Dozens of beach huts lost at Hordle Cliff, Milford, due to storm damage and cliff erosion

A LACK of action to tackle coastal erosion has resulted in dozens of beach huts in Milford being lost, says a former owner, with many more expected to be destroyed in the next decade.

Despite being worth around £25,000 each, a row of around 10 wooden huts looks set to be removed after fragile cliffs fell away, leaving access impossible and decking perched precariously over the edge.

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

He added: “Some huts have been owned by generations of the same family and passed down. There is a perception that hut owners are rich, but many have been owned in families for years.”

Paul paid £25,000 for his hut in 2017 and just two years later it was lost to the sea. He now uses a friend’s hut and undertakes maintenance on it.

Paul recalls: “We did all sorts of things to try and secure our beach hut – we put scaffolding poles in and all sorts.

“Ours was on the beach, and then the shingle started to erode. Eighteen months later it was gone.”

Paul says despite New Forest District Council’s coastal erosion team, “doing their best”, not enough publicity has been given to a “do nothing” policy, which means the authority no longer actively manages coastal erosion.

Instead of recharging shingle and improving coastal defences, the policy involves letting nature take its course, and requiring the removal of huts when they are no longer safe to use – and they cannot be replaced.

“We loved our beach hut and it is devastating to see – this was once a beautiful stretch of beach but it now resembles a war zone with battered and broken huts along the beach and cliff.

“The speed of the erosion is certainly increasing and in the next few years I’m sure many more huts will be lost.”

Paul continued: “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.”

He added: “I know people who have bought huts since 2019 without realising just how bad the erosion is. They are devastated by what is happening. Once the huts are gone they cannot be replaced.”

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.

A spokesperson for NFDC said they sympathised with the affected hut owners, but there was nothing they could do.

They added: ”There are currently 308 beach huts at Hordle Cliff. From 1st January 2019, 44 huts have been lost due to storm impacts.

“There is no policy in place to stop huts from being rebuilt if they are damaged during a storm. Subject to planning approval, owners can rebuild or repair their huts.

“Each damaged hut is considered individually on its merits of damage, caused either directly to the beach hut or to the plot that the hut sits on.

“Huts can’t be rebuilt or repaired on plots that have become unstable or eroded.”

The council spokesperson added: “The shoreline management plan has been widely publicised. In recent years there have been numerous public engagement events held locally to discuss future management options. 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.”