Robin Hood's Bay seawall set for £850,000 council investment as its age begins to show

The seawall at the coastal village in North Yorkshire was built in the 1970s.

Some £759,000 towards the improvement project has already been secured from the Environment Agency, Fylingdales Parish Council and the Yorkshire Regional Flood and Coastal Committee.

And councillors on Scarborough Borough Council will be asked to approve a further £850,000 next Tuesday 18 January, amid fears that the ageing wall’s exposure to the elements is leading to corrosion and cracking.

If approved by the council's cabinet, construction works will involve the removal and replacement of concrete panels.

New sections of the reinforced concrete parapet at the top of the wall will be formed, and the steel handrail, which runs along the whole of the structure, will be replaced.

The repairs will also see drainage from the promenade improved, according to the council.

The 160m long wall is the biggest structure the authority maintains.

Standing at 14m high, it came into use in 1974, and directly protects 40 properties which would be at risk of coastal erosion in the next 50 years without it.

Councillor Michelle Donohue-Moncrieff, Scarborough Borough Council cabinet member for environment and sustainability, said:

“One of the downsides of being on the amazing North Yorkshire coast means some of our communities are at the mercy of the very waters which attract visitors here.

“We have duty to do what we can to minimise the impact of coastal erosion. Doing nothing with the sea wall at Robin Hood’s Bay is not an option.

“The £850,000 means vital work could be carried out to ensure the defences are still there in 50 years’ time.”