.

RNLI lifeguards will be patrolling on around 170 UK and Ireland beaches by peak season - this is fewer lifeguards than normal because of the coronavirus pandemic.

So as lifeguards can't be everywhere this summer, the charity is urging beach-goers to be aware of the dangers at the coast, and to know what to do should they or a member of their family get into trouble.

The RNLI rescues thousands of people each year but it says: "...the fact that we have been so busy already his summer shows us that some people are not taking these warnings seriously enough."

Last year RNLI lifeguards had to help more than 29,000 people on UK beaches, including reuniting nearly 1,800 lost children with their families.

With lockdown restrictions easing across the UK and the weather getting warmer there have been record numbers of people at the coast. But HM Coastguard is reminding people that social distancing rules still apply and to keep in mind the government guidance for your part of the country.

It's also reminding everyone to keep their mobile phone fully-charged, to stay in touch with friends and family, tell each other where you're going, to drink plenty of water and wear sun cream.

And if you are planning to go in the water they say to think first - it's easy to get caught out by the sea, even if you are an experienced swimmer, and not every beach has a lifeguard.