A cliff-top home near Southwold in Suffolk is being demolished due to the threat caused by coastal erosion.

The house in the hamlet of Easton Bavents was built in the 1930s and was originally about 260ft (80m) away from the edge of the cliff.

It is now just a few yards away from the edge and demolition work has begun.

Waveney District Council is piloting a government-funded scheme to fund the demolition and help residents affected by coastal erosion relocate.

David McGinnis, project officer of the Pathfinder scheme, said: “We’ve been working with the communities of Corton and Easton Bavents to try and find a way to adapt to the change that is inevitably coming.

“We’re about to roll out a rather intensive programme of consultancy to try and find a new site of relocation and to roll back the community of Easton Bavents.

“That’s going to go on for the next 10 months and hopefully we’ll come out with a package where we’ve got a site and we’ve successfully achieved outline planning permission for the owners to relocate to a new site.”

Mr McGinnis said trying to save the under-threat houses was not part of the project’s remit.

“Pathfinder was never set up about sea defence simply because the funding of that is too vast,” he said.

“In the current financial climate in this country we wouldn’t have the funding to undertake such huge civil work to protect the land.”

Story on the BBC website

A treasured family home at risk of crumbling into the sea is to be demolished before Mother Nature can take hold.

Sitting on the cliff edge at Easton Bavents, near Southwold, Thursley has been in the Thrawle family for four generations. While a groundbreaking policy recently approved by the local council gives hope to Suffolk homeowners facing coastal erosion, it comes too late for this isolated, two-storey building.

The house will be demolished on April 4.

Brother and sister Andrew Thrawle and Sally Mitchell, who have spent summers at the house since childhood, will watch as the bulldozers move in.

““It’s frightening to see just how much land has disappeared over the years,” said Mr Thrawle, a purchase manager who lives in Warwickshire.

“We were served with the demolition order by Waveney District Council two years ago, but that was stayed while we waited to see if more cliff to disappear.

“Now the cliff either side has now started to crumble and we’ve agreed with the demolition contractors that it’s time to go ahead.”

The house was built by an architect called Abercrombie in the 1930s. Named after the Surrey village he came from, the house was one of three – all prototypes for what would have become a sprawling estate, complete with tennis courts and swimming pool, had the Second World War not arrived.

When William Thrawle bought Thursley from the government in the 1940s it sat some 80 metres away from the cliff edge.

“Although it’s been a second home, it’s been a constant in our lives,” said Mr Thrawle, 47.

“I turned up there in a pram and have returned every summer with family or friends. It a great wrench for us to loose it.

“We have watched the cliff top disappear over time and we always knew the house would go. In some ways it’s been wonderful to have this extra time, but that doesn’t lessen the shock.”

The other two houses built by Abercrombie were demolished in the 1990s.

The £1.5m Pathfinder project, a government-funded scheme, was approved in January.

It sets down a land rights transfer policy which allows the people of Easton Bavents and nearby Corton to relocate to safe land and build similar properties under the same planning permission.

The relocation and replacement of homes is permitted as long as the dwelling is likely to be affected by erosion within the next 20 years.

As previously reported by the EDP, the England family, who own the Retreat not far from Thursley, were given early residential land transfer rights by Waveney – one of the first deals of its kind in the UK.

While father Paul lives in Southwold, brother and sister Charles and Beth, hope have a new property further inland by autumn.

Speaking this week Sue Allen, Easton Bavents councillor for Waveney, said: “It’s very sad to hear about Thursley. We all know erosion is happening, but I think it’s happening a lot quicker than people thought it would when they bought those houses years ago.

“The Pathfinder procedure is extremely important for the people of Easton Bavents.”

Story by Lauren Rogers in the Eastern Daily Press

A groundbreaking policy to help beleaguered Suffolk homeowners who face losing their homes to coastal erosion is to be formalised next week.

On Wednesday, Waveney District Council is to set in stone a lands right move promise for people in Corton and Easton Bavents.

Once ratified, people who face losing their property to Mother Nature over the next 20 years can move to safe land nearby and still keep residential land use so they can build similar properties if they follow relevant planning law.

Businesses will also be able to relocate in similar arrangements.

In November, the England family, of the Retreat, Easton Bavents, were given early residential land transfer rights by the council after the erosion of metres of land threatened their chalet and mobile home.

Planners granted the Englands and eight other property owners permission as it was feared homes would be lost before Wednesday’s approval of the development management policy document.

The Englands, brother and sister Charles and Beth, hope to move into a new property by the autumn.

Their father, Paul, who lives in Strickland Place, Southwold, hoped other families in both villages would benefit from similar agreements in future. He said: “Because of the agreement we had the opportunity to be cavalier and relocate our properties. It accepts what we are all facing here in a very pragmatic way. I think the council deserves some applause for its efforts.”

The land rights transfer, one of the first nationally, is part of a new planning policy covering housing, tourism, employment, sustainable design and the environment.

The policy for Corton and Easton Bavents says: “Allowing replacement development to take place… is intended to assist in minimising the blighting effects resulting from the predictions of coastal erosion included in shoreline management plans.

“Proposals for the relocation and replacement of dwellings affected by coastal erosion will be permitted provided the dwelling is a permanent building and likely to be affected by erosion within 20 years of the date of the proposal.

“This is considered appropriate taking into account that it would be difficult to obtain a mortgage on a property likely to be affected by coastal erosion within this time frame and would be difficult to sell.”

Story by Anthony Carroll in the Eastern Daily Press

Story on the BBC News website

In October 2009 two homes on a piece of land called the Retreat at Easton Bavents, near Southold were just six metres from the clifftop.But the site of the homes is now teetering on the edge of the destruction.

In just the space of four weeks a large part of the land belonging to the England family has crumbled away because of erosion caused by strong northerly winds.

Glancing at the latest photograph it could be easily concluded that the two homes, a chalet and mobile home, have fallen victim to erosion and plummeted off the cliff.

But in fact the homes off Easton Lane have been destroyed by human hands as part of a landmark agreement to help homeowners cope with losing their properties due to the long running and untlitmatley futile battle with Mother Nature.

The homes have been demolished after Paul England and several other villagers secured a lands right promise from Waveney District Council.

Mr England was acting on behalf of his two children, Charles and Beth, who owned the two homes.

Under the ground-breaking agreement the England family can move to safe land nearby and still keep residential land-use rights so he can build similar homes under planning law.

The agreement, believed to be the first of its kind in the country, was set up as it was feared the Englands would lose all their rights if the land vanished due to erosion over the winter.

Because of the agreement the Englands could go ahead with demolition of the homes as they knew when they purchased new land they could build similar ones again without any planning wrangles.

Yesterday Mr England, 64, and his daughter, Beth, surveyed the rapidly disappearing piece of land, which has been in his family for about 40 years.

Although he is sad to see the enormous scale of destruction, Mr England has some form of comfort as he begins to get excited about his family’s relocation plans after several months of deep discussion with the council.

They hope to buy some land and build a timber frame cabin similar to the chalet from the spring.

Mr England, who lives in Strickland Place, Southwold, said: “I feel like a boil has been lanced. I feel happy and contented.

“I feel like I am the driver now instead of the passenger.

“In the last month the scale of the erosion has been dramatic. It has never been so rapid.

“We are all in the hands of nature and no matter what we do, she will do what she wants.”

A total of nine letters were sent out granting residential land use rights to homeowners whose properties were at high risk of tumbling off the cliff tops.

The agreements were set up because it was feared the Englands and the other property owners would lose their homes before the council sets in stone in the new year a coastal erosion policy for Easton Bavents and Corton.

Through a £1.5m Pathfinder scheme the council will offer land rights to any home at serious risk of erosion once the policy is agreed by a planning inspector.

The council hopes it will preserve the character of the two villages by making it easier for property owners to relocate in the area.

Phil Ridley, Waveney District Council’s head of planning said: “As a council we are committed to maintaining and retaining these communities and will do all we can to help property owners stay in the area.”

The innovative transfer of land rights has been strongly supported by the groups Suffolk Coast Against Retreat and the Coastal Concern Action Group based at Happisburgh, near Cromer, which wants 100pc compensation for north Norfolk homes lost to erosion.

As part of the Waveney Pathfinder project the costs of clearing the beach at Easton Bavents of debris from a house which fell off the cliff 10 years ago and a study looking at solutions to stop surface water drainage eroding cliffs at Corton are being funded.

Story by Anthony Carroll in the Eastern Daily Press

Villagers living in a small coastal community are calling for help to protect their bid for relocation before the winter weather speeds up erosion of the cliffs beneath their homes.

Two homes in Easton Bavents, north of Southwold, are just six metres from the cliff edge and owners fear they are in danger of falling into the sea.

In August, the homeowners were told that Waveney District Council was seeking legal advice on creating an escrow (a document kept in the custody of a third party) to protect the owners’ residential land-use rights even if their homes are lost, helping them to relocate further inland.

The proposition is part of Waveney’s £1.5m Pathfinder project, a government-funded scheme to explore options for communities at risk of erosion.

But three months later, the legal letter of intent has still not arrived and Paul England, whose son owns one of the houses on the cliff edge, said he is worried that winter storms will worsen erosion before anything gets done.

Mr England said: “Our hope is that this document will give people assurances that planning decisions will allow them to relocate and rebuild on safe land, but we don’t yet have the letter and it’s becoming a real emergency.

“The people of Easton Bavents need help. We don’t want to complain about the situation, we just want some action. The erosion here is so fast that we’re losing about a metre from the cliffs some days, and the winter weather will speed that up.”

David McGinnis, Waveney Pathfinder project officer, said the council is still waiting for the final draft of legal advice.

He said: “A meeting has been arranged for November 2 between Mr England and the council’s head of planning, Phil Ridley.

“That meeting will be the catalyst to an application that hopefully will deliver the scheme for the residents of Easton Bavents in an acceptable form for the local community and Waveney as the local planning authority.

“Waveney is chasing the barrister to provide the draft letter for us to provide the assurance Mr England needs, as was promised.

“We are very supportive of this concept, but there has to be a proper process to be followed which, unfortunately, is creating delays which Mr England finds understandably unacceptable.”

He added that the Pathfinder project is already working with residents in Easton Bavents and Corton. This includes funding costs of clearing the beach at Easton Bavents of the debris from a house which fell off the cliff ten years ago, gaining money to pay for the future demolition costs for two houses in the village and paying for a study into a solution to stop surface water drainage which is eroding cliffs at Corton.

Story by Haley Mace in the Eastern Daily Press

People living in a coastal village are “desperate” for help before their homes crumble into the sea and they lose any legal right to relocation.

Two homes in Easton Bavents, north of Southwold, are just 6m from the cliff edge and the owners fear they are in likely danger of succumbing to the sea.

Last year, £1.5m of state funding was allocated to Waveney District Council to explore the options available to communities at risk from erosion and potentially relocate them, as part of the Pathfinder scheme.

But a decision could be too late for the homes closest to the edge and those living in them want Waveney to support their quest to relocate now.

Paul England, whose son owns one of the homes on the edge of the cliff, said that if the properties were lost to the sea before a decision was made, the owners would lose their residential land use rights and no longer be eligible for relocation.

“There is no ‘risk’ to erosion here, it is a certainty,” said Mr England, from Southwold.

“We want to either have them [Waveney] agree that our land use is retained if the properties are eroded, or, if that isn’t possible, then we want their assistance in making immediate planning applications to relocate.

“We really are desperate for a quick response from Waveney on this issue.”

The two properties that are currently a few paces from the cliff edge are The Retreat, owned by Charlie and Beth England, and Thursley, owned by Sally Mitchell and her brother Andrew Thrale.

Speaking on behalf of these two homes, Mr England said they wanted Waveney to put the put the land use rights in some form of escrow.

Mr England said that Local Development Framework (LDF) policies also allowed for the “at risk” Easton Bavents homes to be relocated, but this would not be finalised until early 2011.

He said that, in any case, this required the whole community to be involved in the relocation, but some houses were still up to 20 years away from needing to move.

“We want to adapt and go somewhere else, but we can’t because the bureaucracy is slowing us up,” added Mr England.

A written response to councillors from Ken Sale, portfolio holder for the greenest county, said that the council was seeking legal advice over creating an escrow and the issue should be taken forward via the Pathfinder scheme.

A council spokesman said: “We are listening to a range of questions from affected communities and, understandably, the answers provided to them need to be detailed and comprehensive.

“We are seeking the advice of a barrister with considerable experience in this field to ensure that those concerned get the right advice as quickly as possible and we will continue to assist them in whichever way we can.”

In recent years, soft sea defences created by Peter Boggis, who also lives at Easton Bavents, halted the erosion of the cliffs.

But judges ruled that the site should erode naturally and the defences have now washed away. Since 1936, about a mile of land has been lost in front of the village.

The Pathfinder scheme was announced in December last year and 15 grants were given out nationally, with £3m going to North Norfolk Council.

The money allocated to Waveney was to be used working with people in Easton Bavents and Corton, to explore and deliver practical solutions to the impacts of Suffolk’s coastline.

Grants have to be used or allocated by March next year.

A statement from Suffolk Coast Against Retreat (SCAR), a group set up to preserve and protect the coastline, said: “While we are pleased to hear that Waveney is taking barrister’s advice concerning the ‘escrow’ possibility on the properties nearly in the sea at Easton Bavents, we cannot enforce the pontificating of the council when they have it in their own hands to make a decision now.”

Story by Amy Gray in the Advertiser 24

SEASIDE communities dotted along the borough’s coast need to stand together to have any chance of getting government to pay for sea defences or compensation for those who lose their homes if they don’t.

The call came from Malcolm Kerby of Happisburgh who is fighting for social justice on a national stage, on Thursday in Ormesby St Margaret.

The campaigner, widely regarded as the most knowledgeable person outside Government on coastal erosion, was in the village urging people to sensibly object to the emerging second draft of the Shoreline Management Plan.

Widely criticised, the document sets out the Government’s policy on coastal erosion which campaigners say takes no account of the human and social costs, and – since those living near rivers get a better deal – discriminates against people who live by the sea.

Around 70 people who packed the village centre were told that accepting the SMP would mean tumbling property values for those on the front line – and for others up to two miles inland – affecting everyone with the NR29 postcode.

But they were told to be reasonable in their total opposition and to foster “togetherness” rather than lobbing grenades at each other and taking up positions.

Chris Hogg, chairman of Scratby Coastal Erosion Group (SCEG) said the SMP was a flawed document that was technical and nothing to do with management. He said the shift in policy from hold the line to no active intervention at Scratby would scupper the rock berm project, spelling disaster for tourism, the dunes and amenities.

He said: “They say they did listen and there were certain changes made. However I have read it three or four times and there are statements there that are meant to make us feel better. But they are littered with ‘ifs’, ‘buts’ and ‘maybes’. It is aspirational rather than definitive.”

Mr Kerby, chairman of the National Voice of Coastal Communities, said: “There is no going alone. We have to stand together. I do not believe there is any way our elected representatives can accept this on our behalf. But it’s not a question of having a blazing row and pointing the finger – just make it very clear that not in my name will you accept the Shoreline Management Plan. There is a huge cost to doing nothing and we need to encourage them along that route.”

Also present was Peter Boggis from Eastern Bavents near Southwold in Suffolk who has had an ongoing battle with the authorities to be allowed to protect his own section of coastline at his own expense.

A show of hands were unanimous in requesting SCEG to write to the relevant authorities urging them not to accept the Shoreline Management Plan without provision for social justice and a change from ‘no active intervention’ to ‘hold the line’.

The group has received 20 comment forms protesting about the SMP which will be forwarded to Coastal Management in North Norfolk. No representatives from Great Yarmouth Borough Council were present although a message of support was received from councillor Charles Reynolds. Lewis Roberts, case worker for MP Brandon Lewis was present as was Tony Wright who pledged his continuing support. The document will be re-presented to Great Yarmouth Borough Council in October.

Story in the Great Yarmouth Mercury

A £1.5million project to help protect the Suffolk coast against the threat of erosion was last night branded a “talking shop” that will not provide the immediate action desperately needed.

The Suffolk Coastal Change Pathfinder Project has been set up with government funding to help villagers in Corton, near Lowestoft, and Easton Bavents, near Southwold, look at ways to adapt to the changing shoreline.

But last night campaigners said it did not go far enough to provide the practical solutions that were needed.

However, those behind the initiative launched a vigorous defence saying they could only come up with appropriate solutions following consultation with local communities.

Over the next 10 months, people living and working in the two villages will have the chance to take part in workshops and events aimed at creating ideas and planning for the future.

It will try to establish what options there are for managing the effects of coastal erosion and its impacts on community life and businesses.

Their suggestions – which could include relocation and re-use of land – will then be handed to the Department for food, environment and rural affairs (Defra) in April next year for consideration in the future development of coastal change policy.

But Graham Henderson, chairman of Suffolk Coast Against Retreat (SCAR), said: “It is not offering any actual solutions.

“The people of Easton Bavents thought they were going to get some practical help, but all they are getting is an opportunity for consultation.

“That will take up money that would be better used for practical applications such as relocating properties that are close to the cliff edge.

“The knowledge of what needs to be done is already in the hands of local organisations.

“There are three properties at Easton Bavents close to the edge at the moment and they will probably go into the sea before this project is concluded.”

Retired engineer Peter Boggis has spent years creating his own costal defences from some 250,000 tonnes of compacted clay soils near his home in Easton Bavents.

Last night he said: “It is a great shame. This is purely a talking shop. It does not provide any physical help. I believe its purely a holding operation to placate the general public.”

The Pathfinder Project was launched in Lowestoft on Tuesday and is being led by Waveney District Council along with Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Coastal Futures.

It is one of 15 Pathfinder projects across the country which was set up with money from Defra last year.

Last night Waveney District Council’s David McGinnis, project officer for the initiative, said it was a great opportunity for communities to have their say on what should be done.

“We need to find sustainable and practical solutions,” he said. “The whole idea is that we want to listen to local opinion and engage with the community to enable us to identify what they consider to be issues and concerns and work with them to form solutions.

“We need to listen to what people have to say and understand the pressures and concerns to see where we can help in the short and long term.

“For the most favourable options to be identified, it is essential that they are worked through in consultation. It is vital that the local communities have a say in their future.”

For more details about the Pathfinder project, visit www.waveney-pathfinder.com.

Story by Craig Robinson in the East Anglian Daily Times

A successful multi million pound bid to solve major coastal problems in Norfolk and Suffolk was hailed by experts and campaigners last night as the most important step ever taken in the management of the coast.

And as three local authorities – North Norfolk, Waveney and Great Yarmouth – celebrated winning nearly £5m out of a national pot of £11m to address a range of challenges, officials in charge of managing the coast said the money would help individuals about to lose their homes to erosion, the two counties as a whole and also build future policies for the rest of the country in the face of climate change.

A small number of people teetering on the very edges of some cliff tops, including in the now internationally known erosion hotspot of Happisburgh, were for the first time guaranteed payments for the loss of their homes where they had previously faced walking away with nothing.

But although those compensatory payments are set to grab many of the headlines, those behind the successful bids stressed this element was only one part of a wider policy-influencing mandate which the government has handed to Norfolk and Suffolk along with the money.

North Norfolk has been given £3m, Waveney £1.5m and Great Yarmouth £296,500. After North Norfolk and Waveney, the largest handout was East Riding, where £1.2m was made available.

The weighting of the North Norfolk bid has been interpreted as demonstrating how council officials, politicians and campaigners from the district have led the way in the battle against erosion, its impacts and the government’s attitude to the coast.

All 15 councils around the country which won money will now be referred to as ‘pathfinders’ and they will have 18 months to spend the money on a range of schemes, while feeding back the lessons they learn so government can look further into the future.

Last night, leading campaigner and the coordinator of the Happisburgh based Coastal Concern Action Group (CCAG), Malcolm Kerby said: “This is ground breaking. For the first time ever we have genuine recognition from central government that these problems exist.

“And for the first time the local authorities will be able to properly manage the coast and the consequences of change along that coast.

“It quite simply is the most important step ever taken in the management of our coastline.”

One of the homeowners set to be offered a financial package for her home where previously she thought she would lose everything is Di Wrightson, who lives on Beach Road in Happisburgh.

“After many years of anxiety and stress, watching the storm clouds gather and imagining the difficulties ahead, I suddenly feel as if I have stepped into sunlight,” she said.

North Norfolk MP Norman Lamb said: “This is an enormous achievement, something which we have collectively fought for in north Norfolk across many years.

“It is the first recognition that there is a need for social justice on this matter.

“The scale of this breakthrough cannot be underestimated, although it is by no means the end point.”

Peter Frew, head of coastal strategy at North Norfolk District Council, said: “I have been working here on the coast since 1992 and in terms of coast management this is the biggest thing that has happened in that time.”

Welcoming the smallest of the three bids, which will be spent on a project for the village of Scratby, Great Yarmouth MP Tony Wright said: “By taking part in this programme we can help to formulate effective future policy on this important issue.

“The £300,000 will test different approaches to adapt to coastal erosion and change, such as roll-back and business support programmes.”

A Defra spokesman said: “The pathfinders will road-test new and innovative approaches to planning for and managing change.”

The money will go towards a number of central themes, including:

Story by Ed Foss in the Eastern Daily Press

How the Yarmouth and Waveney areas could benefit

WAVENEY

The Waveney £1.5m will see work undertaken with communities at Corton and Easton Bavents to explore and deliver practical solutions to the impacts of Suffolk’s ever-changing coastline.

The bid is the second largest in the country after North Norfolk.

Council officials said work would commence immediately on exploring new ways of adapting to coastal change.

They added that, working in partnership with the two identified communities, the project would road-test innovative approaches to planning for and managing change.

Two projects will run at Corton. The first will look at developing the amenity level and accessibility of the beach and enhancing facilities, effectively handing the beach back to the community.

The second will see work commence with the people and businesses of Corton to find a long-term solution to the issue of coastal erosion and its impact on the village over the next 20 to 50 years. The aim is to ensure Corton continues to remain a secure and viable community.

Work at Easton Bavents will focus on long-term planning solutions for those living in vulnerable areas. It will approach the issue of coastal erosion from a planning perspective, looking at adapting policies, possible relocations and the impact on Easton Bavents and its surrounding communities.

Easton Bavents has become particularly well known because of the activities of resident Peter Boggis in building his own sea defences – and the legal complications which have arisen from those actions.

Ken Sale, Waveney District Council’s portfolio holder for environment, said: “We are delighted that we have received funding for this important programme of work.

“Our communities are facing the reality of coastal change and we need to gain a greater understanding of the implications for the future.

“We hope that these projects and the learning we share with our pathfinder colleagues help us find strong, long-term solutions to this issue and help secure a prosperous future for those communities on the front line.”

GREATYARMOUTH

The borough council will receive almost £300,000 for a joint project in conjunction with the Scratby Coastal Erosion Group.

The success was welcomed by Great Yarmouth MP Tony Wright: “I am pleased that Great Yarmouth has been selected in conjunction with Scratby to participate in the pathfinder programme.

“I have always campaigned on behalf of those people affected by coastal erosion and by taking part in this programme we can help to formulate effective future policy on this important issue.

“The £300,000 will test different approaches to adapt to coastal erosion and change, such as roll-back and business support programmes, and I look forward to continuing to work with the Scratby Coastal Erosion Group and the borough council on this project.”

At last, ‘joined up’ coastal management

Life changed in Happisburgh yesterday.

The village – a calm, pretty outpost of Norfolk which has become an international icon in the battle to address the impacts of coastal erosion, climate change and an emerging Whitehall-driven policy of managed retreat – was abuzz, albeit rather gently, with the news that their local authority had been awarded £3m to tackle coastal challenges.

Part of that money – and this would have been a quite staggering concept just a few months ago – will be used to buy the half a dozen most at risk homes and allow people to walk away with far more than what they thought they would receive – which was, until yesterday, nothing.

Another chunk will be put towards a “buy and lease back” scheme for a group of slightly less at risk homes, again an idea which few people saw coming until very recently.

This is a community with strength of character, no little patience, a beautiful beach, an eye-catching sentinel church, charming candy- striped lighthouse and relatively small but charismatic businesses – a wet fish shop, pub, general store and caravan site.

But Happisburgh, along with other communities in Norfolk, Suffolk and around the country, has been blighted by the spectre of coastal erosion.

Not purely blighted by name, but also by a suffering property market. Houses still sell here, but often for less than they would if they were elsewhere, away from both the erosion itself and the perception of how serious that erosion is.

The hope is that the dual purchasing schemes, alongside other parts of the project such as helping businesses move backwards physically on to new land as the cliff crumbles before them and tidying up areas which have become eyesores because of erosion, will breathe new life into such communities as Happisburgh, restore confidence and allow the property market to find a new level.

That market level may never be the same as it would be for an inland village, but the key point is that it should allow a community which feels it was once led to believe it would have sea defences for perpetuity to spread the cost of losing those defences over more than one unfortunate generation – which for so long appeared to be the current one.

Clive Stockton, who holds the coastal portfolio at North Norfolk District Council as well as running the Hill House pub in Happisburgh, explained: “To date we have had an all or nothing situation, where we applied for government funding for coastal defences for an area or a community and if successful it was all well and good.

“But more and more there were cases of defences being turned down – and that was effectively the end of the story, with communities left to their own devices.

“This is all about addressing the consequences of not defending and coming up with mechanisms to deal with the reality people are left with if funding for defences is not forthcoming.

“This is the first time that has happened.

“With new options, a lot of the blight and the problems which come with not giving a community a future can be removed.

“This is not about backing away from building sea defences; it is about producing a management scheme where there are alternatives.”

The full public explanation of what this project is and how it will work in practice is going to take some time because it is both detailed and unprecedented, but steps are expected to be taken quickly and the emotional impact has been immediate.

Di Wrightson has become something of an accidental Happisburgh celebrity and not only because she used to run a thriving village tearoom. She lives in a pair of houses on Beach Road which will, quite probably within a few months, be demolished and a payment made under the pathfinder project so she can look forward to buying another home.

She said: “The Beach Road residents can now breathe a sigh of relief, but there is still a need for every coastal community to feel properly protected against the uncertainties of erosion and climate change.

“My personal response to this announcement is one of joy and elation that, after many years of anxiety and stress, watching the storm clouds gather and imagining the difficulties ahead, I suddenly feel as if I had stepped into sunlight.

“Please don’t pinch me – I might wake up and find it’s all a beautiful dream!”

Her near neighbour Jane Archer, a founder member of the Coastal Concern Action Group who was infamously told her home was worth £1 last year when applying to borrow against it, looks set to fall into the “buy and lease back” category.

“If this were to happen – and we really don’t know the detail yet – the value of the house would change from nothing to something,” she said.

“It’s just that we don’t know what that something is yet. And we also don’t know the terms of any lease back.

“But we now have some hope we will end up with something, where we previously did not.”

There are many unknowns at this stage. By no means is this a solution to a hugely complicated topic and these projects must be seen as they are: pilots designed to inform and educate.

The pessimist would point out that these purchases may be one-offs and the government may never agree to carry such a policy through to a fully fledged version.

The pessimist might also suggest this is a sop to calm a troublesome bunch of East Anglian campaigners in the short term. That would be a mistake on the part of government. There is now so much knowledge of this subject both in Happisburgh and at North Norfolk District Council’s headquarters in Cromer that it would be unwise to believe the problem will go away with no long-term attempts at a solution.

And it is vitally important to point out that this is not just about Happisburgh, but many other parts of north and west Norfolk, the village of Scratby near Great Yarmouth and also Waveney.

But Happisburgh, and particularly Beach Road, will undoubtedly retain the glare of the media spotlight and it will be fascinating to watch the next few months pass by.