West Sussex beach landowners officially submit plans to move car park, café and toilets

A planning application (CM/34/25/PL) has been submitted to Arun District Council for land south east of St Marys C of E Primary School in Crookthorn Lane.

Proposed is the relocation of visitor facilities, including car parking, toilets, café and ancillary development. This application is described as a a departure from the development plan and ‘may affect the setting of listed buildings’.

The applicant – Baird Farming Partnership – has been told to expect a decision by November 27, with application comments permitted until November 6.

James Baird, of Home Farm, Climping, explained: “The car parks and visitor facilities at Climping Beach have long been a popular destination for tourists and locals, in fact their use evolved with the advent of the motorcar in the 1920s when people began to enjoy runs out to the seaside.

"Climping beach has been subjected to significant change since the Environment Agency took the decision to adopt alternative management of the shoreline, this caused the car parks to shrink as coastal erosion took hold rendering them unusable.

"Visitors and locals still enjoy walking their dogs and, at times, The Street becomes very congested and the problem is exacerbated with seasonal parking restrictions on the highway.”

On May 18, 2023, the landowners held a public consultation event to ‘gather thoughts and opinions’ of the local community.

"We took on board the feedback and began to develop our plans to provide an alternative facility in an appropriate location,” Mr Baird added.

"Some of the land at Climping is subject to a National Trust restrictive covenant meaning consultation and gaining their prior approval to siting and appearance was central to the relocation planning. The building and carpark layout have been carefully designed to sit well within the landscape helped with input from the trust.”

The new facility will be the gateway to the Stroodelande biodiversity project. This project has a focus on ‘creating space for habitats to flourish’, while ‘carefully managing the land’ through sustainable farming and responsible stewardship. Supporting Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) is at the heart of what it does – ‘ensuring that nature thrives alongside our working landscape’.

Mr Baird said it is intended that the new car park will ‘help to ease congestion’ around St Mary's school on Crookthorne Lane, which lies immediately next to the South Coast cycle route.

In 2023, the Environment Agency said Funds to manage Climping beach were dwindling and, at some point in the future, the cost of maintenance would exceed the amount allowed to be spent under government rules.

In the meantime, it has been as proactive as possible with the money it has to keep the beach in as good a state of repair as possible.

In January 2025, two pensioners, who created a dream home together near Climping beach, told Sussex World it no longer has any commercial value and they face the prospect of moving into a campervan.

In response, an Environment Agency spokesperson said: "We have recently recycled nearly 2,000 tonnes of shingle from Littlehampton West Beach to strengthen sea defences at Climping, along with carrying out public safety works to remove metalwork, debris and redundant timber groynes on the West Sussex beach.

“Using available funds to make Climping beach as resilient as possible, we will maintain defences for as long as we can, whilst acknowledging that, at some point in the future, the costs of maintaining the beach will exceed what we can justify spending under government rules.

“We continue to work closely with the community to look at ways to reduce the risk of flooding in the most effective way we can. We urge local people to always check their flood risk online at www.gov.uk/flood or via Floodline: 0345 988 1188.”

A planning, design & access statement accompanies a full planning application for the relocation of the car park, toilets and café at Climping Beach – ‘which will soon be inundated by the sea’, the landowner said.

They will be moved to a site inland from the coast and outside of the flood zone, but ‘within close proximity of the current facility’.

The application read: “This statement considers the character and appearance of the site and surrounding area and provides an assessment of the proposal in the context of relevant planning policy. The current proposal has been prepared following a public consultation and is informed by the preapplication response from the local planning authority.

"The proposals have been fully informed by the development management policies of the Local Plan and National Planning Policy Framework. The site selection has resulted from a desire to be outside the area of archaeological interest and flood risk but to remain close to the sea whilst utilising the proximity to existing buildings and field boundaries to reduce any impact on the wider landscape.

"The design and materials palette proposed for the building would complement the rural setting, be modest in scale and of traditional appearance which would assist with the visual integration of the development in its setting.

“The proposal for the replacement and expansion of the community facilities would be visually respectful of the site and its wider context. The proposal would not result in harm to neighbour amenities or the rural character of the area and would appropriately enhance the visitor/tourist experience whilst extending the capacity of the existing car parking, without compromising the character of the settlement gap or contributing to visual coalescence.”

To see the full application, visit https://www.arun.gov.uk/planning-application-search and search for reference CM/34/25/PL.