Project Updates

Update 20/02/2026

An update from Dorset Council regarding the options for Shore Road can be found >> here

Update 21/01/2026

Shore Road Engagement Report

The Engagement Summary for Shore Road can be found >> here

The report represents the next step in a process that began with feedback from local residents in 2022/23, who highlighted the need to improve pedestrian safety and enhance the public realm during the development of the Swanage Masterplan.

Dorset Council, as the highway authority, is now reviewing elements of the engagement results that relate to Shore Road from the engagement held last year, alongside technical data. Their preferred option for Shore Road will be discussed publicly at the Town Council meeting on 23 February.

Any option taken forward by Dorset Council will require further technical work, funding decisions, and detailed design.

Update 12/11/2025:

Round 2 Green Seafront Engagement Results

Huge thanks to all that took part in the engagement.

• Over 1400 people contributed to the online survey, 460 people attended our events
• The survey results show a higher preference for the new option, with a 2.3% difference (equivalent to 34 votes) compared to the essential option. Comments reflected both support and opposition for each option.
• Recurring themes included access and accessibility, budget and costs and design features
• The community offered lots of alternative ideas and suggestions for the various elements of each option

The Round 2 Engagement Summary for the Green Seafront can be found >> here

19/12/2025 - This report was amended in December 2025. Minor amendments were made to the appendices. The main report remains unchanged.

This amended version of the report includes the following updates. All of which are in the anomalies section in the appendices.

• There were 20 responses from paper surveys which were not included in the anomalies section but were included in the main report. These have now been updated and included.
• All pie charts showing segments are now coloured in the same way to allow for easy comparison.
• Question 28 was incorrectly numbered as 17.

A statement from Swanage Town Council alongside the publishing of the report can be found >> here

Swanage Town Council now have a dedicated website for the progress of the Green Seafront Project including monitoring updates >> here

Update 30/06/2025:

The survey for this round of engagement is now closed. Thank you to all those who have taken part over the last two months. We will now work through the data and provide updates in due course.

Over May and June 2025 many engagement events took place in Swanage. These included:

Swanage Market - 30/05/2025 Outside the Co-op - 30/05/2025

Focus Centre Drop In - June 2025

Mowlem Drop In - June 2025

 

• Banners on Shore Road and Victoria Road – displayed for the duration of the engagement
• Posters around the Green Seafront Site and around the town
• Local radio – Interview with Maggi on Purbeck Radio
• News articles – Swanage News, Dorset Echo, Bournemouth Echo, BBC
• Posters, information, reference materials and paper surveys at the Visitor Information Centre
• Social Media - Dorset Coast Forum, Swanage Town Council, Dorset Council

Highways Scheme - Shore Road Options

Improvements to traffic management, along with matters regarding pedestrian safety on Shore Road were raised by the public in previous engagements for both the Green Seafront and the Swanage Seafront Masterplan. In response to this Dorset Council Highways Team has worked in partnership with Swanage Town Council and provided four options for the future of Shore Road:.

• Option 1 – Full vehicular closure to public vehicles
• Option 2 – One way closure – south bound traffic only
• Option 3 – Two way traffic with parking removed
• Option 4 – Do nothing (retain as it is)

Click on the tiles below to see the images of the proposed options. Please note, for the purpose of this engagement, options for Shore Road are displayed alongside the new option for the Green Seafront. There will be further consultations after this engagement and the schemes will be aligned based on the chosen options.

Option 1: Full vehicular closure to public vehicles	Option 2: One-way closure - south bound traffic only
Option 3: Two-way traffic with parking removed	Option 4: Do nothing (retain as it is)

Options for 2025 Engagement:

The New Option

Key Features of the New Option can be found >> here 

The Essential Option

We want you to have your say on the new option and consider it with the essential option from the previous round. The Essential Option includes all stabilisation required to maintain the site in its current form.

Key Features of the Essential Option can be found >> here

How much will the options cost?

The new option would cost an estimated £6.5 million. The essential scheme would be an estimated £4.5 million. The Council still cannot fund all the costs of the essential or the new scheme and is continuing to look at options and further financial information. More information on funding and finance >> here

What did the Round 1 engagement tell us?

In Round 1, we asked your input on two proposals for the green seafront area: the Essential Scheme and the Enhanced Scheme. The feedback was almost evenly split, with the Enhanced Scheme slightly more favoured, receiving 51.1% support compared to 43.6% for the Essential Scheme. 5.3% said they didn't know.

The Enhanced Scheme, estimated at approximately £11 million is not being taken forward by the Council as an option due to affordability. The new option incorporates the elements from the Enhanced Scheme that you told us were important in the first round of engagement.

• Details of the Round 1 schemes are >> here 
• Read the key findings >> here
• Read the consultation report >> here