25 unsafe beach huts set to be removed from crumbling Hordle Cliff at Milford

MORE than two dozen beach huts must be removed from Milford this spring after storm-related erosion left them unsafe.

A total of 25 huts, worth around £25,000 each, are affected after fragile cliffs fell away, leaving access impossible and decking perched precariously over the edge.

Located in the eastern section of Hordle Cliff, the impacted huts had become increasingly vulnerable to erosion and ground movement, particularly following Storm Eunice in February 2022, said a spokesperson from New Forest District Council.

Further damage was caused by Storm Ciaran in November 2023, and extraordinarily high levels of rainfall this winter have compounded the problems.

As a result, NFDC recently closed a section of the cliff and a beach access point, and terminated the licences of the affected huts.

The spokesperson added: “The council is now coordinating an operation to remove 25 beach huts which have had their licences terminated.

“We are working closely with those hut owners affected, as well as the Beach Hut Owner’s Association.

“For safety reasons, the work can only be undertaken when the cliffs have dried out sufficiently to allow access to the slopes. The removal operation, funded by beach hut income received, will also need favourable weather conditions. As such it is unlikely that the work will be possible until late spring or early summer.”

As reported in the A&T, beach hut owners fear a lack of action to tackle coastal erosion will see many more huts destroyed in the next decade.

Brockenhurst College lecturer Paul Major (69) represents beach hut owners at Hordle Cliff as a member of the New Forest Beach Hut Owner’s Association.

He said: “In 10 years I imagine there will be half the huts left that we have now.”

“There are a number of huts that have been lost this year. Some were only built in 2019 or 2020 and they have already been destroyed.

“Once the council deems that they are no longer stable and cannot be replaced, owners are asked to remove them.”

Paul paid £25,000 for his hut in 2017 and just two years later it was lost to the sea.

An NFDC spokesperson said there was no policy to stop huts from being rebuilt but this could not be carried out on unstable or eroded plots.

Owners pay an annual licence fee to NFDC of between £662 and £956 for their hut at Hordle Cliff, but are responsible for all repairs and maintenance.

Paul said not enough publicity was given to a “do nothing” policy, which means the authority no longer actively manages coastal erosion.

“Nobody knew about the Shoreline Management Plan. There was a big fallout because no one knew that the policy was to leave the coast to erode. It wasn’t well publicised.

“There are a lot of very upset beach hut owners – they feel that they have not been well communicated with.”

But an NFDC spokesman said the Shoreline Management Plan had been “widely publicised”.

“In recent years there have been numerous public engagement events held locally to discuss future management options,” they added. “The council’s coastal team are always open to potential purchasers making contact to discuss risk and coastal management policies.

“The Shoreline Management Policy for this frontage is set as managed realignment, setting an expectation that there will continue to be change within this undefended section where measures may be introduced subject to funding that slow, but do not stop, erosion.”