The Shotley Sea Defence Project

A little over fifty years ago, a road ran along the base of Shotley Cliff and above the beach, connecting Shotley Gate to a brickyard on the other side of a neighbouring field on the banks of the Stour. That road was washed away in 1953, leaving just a narrow footpath along the base of the Cliff, and the ministry of defence (who then owned the land) shored it up with sheet piling, though unfortunately it left a 210 metre stretch of the Cliff beyond the collapsed path undefended. In 2008, a section of the footpath collapsed and Shotley Parish Council contracted works to rebuild it, attracting the attention of a group of local residents who became determined to restore the entire crumbling footpath to a better condition. They called themselves the Shotley Stour Footpath Renovation Group.

Unfortunately, when they started to look at the area more closely, the SSFRG realized they had a bigger problem than just a derelict footpath. The undefended Cliff beyond the end of the path, exposed to the tidal waters of the Stour Estuary, was eroding at an alarming rate, and enquiries revealed that no official body seemed to have any responsibility for stopping it-which was particularly alarming to some of the residents whose houses were built along Stourside, the road on the Cliff-top! Unable to get any assistance from the authorities, a small group of concerned locals adopted vigilante tactics, building a makeshift sea defence from over a thousand old tyres-materials now banned from any such use by new Environmental regulations. When, after some months (during which time the tyres did an acceptable job) they were ordered by the authorities to remove them, the Group agreed to do so-providing they were given assistance to build a proper sea defence! In 2010, having raised £40, 000 with the assistance of Suffolk County Council, the Environment Agency, the Haven Gateway Authority, the Port of Felixstowe, several other groups and a lot of local fundraising, the SSFRG and Shotley Parish Council, working in partnership, contracted a local firm to build the first 90 metres of their proposed sea defence. In October of that year, 90 metres of rock filled wire mesh gabions were erected at the foot of Shotley Cliff, beginning a process intended to ultimately defend the whole area from the insidious threat of coastal erosion.

In 2011, the SSFRG were given £37, 000 towards the next phase of the project from the Flood Defense Levy, and further fundraising followed. In May, the project won £18, 000 from the I Love Landscapes fund offered by the Haven Gateway Authority after getting 1413 votes in a public poll to find the most deserving project, and with funding in place, the works to install the next 110 metres of sea defence (which would complete this phase of the project) were arranged, which began in July 2011. The project continues at the time of writing (the length having been extended so that the defences now reach the far end of the cliff, and a maintenance path installed to the rear which effectively connects the severed ends of the former coastal footpath once again, though unfortunately this had met with criticism from the local planning department who believe it constitutes an unauthorized footpath!), and has been written up as a case study in successful inter-agency cooperation with community groups by the Environment agency and the County Council. So far, a little under £120, 000 has been raised towards the sea defence project and the renovation of the neighbouring area in a little over two years. There was a formal opening of the defences conducted by Tim Yeo MP on the morning of September 19th 2011, which was also broadcast on BBC Radio Suffolk. A retrospective planning application was submitted for the final stage of the works shortly after completion, and this application was officially granted permission with no conditions attached on 28th December 2011. As of March 2012, plans are being made to secure the necessary funding and permissions to renovate existing makeshift sea defences at the foot of Bristol Hill adjacent to the Shotley Gate Picnic Area, after an exhaustive search to establish the identity of the landowner resulted in permission for the works being given by the current owner, Lady Bristol.