Mum praises RNLI for saving her and her son

Paula Maguire takes her autistic son swimming as he finds the water therapeutic

A woman in Margate has thanked the RNLI for saving her and her son's lives after they got into trouble during a sea swim.

Paula Maguire, who is originally from Dublin but now lives in the Kent town, said she and her severely autistic son Henry were pulled out by the tide from the Walpole Bay tidal pool back in August.

She said her 25-year-old son - who has limited speech - "didn't realise the danger" and refused to swim back to shore.

"He wouldn’t move and that’s when I knew we were in trouble," Ms Maguire said. "I felt like I wasn’t in control.

'No doubt they saved our lives'

"We’d been in the water for 40 minutes by then and were starting to get cold."

She takes Henry swimming often as he finds the water therapeutic and the pair know the area well.

Ms Maguire said she shouted to her husband on the shore to call the coastguard, while a passing paddleboarder stopped to help.

When she saw the RNLI lifeboat approach, Ms Maguire said she was "incredibly relieved".

Henry enjoys swimming, says Ms Maguire

"The crew were so lovely and kind," she said, adding that they were sensitive to Henry's special needs and eventually managed to get him on the boat.

"I have no doubt they saved our lives."

Staying safe in the sea

"Even regular water users can get caught out when the tide changes," said Guy Addington, regional water safety lead and volunteer helm at Margate Lifeboat Station.

"You don’t realise what is happening until it is too late, and the sea can pull you in different directions."

He said it was "important" to check tide times before heading into the sea and to always let someone know where you are and when you will be back.