This is the story of a heroine and a band of heroes. In May 1940, Winston Churchill, via the Admiralty, ordered all boats available to go to Dunkirk to rescue soldiers trapped on the beaches there. This naval operation was known as Operation Dynamo and the boats are now known as The Little Ships of Dunkirk.

With her skipper and local crew of fishermen and boys, Vanguard was one of those boats that answered the call. She sailed from Burnham on Crouch in Essex along with two others. One of these boats did not make it back.

Vanguard was built for working the rivers, dredging oyster beds, not for rough sea crossings. The journey must have been scary enough, but Vanguard also had to dodge attacks from the air by German bombers when she reached Dunkirk.

As she was built with a shallow draught she could land on the beach to load and ferry exhausted soldiers to larger ships waiting in deeper waters. In this way she rescued 600 men from certain death or captivity and safely returned to England loaded with grateful soldiers. Their return passage was helped by a thick fog which meant they were not seen by the German bombers.

Decades later she was sold and abandoned on Canvey Island. Vandals set her alight twice and she was left to rot a shameful end for such a heroic craft.

But recently she was found and rescued by a group of enthusiasts, among them the designers grandson, who brought her back home to Burnham on Crouch ready for the next chapter in her life. For that we need YOUR HELP.

We want Vanguard to be restored and to continue her life as a working tourist attraction so all can marvel at her design and her daring deeds. She will be used for education, trips out on the river and, we hope, in June 2025 to sail back to Dunkirk to mark 85th Anniversary of the dramatic rescue.

We are working with Mike Tupper of IBTC (International Boatbuilding Training College) We hope they will undertake the difficult restoration and use her to teach students traditional boat building skills. We both have a desire to see young apprentices learn the traditional skills and we will put surplus finding raised towards that and hope that young talent, without access to their own funding, can learn and blossom.

We need many people to give just a few pounds. Please can you be one of them? The story of Vanguard and her part in Operation Dynamo must live on for future generations. We must never forget those who risked their lives for us. By making a donation you too will become part of this Little Ship's story.

Hitting a £150 000 milestone will allow the restoration to commence and will also allow Grant applications to be submitted to help us along the way to a final target of £500000

Who were the 600 men saved that night? Could it have been you, your father, grandfather, friend or member of your Army regiment? Many people alive today would not be here had this Little Ship not brought these soldiers home. Most of those who were saved will no longer be with us but we want their story to live on for the generations to come so please share this appeal and lets find them

DAN SNOW Historian and TV presenter would like to visit and film Vanguard for his channels during the restoration. This is an enormous honour.

For more information visit www.vanguardrestorationfoundation.org