Llandudno Pier – the Happy Valley Entrance and a New Stage Structure
Efforts to restore the structure of the pier’s main entrance to Happy Valley Road, originally scheduled to be completed in early 2025, were naturally delayed following the storm damage in December 2024. The current update confirms that structural renewal of more steel components are imminently planned for this part of the pier, although as yet no specified completion date has been given.
It is also evident in recent videos on Llandudno Pier’s Facebook page that a new free-standing stage structure has been erected for this year’s Summer season, replacing an arrangement somewhat resembling a very small ice cream stall for the use of “D.J” operatives. The new structure appears to be substantial and well-finished; not too far removed from bandstand territory. This coincides with the programmes of amplified music provided on a regular basis over this past Summer, which evidently have been well-supported.
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Southport Pier – Reconstruction Progress
Sefton Council and A.E Yates have confirmed the state of progress at Southport Pier, with now the removal of the superstructure largely completed to facilitate the steelwork replacements. The manufacture and assembly of the steelwork is presently in progress and it is anticipated that the first on-site steel installations will take place next month. Linked are two articles which are each worthy of reading, each giving slightly unique details.
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Ramsey Queen’s Pier – Reconstruction Progress
With the reinstatement of Bays 9-10 now completed this Summer, it is planned to commence Bays 11-13 next year and 14-16 during 2028. Due to the incessant rises in raw material costs, it has been decided with the steel suppliers to order the necessary raw materials for these six upcoming bay installations together, prior to the implementation of another price rise. In the meantime, work is ongoing to remove the scaffolding platforms from bays 9-10 and re-erect them at the following bays.
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Weston Birnbeck Pier – Reconstruction Progress
Everyone should surely be quite familiar with progress at Birnbeck Pier (with all the good and regular photographic updates from numerous sources and groups on Facebook and elsewhere, there really is no excuse!), but a general update is here provided by the Weston Mercury. This article records the completion of the third Lift, installing the steelwork for Span No.14 (the third to be installed) on Monday. Work is also ongoing at the landward side to the Pier Master’s Cottage, with the reroofing of the North wing nearly complete and awaiting its roof hips and ridges becoming watertight.
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Rhos-on-Sea – Proposed Demolition of Some Pier Entrance Buildings
Conwy County Council have proposed the demolition of all existing buildings surrounding the former pier entrance, with the critical exception of the listed pier toll house (identifiable as the stone-built kiosk of octagonal plan). The other buildings, flat-roofed kiosks and cafes of post-war date and in a long-term state of disuse, are to be entirely demolished to enable a regeneration of the site at a later date. With the buildings erected at differing levels on a sloping site, it is not yet quite clear how the demolished footprints will be treated in restoring the site to a clear open space, but certainly the work is necessary if ever a redevelopment of the site is to occur. The buildings to be demolished, whilst certainly of their time, were not completely objectionable in their character and succeeded in reinstating at least a shadow of an amenity centre to the pier site after the pier itself was lost in 1954, delivering a courtyard embracing the stone toll house and maintaining a telling gap where the pier abutments used to be. That said, the facilities are undoubtedly “dated” and would do well to draw from the good regeneration work recently done elsewhere along the promenade. Tir Prince (owners of Llandudno Pier) have proposed redevelopment schemes on this site in the past. The Heritage Impact Statement, submitted as part of the Listed Building Consent application, gives some interesting history and imagery on the pier’s development and loss.
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Bournemouth Pier – Landing Stage Demolition
Unlike the excellent sight of three instances of pier reconstruction progress, seen last week, BCP Council are presently showing signs of difficulty in demolishing parts of Bournemouth Pier. This concerns the entire removal of the disused and unstable landing stages, as well as a wider scheme of structural repair to the substructure, supposedly to cost £9.6 million. As reported previously the Council have not yet secured a tender for this work, and now have withdrawn some of the funding allocation to direct to other projects (mostly for the stabilisation works to the East Cliff Lift area, but also for Boscombe Pier). The linked Council report suggests that the remaining £5 million will be devoted solely to the landing stage demolition work, but any excess will be used for the highest priority structural repairs to the pier. This has unfortunately resulted in this costly project materialising mostly as an excercise in destruction rather than repair and renewal, as necessary as the landing stage removal might be.
Further to this, the fundamental proposal for removing the landing stage has received further criticism on the predicted effect its loss will have on local surfing conditions. A number of public commenters are quite convinced that the piled landing stage structures are essential for making Bournemouth beach as suitable for surfing as it is, and that removing the landing stage would “destroy the waves”. In the instance that the piles and general substructure do indeed constructively influence the surfing conditions, then surely BCP Council ought to explore alternative schemes to minimise the demolition work involved. I would think that removing the unstable decking, linkspans and other infrastructure, and stabilising the remaining piles with cross-ties, would present a reasonable comprimise at a reduced project cost. The resulting structure would be not unlike Shoeburyness Boom, and would do well to disuade the youthful intruders which the Council cite as a primary reason for the works being proposed in the first place.
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Council Report
Worthing Pier – Pile Installations
Worthing Borough Council have confirmed that work to install the replacement piles on the storm-damaged section of the pier commenced last week, and photographs show this process ongoing. Steel cylindrical piles are shown being installed, driven in two separate lengths of 4 metres, welded together midway through the pile-driving operation (this method likely necessitated due to the limited working clearance with the pier deck shortly above). The columns themselves will be installed upon the piles next.
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Southport Pier – The Pier Plaques
An assurance on a small but important community matter: the securing and reinstatement of the pier plaques dating to the now infamous 2000-2002 restoration work. The Southport Pier Trust have confirmed that they have secured all previously-extant plaques, enabling them to be reinstated promptly and without risk of misplacement.
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Helensburgh Pier – Structural Inspection Scheduled
As covered previously, the requirement for a structural inspection was the primary obstacle to the Helensburgh Pier Company completing the lease agreement. Finally the necessary tenders and preliminary arrangments for commencing the inspection have been completed, and once the inspection itself is completed, the final arrangements towards agreeing the 25 year lease of the pier can be made.
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Herne Bay Pier – 2026 Bucket and Spade List Winners
The Seaside Heritage Network announced the winners of the 2026 Bucket and Spade List during their “Big Day Out” in Scarbrough, and the first place was given to Herne Bay Pier. The awards are based on a public vote and constitute a confident assurance that today’s Herne Bay Pier, despite its now-insubstantial scale, is excelling as a public destination. The truncated pier has recently enjoyed an admirable cooperation between the trustees, Council, tenants of the huts and other businesses, creating a sustainable (both in terms of economics and energy!) enterprise which seems to always offer something for the visitor. Being decidedly a “21st Century Pier” in its operation, economically flexible and community-oriented, it is no surprise that it is so warmly embraced.
The second link leads to the Seaside Heritage Networks full list of 10 top entries for this year, with a very interesting variety of seaside heritage assets which is certainly worth looking through.
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Clevedon Pier – Public Survey on Future Use of Glass Box
Following the closure of the resturant business in the Glass Box at the pier entrance, the Clevedon Pier & Heritage Trust have encouragingly invited the public to make suggestions on what uses of the space they might wish to see. This will be the first stage in determining a viable and attractive purpose for it, and shows a pleasingly open attitude to going about it.
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Penarth Pier – New Cinema Equipment
£65,000 has been awarded by the Arts Council of Wales for the replacement and improvement of the Penarth Pier Pavilion Cinema’s equipment. A new laser projector and sound system will be installed, supporting the cinema’s seemingly consolidated operation with screenings held effectively daily (as advertised in the second link).
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Bournemouth Pier – Landing Stage Demolition
A further update since last week, confirming that the Council are intending to begin demolition works this week. Progress can be tracked using the local webcam in the second link.
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Webcam
Weston Birnbeck Pier – “First Steps” Event and a Cardboard Erection
The peak in this year’s calendar for the Birnbeck Pier project; a formal event was held on Monday to give access to the first restored bay to a selection of invited guests (including myself – a report on this event will be given in next week’s newsletter and also in the upcoming PIERS journal 161). For now, see the media news for the event, along with coverage of the cardboard pier installation in the Prince Consort Gardens above.
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Eastbourne Pier – Asset of Community Value
With Eastbourne Pier previously reported for sale (as first reported in PIERS 157), it might be felt that its future is somewhat uncertain. This has provoked the local MP, Josh Barbarinde, to instigate a process to designate the pier as an Asset of Community Value. The application, prepared in partnership with the Friends of Eastbourne Seafront, has recently been accepted and gives community groups ample opportunity to submit a bid for the purchase of the property. This process has, of course, previously been applied at Hastings Pier, owned with Eastbourne by Sheikh Abid Gulzar. The benefits of Asset of Community Value status, at Hastings, has recently not been well-proven in view of the Friends of Hastings Pier’s purchase bid being flatly rejected by Gulzar. Since the original coverage, Gulzar and his management staff have rejected the significance of this designation. On Wednesday, Gulzar announced “Eastbourne Pier is not for sale and I am not going anywhere”. Josh Barbarinde, in the last of the three links, established that a sale would be inevitable if the ongoing court proceedings lead to prosecution. For all the disagreement on both sides, the future ownership of the pier really rests on the outcome of these court proceedings. There is also a gallery of old pier pictures as a tonic to what is evidently developing into a Hastings-like controversy.
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A hitback
A hitback to the hitback
Photo Gallery
Hastings Pier – History of the Landing Stage (again)
Another good history article by Hastings historian Steve Peak, seemingly following the same basic theme as his article from April 2026, but regardless a new piece of writing.
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