Group aims to protect coastal village from erosion

A new campaign group has been set up to combat and educate people about erosion affecting a small coastal village.

The Save Happisburgh campaign group was set up by residents and business owners in the north Norfolk village, some of whom have properties perilously close to falling into the sea.

It aims to research and consider schemes to slow down and prevent further erosion, raise funds for possible solutions, work to improve erosion policies and involve the local community.

"We can't do this on our own; we need people to help us with it," said Sarah Greenwood from the group.

Other founding members include Bryony Nierop-Reading, whose house is at risk, and Clive Stockton, landlord of The Hill House Pub in the village.

Ms Nierop-Reading has already had to move once, when a bungalow she owned fell into the sea during a storm in 2013.

Ms Greenwood said: "We know that we can't stop erosion but we can slow it down and that's the whole point; to slow it down.

"And that's really important; it's a historic village."

"There's so much heritage in the village, we want to preserve it."

The cliffs at Happisburgh, made up of soft clay and compacted sand, are suffering from erosion from sea tides but also rain, which seeped through them, Ms Greenwood said.

"There were record levels of rainfall this year. The ground has never been so wet in Happisburgh," she said.

"And there's no proper drainage - we don't have a river - so the water gets back to the sea through the cliffs, rotting them from the inside.

"We need to investigate ways to stop both ways of erosion.

"I think it's also important we make sure people are protected so they are not made homeless by coastal erosion."

Ms Greenwood said the group aimed to put community at the heart of its actions and involve as many people as possible.

It will host its first meeting at 19:00 BST on 7 June at the Wenn Evans Centre in the village.

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