A child fell from a groyne into the sea suffering a serious head injury.

The incident took place today shortly after 11am but RNLI lifeboat volunteers, paramedics and a coastguard crew were on the scene very quickly because they had been observing a silence at a nearby war memorial in Eastbourne.

A RNLI spokesman said: “We were only minutes away when called into service. “The inshore lifeboat crew were able to be on scene very quickly to provide emergency care or transportation if necessary.

“In the event, this was not required as the child was taken to Eastbourne District General Hospital by the ambulance service and the remainder of the emergency services were stood down.”