The Council has recently secured £1.2 million as part of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Coastal Change Pathfinder. The Pathfinder is part of the consultation on the draft national Coastal Change Policy, to test innovative approaches to help coastal communities to adapt to coastal change.
Aims of the Pathfinder
The East Riding of Yorkshire Coastal Change Pathfinder will seek to give incentives to residents living with the imminent threat of losing their home to relocate to safer and more sustainable areas.
It is important to recognise that the aim of the East Riding Coastal Change Pathfinder is to provide support and guidance to those groups and isolated individuals who have been identified as being most vulnerable. The Pathfinder does not seek to provide compensation for loss, but rather provide assistance to those who are seeking to adapt to the impacts of coastal change. The East Riding of Yorkshire Coastal ChangePathfinder will last until March 2011, when the Defra funding finishes.
An Enhanced Assistance Package will be available to help residents at risk from coastal erosion, whether this is to help them relocate or adapt. At this stage, the assistance package will only be available to those properties at the most risk from coastal change, as identified by the Shoreline Management Plan (SMP). Residents’ eligibility for each component of the package will be dependant on liaison and an assessment and this would take place between Council officers and the resident on a one-to-one basis. To help this process, Council officers will visit residents living close to the cliff edge to discuss their options.
The Pathfinder is there to support coastal residents whose primary dwelling is under imminent threat from coastal erosion and genuinely need support to adapt or relocate to safer and more sustainable areas.
How Could the Pathfinder Help You?
For those residents of permanent dwellings deemed to be at imminent risk (Level 1), the types of assistance that may be available are as follows:
- Demolition and site restoration costs of the curtilage
- Relocation costs
- Small hardship payment
- Payment of up to 50% of up to a 12 month tenancy
- Payment of management / agent fees
- Provide essential second-hand furnishings and white goods for a new dwelling
For those residents of permanent dwellings deemed to be at higher, but not imminent, risk (Level 2), the types of assistance that may be available are as follows:
- Buy and lease back option. Subject to a condition survey, and other considerations, the Pathfinder would allow the Council to purchase a property and lease it back to the owner
- Erosion Adaptation Assistance Grants. These will be awarded by a panel made up of members from the East Riding Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) initiative and chaired by the portfolio holder for Policy, Performance and Strategic Partnerships. These grants could provide financial assistance where residents feel that they are able to adapt their living environment, rather than move out of the property immediately.
- Retrospective applications for adaptation measures already carried out may also be considered, but would be subject to approval by the panel.
- Alternatively, residents at Level 2 could be assessed for eligibility for components in the Level 1 package should they wish to opt for their property to be demolished.
After the Pathfinder Finishes
Given the time-limited nature of this relatively small amount of Government funding for the East Riding of Yorkshire Coastal Change Pathfinder, the Council will continue to lobby for these and other approaches to be enshrined in a longer-term package of support that can be mainstreamed into national policy. This will mean that help for coastal communities to achieve safer and more sustainable living conditions will be forthcoming on an ongoing basis past March 2011.
For Further Information
For more information on the East Riding of Yorkshire Coastal Change Pathfinder or to find out if you may be eligible for assistance, please contact:
Jeremy Pickles, Senior Sustainable Communities and Coast Officer on 01482 391727 or jeremy.pickles@eastriding.gov.uk
