Climping beach eroding: Landowners progressing with plans to move car park, café and toilets

Winter and spring storms undermined sea defences and resulted in the loss of nine acres of shingle beach to the Crown Estate and three acres of car park.

Relocation plans were announced after the landowners, the Baird family, consulted with local residents and the community on the preferred location for the new car park and improved café and toilet facilities.

Landowner James Baird said: “We are continuing to evaluate the relocation of the car parks and associated facilities, including evaluating the consultation responses from the community and beach visitors, and hope to submit a formal planning application during 2024.”

Storms earlier this year breached the coastal protections and seawater flooded the Baird’s land, which has resulted in a 25 per cent reduction in cropping capacity on affected land.

As a result, the family took the decision to rewild the land, letting natural process return it to being salt marshes as it was back in the 17th century.

Mr Baird of Home Farm, Climping, added: “At a meeting between the Environment Agency and Climping residents on July 12, it was agreed that people needed to put their differences aside and work collectively to slow down the natural erosion processes on the coast.

“The Save Climping from the Sea campaign agreed to stand down in recognition of the affected property owners needing to figure out their next steps without external pressures that could upset progress.”

Mr Baird said the ‘positive outcome’ from the meeting is ‘being harnessed’ and further studies are being commissioned before taking any action – ‘supported by the parish council’.

"The inclement summer weather has been unkind commercially to the Ukrainian family who have been operating the beach café, but they have enjoyed welcoming visitors,” he added.

"The Environment Agency works to dismantle redundant groynes has been welcomed by most in the community with many positive comments about the restored natural appearance.”

Hamish Neathercoat, from the Save Climping From The Sea campaign, said the group stood down ‘for the moment’, having ‘achieved our aims’ of getting the debate ‘out into the open’.

The military veteran added: “We are still standing at post and will wait and see what happens over the next few months. I suspect the next big storm surge will help focus everyone's attention when the shingle bund washes away and the hinterland north of Climping beach floods again up to the A259 and beyond. With rising sea levels and ever more frequent storm surges this is an inevitability and it is just a matter of when?”

Earlier this year, the Environment Agency said funds to manage Climping beach were dwindling and at some point in the future the cost of maintenance will exceed the amount allowed to be spent under government rules.

An Environment Agency spokesman said: “We’ve recently moved shingle to bolster Climping’s flood defences, and we plan to use a further 4,000 tonnes a local landowner is bringing in from Littlehampton to protect the car park, land and homes.

“Our local team is removing any timber groynes that pose a risk to safety. This work will continue into the summer.

“We would urge local people to always check their flood risk online at www.gov.uk/flood or via Floodline: 0345 988 1188.”

Arun District Council said staff ‘have, and will, continue to work closely with the Environment Agency’ to ‘help minimise any impact’.