Family fun event provided by Friends of Egremont
To be held at
Vale Park Bandstand
On
Friday 30th May from 10am-4pm
Outdoor games for supervised play in bandstand area
Bouncy Castle Hoolahoops Interactive story telling Face-painting
On stage entertainment
Vale House Café will provide a gazebo where cold drinks and snacks can be served. The café will be open to offer picnic lunch bags and usual menu.
New Brighton Heritage Centre
90 Victoria Road
16th April Colin Dilnot Maritime Art of the Mersey
7th May Ken Clark Local History Talk
21st May Colin Dilnot Imagined German Invasion of New Brighton , 1913
4th June Ken Clark Local History Talk
18th June Colin Dilnot Submerged Forest of Meols
2nd July Ken Clark Local History Talk
16th July Colin Dilnot Wallasey in Art
6th August Ken Clark Local History Talk
20th August Colin Dilnot Burbo Bank in history
The Wednesdays for 30th April and 30th July have not been finalised.
Please arrive earlier to ensure a seat
Admission £2 including Refreshments, Raffle : £1
All Talks start at 2:30pmFor more information
phone the centre on 0151 639 3555
New Brighton Community Centre
1a Hope Street
Wirral
CH45 2LN
Tel: 630 2626
WHAT’S ON AT YOUR CENTRE
New Brighton One Stop Shop– is open Monday to Friday from 11am till 3pm.This is a great service that provides invaluable help for local people right on their doorstep. It also includes a free phone facility and private rooms with a loop system for those that are hard of hearing. It provides assistance on all the Wirral Borough Council services including the Pension Service, Age Concern & the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) which also operates advice surgeries once a week for the Polish Community and offers them vital assistance.
Love your Business (The Women’s Organisation) – Invite you every Wednesday 10am – 12 no
on to find out about grants and support available to you!
Lunch Club -this provides a lifeline for those people & families on low incomes as well as elderly people. It is a great way for people to get to know each other and make friends in a very friendly environment. It also provides days out to places of interest; the latter is kindly provided by Wallasey Lions Club. Lunch is served Tuesday/Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 12.30pm and a 3 course meal is only £3.99 with a mug of tea or coffee. You can come in from 12noon and make yourself comfortable with a read of the free newspapers.
Credit Union – this offers people community loans which are a vital means of support in the present economic situation and are a very important helping hand for those people seeking work and on low incomes, particularly those struggling to survive financially. It meetsevery Tuesday 10am to 11am
Wirral Pathfinders – Mental Health/Self Help Support Group
This group was established in 1992 to support people, their family and carers, for whom depression, anxiety and mental health problems are part of everyday life. It has gone on to help hundreds learn to manage their problems, building up their self-esteem and confidence, helping them to remove their feelings of isolation. The club meets every Thursday – 7pm – 9pm and a very warm welcome awaits all those that come along. (Attendance 30)
UK Online Computer Suite – This service which started in 2002 offers local residents’ free internet and email addresses. It’s a valuable resource were residents can surf the web, search for jobs and relax in comfortable surroundings. They can also enjoy a cup of tea/coffee and seek the assistance of the ICT Facilitator should they have any problems or need advice. Residents can also scan documents, use the photocopier or fax.
A local NeighbourhoodPolice Surgeryis held every Tuesday morning 10-12pm for residents experiencing problems with anti social behaviour and other associated problems.
Computer Class the clubs aims to help people with all aspects of computing including smart phones and tablets. Every Monday 7pm – 10pm Sing Our Socks Off For all ages, singing classes every Thursday 1.30pm till 3pm Art Classes – Every Monday 1pm till 3pm. Accent on enjoyment rather than talent. Tuition at all levels, all materials provided. Phone Iris for more details on: 638 8472.
AA – Alcoholics Anonymous – Every Tuesday morning 11am
…….For more information have a look at our website
or phone for more details
News
Neptune are delighted to announce that construction has started on the final phase of the New Brighton regeneration masterplan,
The Development located adjacent to the Floral Pavilion Theatre, was re-designed in 2011 to ensure every apartment had its own secure parking space, and newly added enclosed ‘Winter Garden’ Balconies which will allow owners to comfortably enjoy Sea Views throughout the year.
The Scheme will now comprise of 24 apartments, ranging from 1 and 2 bedrooms on the ground and first floors and 3 and 4 bedroom duplex penthouses.
Neptune have also secured the rights to offer purchasers the use of Governments Help To Buy Scheme. The Newly Launched Scheme allows purchasers to acquire the apartments with just a 5% deposit, with the government offering a loan that is interest free for 5 years and will cover 25% of the purchase price. This will mean purchasers can apply for Mortgages for the remaining 70% of the asking price.
Daniel Hynd of Neptune said “We are delighted to be starting on the final phase of the Master Plan for New Brighton, It’s good to be building on the feel good factor that exists in New Brighton, and we hope this will continue the momentum and ensure there is even more investment into the area.”
“The new proposals are very much designed for the owner occupier, with fully glazed sea facing balconies, generous apartment sizes and secure parking.”
“The ability to offer the government’s Help to Buy scheme on the development is also a huge factor, it provides those looking to get onto the property ladder who maybe haven’t had time to build up a large deposit, the opportunity to do so with just a 5% deposit. The development will also be ideal for people wishing to downsize to a more secure property, without maintenance headaches associated with older houses.”
Sue Taylor of Almond Property, who will be negotiating the sales for Neptune, commented
“This luxurious development is something that discerning buyers have been awaiting for many years. With the re-development of New Brighton, they can now enjoy magnificent sea views with the assurance of having their homes built to the highest specification and all the time living within easy reach of local beauty spots, shopping and easy transportation links. Whether it’s a first hone for the young professional, the mature buyer downsizing, or even a home for part of the year, “The Prom, New Brighton” will create a fabulous lifestyle.”
Construction started on site on the 24th March will take 11 months to complete.
For more information and to register your interest visit www.thepromnewbrighton.co.uk
Now Open
We are delighted to announce that Pizza Express is the latest opening at Marine Point. The Unit opened on the 3rd of April, creating 30 new jobs.
Pizza Express expect to use An estimated 1,760 kilos of dough will be used in the first month as the team prepares to serve up 4,000 pizzas and 2,300 portions of PizzaExpress’ iconic Dough Balls.
Spring Term at Elleray Park School
After the Christmas celebrations the pupils and staff returned to school well rested and eager to start the new term. January is always an exciting time as the children learn about the Chinese New Year, taking part in visits to China Town and to the Chinese Supermarket. Lots of interesting new tastes are explored whilst trying out Chinese recipes and snacks from the supermarket. The Chinese season culminates in a visit from the Northern Dragons, who spend the day in school teaching the children about Chinese music, drumming and dancing. The whole school join together in an assembly at the end of the day when the Dragon dancers perform. The pupils enjoyed the spectacle of the bright costumes, the engaging rhythms and the general excitement of the event.
The Spring Term is a time for thinking about using our skills to help others, by making craft items and selling them in a Merseyside Enterprise event, held in Liverpool. Invitations were sent to lots of important guests from Wirral, the pupils then worked very hard to design key-rings and other items for the big day on 7th March. Each special school in Merseyside is encouraged to take part in this event and a booklet about all the schools is published each year. This year Elleray Park won the event and proudly returned with a trophy to mark the occasion. So far, we have sent over £1200 to the charity that supports the Haiti disaster, helping to enable a new school to be built and resourced.
The school grounds have been filled with daffodils and blossom trees and the pupils have been able to enjoy the hill area at the back of the school premises. This area is still under development, with some of the grass cordoned off at the moment in order to endeavour to improve the quality. Nevertheless, full use is made of the available area where the pupils enjoy their play equipment, trees and open spaces.
Gardening club has started just before the Easter break, with a small group of pupils visiting a local allotment, where they have been lucky enough to take ownership of a small plot of land to grow produce this year. The group will continue to learn about growing vegetables and plants throughout the summer term and hopefully will benefit from a good harvest in the Autumn. We all look forward to hearing news from this little Eco group as the year progresses.
The school has now broken up for Easter, having enjoyed all the Easter assemblies during the last week of term. So, armed with Easter eggs, the pupils set off for their Easter holidays. We wish them all well and look forward to welcoming everyone back on 28th April.
Interview – Graham Sale – RNLI New Brighton Operations Manager
Graham Sale has a background with the HM Coastguard and as a Deputy Launch Authority at the station, his role involves everything operational and crew orientated.
Q: What area does the station cover?
We cover the River Mersey from beyond Widnes Bridge and into Liverpool Bay as far as The Bar plus the Sefton and Wirral coastlines.
Q:What are your most common shouts?
People cut off by the tide or stuck in the extensive areas of mud on the Wirral and Sefton shores. The complimentary capabilities of our lifeboat and hovercraft enable us to deal with shallow water or dry land requirements which is where the hovercraft comes into its own. Its vital people find out about the tides and take notice of warning signs – the tides come in very quickly in this area and its easy to get caught out.
Another common shout is to craft with machinery or equipment failure and not infrequently shortage of fuel. Its important to take sufficient reserves to get you back home against a tide on the ebb. The Mersey has the second highest tidal range in the country and can flow in and out very fast.
Q: What was the worst call out in 2013?
I can answer that question best using three examples:
The greatest threat to life this year was probably in early June when a teenage girl who had gone swimming, late evening off from the Derby Pool and was in difficulty and being washed out to sea on an ebb tide. We managed to find her and when we got her on board the lifeboat she was shocked, cold and we gave first aid in response . We took her straight back to the lifeboat station to a waiting team of paramedics who treated her for cold and sea water intake and she was then taken by ambulance to hospital.
The most hazardous conditions for our crew was in October when our crew were called to assist the crew of the crane barge working on the sea wall in the Gladstone Dock area when its lost some of its gear and was dragging its anchor during high tide with a Force 7 storm blowing in from the North West. In the end the lifeboat stood off for several hours in very difficult conditions in case they were needed to get the crew off meanwhile two tugs managed to take the crane barge in tow and get it safely into Gladstone Dock. We were joined on that one by Hoylake’s lifeboat.
The most likely shipwreck was in July when a 60ft yacht with crew on board became grounded on the groyne by New Brighton lighthouse. The yacht was lying at an acute angle and the tides was on the ebb, when our helmsman and senior crew saw the situation they estimated that they had a maximum of 10 mins to get a line on the yacht and tow it off the groyne. It was a team effort with the Marine Fire & Rescue craft and a lifeguard jetski who had also reached the scene. We managed to pull it off stern first while the Marine Fire & Rescue pulled the bow clear. It turned out to be a very close call.
Q: What are the biggest challenges the station currently faces?
Our biggest challenge is achieving unhindered access to our main launch site at Victoria slipway in an emergency. This has become more of an issue due to the very welcome increase in popularity of New Brighton in recent years. We are working with the local authority and they have been very helpful and hopefully some of the plans in hand will help the situation.
Graham added ‘We would like to give a very big thank you to everyone who has supported us and helped us make a difference’
For more information see the stations website: www.newbrightonlifeboat.org.uk and follow us on Facebook & Twitter
The first Wallasey Food Fair will be taking place on Saturday July 5th, 10am – 2pm at The Jubilee Centre, Hose Side Road.
There will be a fantastic selection of stalls selling a variety of fresh, local produce: fruit and vegetables, meat and poultry, breads, jams and chutneys, cakes, macarons, and more.
We believe it is important to provide local, easily accessible, fresh food for the community. This is a great opportunity to talk to the producers and find out exactly where your food is coming from, and we hope this will be the foundation of a true local fair that will be beneficial to everyone.
The Wallasey Food Fair will be a monthly event, to be held on the first Saturday of the month. At every fair we will be holding a raffle to raise money for a local charity. Our chosen charity for July is The Wirral Autistic Society, which provides a wide range of services and support for children and adults living with autism (www.autistic.org).
We will be giving away a free goodie bag to the first 100 customers, so write the date in your diary and get ready to shop local!
To find out more please email – [email protected],
or find us on Facebook – www.facebook.com/wallaseyfoodfair,
or Twitter @WallaseyFood
Events at Wallasey Central library:
Monday 19th May 6.30-7.30 Colin Dilnot talk ‘War Declared and the Fighting Men’
Thursday 22 May Wallasey Central Library Friends meeting 6.30-8 Please join at meeting.
Tuesday 27th May Film Night – details in library
Saturday 14th June times tba St Marys Swing Band Concert
Thursday 26 June Wallasey Central LIbrary Friends meeting 6.30-8 Please join at meeting.
REGULAR GROUPS
Mondays
WALLABIES FOR CHILDREN 11-12
CRAFTY CHATTY 1-3PM
GENERAL READING GROUP 1ST MONDAY OF THE MONTH (PLEASE CHECK IF SPACES)
MEDITATION CLASSES (further details in library)
FRIENDS OF RAKE LANE 1ST MONDAY OF THE MONTH
Tuesdays
BRIDGE 10-12AM
CRIME READING GROUP 6-7PM 2ND TUESDAY OF THE MONTH (PLEASE CHECK IF SPACES)
GET INTO READING 1.30-3
FRENCH 6.45-7.45
Wednesdays
WALLASEY ARTS 10-1
Thursdays
SPANISH 10-11
U3A CRAFT 2ND THURS 2-4PM
U3A ART 10-12AM EVERY 2 WEEKS
GENERAL READING GROUP 1ST THURSDAY 2-3 (PLEASE CHECK IF SPACES)
GET INTO READING 1.30-3
WALLASEY HISTORICALS 7.30-9.30 2ND THURSDAY
FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY ONCE A MONTH 6.30-8 (PLEASE CHECK DATES)
STORYTIME FOR CHILDREN 10-10.30
BABY BOUNCE FOR BABIES 2.30-3
Friday
PATCHWORK CLUB 10-1
WALLASEY LEISURE PAINTERS 10-12
FAMILY HISTORY (REFERENCE LIBRARY) 2ND FRIDAY 10-1
Saturdays
GENERAL READING GROUP 11-12 LAST SAT OF THE MONTH (PLEASE CHECK IF SPACES)
Way! Hey! And up she rises!
We are not sure if this is the 5th or 6th Black Pearl rising from the rocks by Dalmorton Road slip. Rising with the encouragement, support, skills and arm-strength provided by our most generous and enthusiastic community. There is much work to be done but the Black Pearl is already seeing plenty of action. An exciting and rewarding voyage lies ahead – subject, of course, to fair winds and fortune!
Along our way we expect that story-tellers will beguile us with wild and hair-raising tales of strange happenings in far-off lands. Poets will weave their words of magic to stir our blood. Singers will tear our heartstrings with haunting songs of joy, of love, of triumphs and sad losses. Maybe we will see the theatre of life played out upon the Pearl’s decks. Maybe we will sway to the exciting rhythms of distant drums that will speak to the old and mystic elements that lie deep within us all. It may not be all plain sailing. Indeed, there are rumours of an invasion! An invasion from North of the border – no less! Yes, iron men and maybe iron women plus the occasional brass monkey may be amongst us by late June. Be very afraid!
Of course it wouldn’t be a piratical voyage without a few bouts of carousing and merry-making along the way. And there may be the occasional, but fair and appropriate, need for some planks to be walked and some keels to be hauled, perhaps with a rousing shanty to help us through such chores.
Summer is coming and families will relax on the beach, children will play, dogs will be walked, visitors will come from near and far, tales will be told, voyages and adventures will be imagined and enacted, wonderful moments will occur, there will be talk, there will be laughter and there will be huge, piratical fun. There will be life and a bit of art thrown in here and there from us – the Pirates at Art – Life is an Art and Art is Life. Enjoy!
Stay in touch via “The Black Pearl New Brighton” on Facebook.
The Wallasey Folk & Acoustic Club runs every Sunday doors open 8 for 8.30pm start. It is held at The Wallaseyans’ on Grove Road.
Admission free, except on Guest nights when it is £7 to pay toward the cost of the guest. We welcome all who would like to perform their music to join us on the singers nights.
We have several residents who host the evenings- George & Gill Peckham, Jim Pearson, Kathy Runswick, Bernie Thomas, John Williams & Alan Ainsworth.
For the last few months we have been holding a talent competition, the final will be held in May and the winner will have the opportunity to have
a night at the club, take part at the next Folk in the Park on 1st June & prize money.
Club programme
April
13th Singers night – Bernie
20th Folk in the Park, Vale Park,invited singers & musicians,
hosted by George & Gill & Bernie on Easter Sunday 1-5pm
20th Evening Singers night- Bernie
27th Guest night - Gary Edward Jones Band George & Gill
May
4th Talent Competition final – Kathy
11th Singers – Jim
18th Guest Night Pete Morton – Jim
25th Singers – Bernie
June
1st Folk in the Park 12.30 – 5pm George & Gill & Residents of the club.
1st evening Singers George & Gill
8th Singers – John
15th Guest Night Risky Business- John
22nd Singers – Bernie
29th Resident night – Jim… a night of Jims choice
July
6th Singers Kathy
13 Singers – George & Gill
20th Guest night George & Gill
27th Singers – John
August
3rd Singers – Kathy
10th Singers- Jim
17th Guest Night Jim
24th Singers -Bernie
31st Residents Night – George & Gill.. a night of George & Gills choice
Sept
7th Singers – John
14th Singers – Kathy
21st Guest Night Kathy
28th Singers – Jim
Ss Peter, Paul and St Philomena’s Church, New Brighton (also known as The Dome of Home) has received a confirmed grant of £138,900 from the Heritage Lottery Fund to repair the roof, provide an accessible toilet and engage visitors, it was announced today.
The project will help make the church weatherproof by repairing some of the roofs, re-pointing the brickwork and replacing some damaged internal plasterwork. In addition to these vital works, visitors will benefit from a new accessible toilet and a range of activities to help them engage with the heritage, art and architecture. Release of a new Guide Book is planned over Easter and will be complimented by a new, professional website. The successful Heritage Tour, launched for the Heritage Open Days in September 2013 at the beginning of the Development Phase of this project, will continue, in order to engage visitors, interested in both local and personal heritage.
The building of the Church of Ss. Peter, Paul and St. Philomena’s Church in the 1930s was a visionary venture that was intended to serve as a beacon for the Christian Faith in Merseyside. Inspired by their parish priest Father Thomas Mullins, the Catholic population of the rapidly growing seaside resort of New Brighton raised funds for a hill top basilica that stands as a striking landmark at the entrance to the Port of Liverpool. Its nickname, ‘Dome of Home’, dates back to the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II, when sailors would recognise they were close to the port of Liverpool when they could see the Church from the Mersey.
Canon Amaury Montjean, French priest and rector of the church commented, “Following the enormous success of our first Heritage Open Days last September, we hope to welcome many more visitors throughout the summer on our Guided Tours.” He added, “Our volunteers have been working really hard to secure the necessary match funding for this £253k, Stage II Heritage Lottery Fund Grant with the help of other funders such as National Churches Trust, Historic Cheshire Churches Preservation Trust and Latin Mass Society. We are indebted to their assistance.”
Councillor Paul Hayes commented, “It is terrific news that the Heritage Lottery Fund are continuing their support for the Dome of Home. This church’s contribution to the heritage of Wirral is substantial and this is widely recognised by members of our community, as shown by the huge public backing the Church received for its bid for ‘Love Wirral’ funding from Wirral Council in January.”
The next few months are busy and exciting at St Andrew’s. We are sorry that Rev Arnold Dixon, who has been our well-loved Minister for the last eight years, will shortly be leaving us. We thank him for his devoted service and wish him well in his new appointment. Arnold’s last service at St Andrew’s United Church will be at 10.45 a.m. on Sunday, 21st July.
However, we are very pleased that Lorraine Aizlewood Threlfall has accepted the call to be our new Minister and will be joining us in the autumn. Lorraine has already been working with us for some while, particularly in our link with New Brighton Primary School. We offer her a very warm welcome and look forward to continuing to work with her.
St Andrew’s will be taking part again this year in Heritage Open Days in September. The church will be open on Friday 13th and Saturday 14th from 11 a.m to 3 p.m and on Sunday 15th from 2 to 4.30 p.m. There will be an information leaflet or people to show you around if you wish, and light refreshments will be available. Do come and see what lies behind that familiar exterior!
VALE PARK SUMMER BAND FESTIVAL 2014
WEEKEND CONCERTS
Sunday Concerts are listed separately
19TH APRIL TALISMEN
21ST APRIL FAMILY FUN DAY
26TH APRIL JAMES AND CO.
3RD MAY JAM IN THE PARK
5TH MAY FAMILY FUN DAY
10TH MAY MISSPENT YOUTH
17TH MAY JAMES AND CO.
24TH MAY VALE PARK ROCKS
26TH MAY JOYTIME PREVIEW
31ST MAY PSYCHIC TIGERS.
7TH JUNE TALISMEN
14TH JUNE MISSPENT YOUTH
21ST JUNE JAM IN THE PARK
28TH JUNE TIMEPIECE – KEITH OWEN
5TH JULY TALISMEN
12TH JULY VALE PARK ROCKS
18TH JULY PIRATES FOR ELLIE
19TH JULY JAM IN THE PARK
26TH JULY SUMMER FESTIVAL
2ND AUGUST TALISMEN
9TH AUGUST PSYCHIC TIGERS.
16TH AUGUST JAM IN THE PARK
23RD AUGUST SUMMER FESTIVA
30TH AUGUST VALE PARK ROCKS
6TH SEPTEMBER CHARLOTTEFEST
13TH SEPTEMBER TALISMEN
20TH SEPTEMBER JAM IN THE PARK
The Children’s Show ,JOYTIME, will run for the first 5 weeks of the 6 weeks school holidays Monday to Friday from 2 – 5 pm.
Popular money course to run again as people say they need tactics to cope with the age of austerity
Wallasey residents are being given another chance to get their finances in order with a popular free course being run by a local church.
Members of New Brighton Baptist Church, who have been trained by UK charity Christians Against Poverty,are againrunning the three sessions aimed at helping the local community to best handle the current economic downturn.
Money Coach Shirley Bowen, whowill be leading the sessions called the CAP Money course, said: “If you know how to save and budget effectively, it can have a hugely positive impact on the whole family. With households feeling the squeeze on their disposable income, we’ve all got to get a bit more savvy about our money to get through these tough times.”
New Brighton Baptist is one of more than 1,200 churches of different Christian traditions across the UK who are regularly offering the course, as they work together to positively impact the communities around them.
The CAP Money course has been found to be useful for newly retired people, soon-to-be students, mums dealing with mounting bills, families saving for a wedding and everyone in between.
She added: “We hope that we can help people, quietly and confidentially, take the guess work out of their situation so they can plan for the future, sort out any problems early and come through unscathed.”
The next course takes place at Vale House, Vale Park, New Brighton, starting at 10:15 on Friday 2nd May.
To find out more about the CAP Money course or to book your place visit www.capmoney.org or telephone Shirley on 07816563688
The CAP Money course is the pro-active educational arm of the charity. It is sometimes run by the centres that do debt counselling but mostly the courses are run by churches where congregations want to do something to empower people to fight poverty before it hits.
Christians Against Poverty is a home-grown debt counselling charity which is determined to reduce poverty in the UK caused by debt. It partners its financial expertise with the care of the local church to offer free debt help and a solution to people through 218 centres. The fast-growing charity intends to have a debt-counselling CAP centre in 500 towns and cities across the UK by 2015. For more about CAP see www.capuk.org
For further information contact CAP’s National PR Manager Marianne Clough
or telephone 01274 761924
Find us on Twitter and Facebook
One hundred years ago the sea wall at Vale Park (above) was only four feet high and fronted by the most beautiful dry sand beach. The construction of the King’s Parade in the 1930’s cut off the southerly supply of sand and beach levels consequently dropped by up to twelve feet. In the August 2012 edition of the Walrus I first suggested using free dredged sand to bring back the beach and reconnect the local community to the shore, so replicating the successful 1987 sand replenishment scheme at New Brighton. These schemes are becoming more commonplace – last year Colwyn Bay imported half a million tonnes of sand as a sea defence and such was its success in coping with last December’s storms that the scheme is to be extended. The social and economic effects have also been tremendous and a major factor in ‘talking up’ the town.
At Egremont the newly exposed rock and rubble shore was colonised by barnacles and mussels and designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest for wading turnstones. Any artificial placing of sand and rock here would have to be a partnership with Natural England to benefit wildlife first and people second. On January 24th 2014 I attended a Site Meeting with three representatives of Natural England. The main purpose was to provide sufficient evidence that three ideas to improve wading bird habitats could be handed over to the experts for further research, two ideas involved more rocks, and one involved more sand.
Firstly, I showed photographic evidence that a trial sandstone rock field placed on the lower shore at Manor Lane had been colonised by barnacles and mussels in just nine weeks and was stable following the December 5th storms. Secondly I also suggested using isolated boulders to raise the crest of the Manor Lane groyne, thus enabling wading birds to roost undisturbed over the highest spring tides. This was viewed positively by Natural England and they will consider the ideas further.
A higher sand beach is the vital third ingredient of an integrated scheme connecting the two new rock habitats together. Photographic evidence and several bird counts showed that up to a quarter of local turnstones were feeding on the existing sand beach at Manor Lane on an incoming tide. A one metre higher ‘pocket’ sand beach here or at Egremont Ferry would allow feeding for longer periods.
Natural England raised concerns about bringing any sand back to Egremont Ferry as it could deflect a scour channel currently keeping mussel beds at the base of the sea wall free of sand. They also raised concerns that sand used to create a higher sand beach at Manor Lane could drift. In my opinion drifting sand would be minimal and any area of mussel beds threatened would be more than compensated by up to ten times the equivalent area of new rock fields laid lower down the shore.
Natural England finally suggested further studies of coastal processes and a two year programme of further bird monitoring was needed but did not undertake to do this. I believe I provided sufficient evidence on sand stability and wildlife value of existing sand beaches to warrant Natural England taking all three ideas (and not just the rock habitat proposals) to the next level. No individual has the resources or expertise to carry out the further sand studies required. Consequently I accept that my proposals to create higher sand beaches at Manor Lane and Egremont Ferry will not go ahead due to the concerns of Natural England – an essential willing partner to any potential scheme.
I explored every possibility to try and get more sand back to Egremont and restore some of the natural sand beaches that have existed here from end of the last Ice Age until just 50 years ago. I will only revisit the sand and rock proposals if the shore sands over naturally, but this may take a decade or longer. I will however provide evidence to Wirral Council that dredged sand could be used as a buffer to reduce water depth and therefore storm wave overtopping at Kings Parade. Wirral Council engineers may encounter similar environmental obstacles but it is important that all options for protecting our coasts are looked at.
I would like to thank the people of Egremont and New Brighton for your fantastic support and encouragement over the last eighteen months and hope the shore at Egremont improves naturally over time for the ultimate benefit of both people and wildlife.
John Lamb [email protected]
Anyone who would like the full copy of the Natural England advice on this subject and my full comments in response, can contact John Lamb at [email protected]