Plans to protect radar history site Bawdsey Manor are lodged

Proposals have been lodged to protect a manor house that played a central part in the development of radar in the 1930s from coastal erosion.

Bawdsey Manor sits at the mouth of the Deben Estuary in east Suffolk where the parish council said "large amounts of cliff" were falling away.

It is planned to put rock groynes along the foreshore to protect the Grade II listed building.

Owners PGL Travel use the site as an adventure centre for school groups.

Andrew Block, chairman of Bawdsey Parish Council, said: "All the way along there is quite severe damage to the cliffs and there are large amounts of cliff falling away.

"We're not in a crisis like some parts of the coast where houses are falling in the sea but nevertheless we face particular and steady erosion along this stretch of coast."

Bawdsey Manor Estate was purchased by the Air Ministry for £24,000 ahead of World War Two and it was home to research scientists developing radar from 1936 to 1939.

It later became an international school, and was bought by PGL Travel in 2017 for adventure activities for primary school groups.

In its plans submitted to East Suffolk Council, PGL Travel said: "The proposed development will ensure that coastal defence [continues] to be provided to the Bawdsey Manor estate, which in turn will enable PGL to continue to operate their business from the site."

It added: "PGL's occupation of this site means that good use is made of a large estate that may otherwise fall into dereliction."

Elsewhere, a community group is working with the district council to find a long-term solution to help the coastline at Thorpeness.

Demolition work started this week on properties on a cliff edge that were deemed unsafe due to coastal erosion further up the Suffolk coast at Pakefield.

Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]