A MAN was left shocked when he offered the RNLI £25,000 for a new lifeboat - and they turned him down.

Bill Heath, 79, was even less pleased when he discovered this week the charity had welcomed another offer from the Freemasons to raise the same amount of money for an inflatable inshore boat.

Mr Heath, of Marcus Avenue, Thorpe Bay, was the executor of the will of his friend Hilda Mitchell, 93, who had lived in Thorpe Bay for the last 20 years of her life. She left a large sum of money when she died a little more than a year ago and requested it be donated to charity.

Mr Heath said: "We had a chat and said, 'wouldn't it be lovely if we gave the RNLI £25,000 for a new lifeboat and they put her name on the side?'

"It seemed like a fitting thing to do since she lived in the Southend area."

He called the RNLI before Christmas, but was told Southend did not need a new lifeboat.

Spencer Gammond, spokesman for the RNLI, said: "There was a period of time during summer 2004 when there were staff changes in our Personal Donations Department, which may have resulted in Mr Heath failing to receive a call he was expecting. For this we are very sorry, though we believe it is an isolated case.

"This should not be construed as a lack of interest in this offer of funding.

"Clearly, something went wrong on this occasion and we are taking steps to tighten our procedures, ensuring that this situation will not arise again."