About us
The safety of shipping and the well-being of seafarers have been the prime concerns of Trinity House since being incorporated by Royal Charter in 1514.
Trinity House is a maritime safety and welfare organisation. We work for the benefit and safety of all mariners.
The Corporation of Trinity House was incorporated by Royal Charter in 1514 to regulate pilotage on the River Thames and provide for aged mariners.
With a mandate that has expanded considerably since then, we are today the General Lighthouse Authority (GLA) for England, Wales, the Channel Islands and Gibraltar employing around 300 people at sea and ashore. Trinity House is also the UK’s largest-endowed maritime charity with a fraternity of men and women selected from across the nation’s maritime sector.
As a GLA we are a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Transport with a statutory duty to deliver a reliable, efficient and cost-effective aids to navigation service. Our long-standing familiarity with the channels, hazards, currents and markings of our coastline also qualify us to inspect and audit over 11,000 local aids to navigation, license Deep Sea Pilots and provide Elder Brethren as Nautical Assessors to the Admiralty Court.
Our mission
Our mission as a General Lighthouse Authority is to deliver a reliable, efficient and cost-effective aids to navigation service for the benefit and safety of all mariners.
Furthermore, as a charity we help to ensure that British commercial shipping is crewed by well-trained men and women and that mariners in need of all ages and backgrounds are supported in a number of ways either directly by us or through grants to other maritime charities and initiatives.
Trinity House works closely with a number of highly-regarded national and international organisations, including the Northern Lighthouse Board, Irish Lights, the Maritime & Coastguard Agency, the UK Hydrographic Office and the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities (IALA) , to name just a few.
Our vision
Our vision is to be a trusted world class aids to navigation authority and regarded as such by our stakeholders.
We work hard to ensure that we are valued as much for our work today as for our reputation earned through over five centuries of service.
Although we are proud of the reputation afforded us by our many centuries of dedication to the nation’s maritime infrastructure, we are a forward-facing organisation; it is our ability to meet new challenges and the changing requirements of the modern mariner that keeps us relevant and effective.
We will continue to support the maritime industry that moves up to 95% of the UK’s international trade, keeping the lifeblood of our economy moving safely and swiftly and ensuring the UK’s place in the 21st century global economy.
Our values
At Trinity House, we…Work together
… for the benefit and safety of all mariners;
… within a respectful, diverse and inclusive environment
Achieve excellence
… by taking pride in our work;
… by protecting the environment through sustainable solutions
Value each other
… by providing proactive and appropriate support;
… by getting everyone home safe
Evolve with ambition
… by embracing innovation;
… so that everyone can make a positive difference.
Our constitution
The Corporation of Trinity House is a privately-governed organisation, incorporated by Royal Charter.
The Court oversees the running of everything we do at the highest level;
The Corporate Board looks after corporate and charitable matters, including Deep Sea Pilotage;
The Lighthouse Board is responsible for managing our statutory duty as a General Lighthouse Authority (GLA).
Our work as a GLA is a statutory duty to carry out the UK Government’s SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) obligations, under the authority of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995.
Our work as a maritime charity involves providing almshouses for aged mariners and sponsoring cadets, as well as providing grants to other maritime charities.
We were first incorporated by Royal Charter on 20 May 1514. Our name in full is:
The Master Wardens and Assistants of the Guild Fraternity or Brotherhood of the most glorious and undivided Trinity and of St. Clement in the Parish of Deptford Strond in the county of Kent.
‘Trinity House’ is fine for everyday use!
Marine operations
At the business end of Trinity House we operate a fleet of vessels, working in our waters at the highest levels of seamanship.
We have been operating in the waters around England, Wales and the Channel Islands since 1741, using purpose-built tonnage equipped to the highest technical standard and manned by professionally qualified officers and crew.
Coordinated and monitored around the clock by our Planning Centre, typical vessel activities include wreck location and marking, aid to navigation maintenance, towing, buoy handling and surveying.
Working at sea is unpredictable and inherently hazardous; to preserve the safety of the mariner we take measures to make sure we can respond effectively should an incident occur, working closely with our partners at the Department for Transport and the MCA. We have a vessel ready to respond within six hours of the Dover Strait, carrying our instantly recognisable Emergency Wreck Marking Buoys.
Our lighthouses
Trinity House maintains over 60 lighthouses around England, Wales, the Channel Islands and Gibraltar. These highly visual aids to navigation range from isolated offshore towers exposed to the open sea — such as Eddystone, Bishop Rock or Longstone lighthouses — to shore-based stations in some of the nation’s most beautiful locations, such as Lizard, Bardsey, Nash Point and Peninnis lighthouses.
We’ve played a major role in UK and international maritime safety for over 500 years
As the UK’s demand for imported consumer goods grows—together with commercial and leisure fishing and interest in recreational yachting—this island nation’s coastline will see shipping increase in size and number.
As a charity and as a General Lighthouse Authority, Trinity House will continue to work hard to ensure that mariners are safe, well-trained and supported by a world-class maritime organisation.
As an independent but integral part of the largest concentration of maritime and marine services in the world, we are proud to be an educator, a training provider, a fraternity of expert mariners, a General Lighthouse Authority, a Deep Sea Pilotage Authority, a vessel services contractor and a body with over 500 years’ experience working for the benefit and safety of all mariners.
History of Trinity House
On 20 May 1514, a Royal Charter was presented to The Master Wardens and Assistants of the Guild Fraternity or Brotherhood of the Most Glorious and Undivided Trinity and of Saint Clement in the Parish of Deptford Strond in the County of Kent, the Corporation’s full name to this day; Sir Thomas Spert, Master of the Mary Rose and the Henri Grace a Dieu, became the first Master.
Research and development
Trinity House and its sister lighthouse authorities in Scotland and Ireland are supported by the Research and Development (GRAD) team who provide advanced technical research
Lighthouses and lightvessels
Trinity House’s world famous lighthouses are often sited in spectacular locations, performing a vital role in the safety of mariners in all weathers.
Trinity House Fraternity
The Master and Deputy Master—elected annually—oversee a Court of Elder Brethren selected from the much larger ranks of Younger Brethren. Once sworn in, Elder and Younger Brethren are members for life and represent Trinity House at almost every level of maritime activity in Britain.
Wreck marking
Trinity House has a statutory responsibility to mark and, if necessary, remove wrecks which are a danger to navigation.
Supporting seafarers
A major theme of our long history has been the provision of education, welfare and support for mariners and their dependants.