Erosion plan to 'buy time' for cliff-top homes

Flat Cliffs is expected to suffer from severe coastal erosion over the next 20 years

A plan to help members of an endangered cliff-top community leave their homes is being drawn up by a council.

North Yorkshire Council (NYC) said it hoped to "buy some time" for residents of 45 properties at Flat Cliffs, near Filey, which are "at imminent risk of loss" from coastal erosion.

A meeting on 28 March will decide whether the authority should apply for £90,000 from the Yorkshire Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (RFCC) to help produce a plan for the hamlet.

Officials said without the funding residents would be "unprepared for the loss of properties", creating difficulties for the council to manage the process, when the time came for the buildings to be permanently vacated.

The only access road to Flat Cliffs near Filey runs through Primrose Valley holiday village

In 2017, the now-defunct Scarborough Borough Council approved a £572,000 Coast Protection grant for "urgent work" at Flat Cliffs, which it also said would "buy more time" for residents.

A project was subsequently completed in 2018 to shore up the sole access road to the homes, which runs through Primrose Valley holiday village and was at risk from coastal erosion.

The works were intended to "prolong the duration before its loss, whilst acknowledging that recession processes would continue".

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the solution being discussed at Friday's meeting is "a temporary one intended to allow residents and Yorkshire Water to implement the necessary relocation and removal activities to withdraw themselves and their assets from the areas at risk".

The £90,000 would primarily be used to raise awareness of the coastal risks within the affected community and support residents and affected parties in planning for change, according to NYC officials.

A council report said the funding would be sought from the Yorkshire RFCC which raises a local levy on lead local flood authorities and "provides an invaluable resource to help fund local flood and coast priorities".

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