When he packs his school bag sixth-former Ritchie Durrant must not forget one vital piece of kit… the pager he needs as Britain's youngest lifeboatman.

For when he turned 17 at midnight on Sunday, Ritchie, a student at Woodroffe School, Lyme Regis, Dorset, was officially accepted as a member of the volunteer crew of the town's lifeboat, on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

That means that when the "shout" comes, provided he is not in a lesson or exam, he will race down to the harbour to help launch the inshore lifeboat.

And if the crew is short of members he will be allowed to leave during a lesson.

Lyme knows well that the sea is a cruel mistress.

Among lives lost over the centuries one disaster which still stands out is the death of four teenagers who drowned when their canoes were swept out to sea 15 years ago.

The crumbling nature of the fossil-rich World Heritage Jurassic Coast can make coastal and beach walks treacherous, and many fossil-hunters and beachcombers have had to be rescued from the notoriously clinging mud of Black Venn.

Ritchie, who has two uncles serving as helmsman, had felt drawn to involvement with the lifeboat for some time. He and three other young people were attached to the lifeboat station as part of the service element of their Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme.

Now Ritchie has taken it a stage further.

Speaking under leaden skies with winter on the way he said: "I am not allowed to go out to sea yet as I still have to do a course for that, but I am a shore helper which means that if I am not in a lesson or exam when a call comes I would go down to help with the launch or with a shore search.

"The lifeboat is launched by a tractor. My uncles have told me a lot of amazing stories and when I and a couple of mates were deciding what we should do for the service element of our Duke of Edinburgh awards, the first thing that came into our heads was the lifeboat. I've done my bronze award and am halfway through my silver award, and thoroughly enjoy my involvement with the lifeboat.

"It does give me a buzz, but it is also about giving something to the community in which I have always lived.

"There have been 35 call-outs this year. A lot are to broken down or sinking vessels. I would absolutely love to go to sea.

"I have to decide what I am going to do when I finish school, and that will play its part. It might mean my being involved with another lifeboat station, but I definitely want to stay with the RNLI."

The RNLI is a charity entirely dependent for funds on the public. Lyme Regis operates a 24-foot inshore lifeboat, the Pearl of Dorset, capable of a top speed of 34 knots (about 40mph). The rigid inflatable is equipped with the latest safety and navigational technology and normally carries a crew of three or four.

Lifeboat operations manager Rob Fossett said: "We are delighted to have Ritchie confirmed as an operational crew member. He has been a very enthusiastic helper, but now it's official; he is a fully fledged member of the team.