Coastal Areas

(asked on 29th April 2019) - View Source

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support coastal communities.


Answered by
Jake Berry Portrait
Jake Berry
This question was answered on 7th May 2019

We are committed to supporting coastal communities to unlock barriers to their development and growth, and to strengthen their appeal as places to live, work and visit.

On 23 March, we announced a £36 million funding boost for coastal communities supporting 70 projects around the English coastline. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/james-brokenshire-announces-over-36-million-for-the-great-british-coast.

This included a £663,000 Coastal Communities Fund Round 5 grant towards a £925,000 project (“Unlocking the Essex Coast Path”) to promote the Essex coast as a high quality visitor destination with a diverse tourism offer. Resorts along the Essex coast, including Clacton, will benefit from the project.

The Government will have invested over £200 million in the Great British Coast by 2020 through dedicated programmes like the Coastal Communities Fund and the Coastal Revival Fund, to help generate jobs and boost businesses and bring iconic or at-risk heritage and community assets back into economic use. This investment is having tangible results in our coastal towns. The Coastal Communities Fund alone has invested over £218 million in 354 projects across the UK since 2012. The Fund is helping to create or safeguard over 18,000 UK jobs and generate £363 million in new visitor spend.

Since 2015 we have provided £1.46 million to help establish 146 Coastal Community Teams around the English coastline. These Teams ensure the local community works together with the local authority, businesses, and local stakeholders to agree priorities for economic development in their area. Jaywick Sands Coastal Community Team was established in 2015 and is working to create a “new coastal village”, seeking to improve housing and social conditions for local residents, and stimulate a change in market conditions.

Reticulating Splines