Round 1 Consultation - 2023

An initial engagement on the Green Seafront Stabilisation and Enhancement Scheme took place in Autumn 2023. 

Watch here as the Mayor of Swanage Cllr Tina Foster & Dorset Coast Forum's James Mitchell introduce the scheme.

In this round, two options were put forward to the community.

Option One: Essential Scheme 

This option would stabilise the area and retain Sandpit Field as a large events field for future generations whilst retaining current features of the fields with greenery and stone walls.

Read about Option One here.

Option Two: Enhanced Scheme 

This option would stabilise and significantly enhance the area with the notable filling in and conversion of Walrond Road to create more green space linking up the sections of the Green Seafront. This option offers numerous public realm improvements including increased accessibility, biodiversity and enhanced event space but is significantly more costly than the essential scheme.

Key Findings:

In Round 1 we asked you about an essential scheme and an enhanced scheme. 

• Conversations and survey results showed a fairly equal split between the essential scheme and the enhanced scheme presented. The enhanced was slightly more popular with 51.1% of respondents to the survey preferring it with 43.6% choosing the essential scheme. 
• The enhanced scheme (circa £11 million) is not affordable and therefore is not being taken forward by the Council as an option.
• Preferences from the enhanced scheme have been incorporated insofar as is possible into the new scheme. 
• The cost of the enhanced scheme was the most common theme of respondents’ answers when they explained why they selected the essential scheme as their preferred option (40% of respondents who selected essential scheme).
• Conversely, the ‘opportunity’ presented by the stabilisation works to enhance and invest in the area was the most common theme of respondents’ answers when explaining why they selected the enhanced scheme as their preferred option (40% of respondents who selected enhanced scheme).
• 76% of all respondents agreed that it was a good opportunity to enhance the area if work was going to take place anyway.
• Generally improvements to the Green Seafront were considered important by respondents:
  • 76% of respondents agreed that significantly improved accessibility to all areas was an important feature of any seafront scheme,
  • 75% agreed that improving the green spaces through increased planting was important, and the additional events field (53%) and seafront plaza and café (59%) had support.
  • Crucially, retaining a large events field was viewed as the most important feature (90% of respondents agreed)
• The integration of improved traffic management was consistently cited through the survey. Of those who felt there was something missing from the enhanced scheme – ‘the pedestrianisation of Shore Road’ and ‘traffic management’ were the most popular themes of respondents’ answers. There were also over 100 mentions of ‘Shore Road’ in all the comments.

Consultation Results Report - December 2023

Thank you to everyone who took part in the consultation process, from attending events, providing your input, and completing the survey.

Please click on the image below to read the Public Consultation Report, Survey Results and Key Findings:

Read the final report here.

Engagement Events

During the consultation events took place across Swanage. 

Events included:

• 23rd Sept - Planet Purbeck by the seaside - info stall on seafront 
• 6th Oct - Information stall at the market
• 17th October - Guided walk of Green Seafront 
• 19th Oct - Drop in engagement event at the Mowlem Theatre 

The community were asked to take part in an ideas board and survey to find out their views on the options put forward for the scheme.

Screenshots show the ideas board used during the consultation process. 

Over 450 people took part in the survey. The Survey was open from 19th September - 31st October 2023.

Please read about the further considerations & finance of the scheme here