Fears this weekend’s high tides could see the Mary Stanford Lifeboat House collapse into the sea have led five local people to take direct action. Using farm tractors and trailers they placed large rocks in front of the structure to protect it from the waves.
The iconic building is preserved to remember one of Rye’s darkest days and stands on shingle which is constantly being washed away along the beach at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve. The foundations of the Lifeboat House have now been exposed, putting its structural stability at extreme risk.
“It cannot be allowed to fall into the sea,” said Philip Merricks from Icklesham who led the team who took matters into their own hands. “The sea won’t wait for the agencies responsible for the coast to do something. We had to take action.”
For the last two weekends, the five men have used the farm equipment to move the rocks from an Environment Agency stockpile.
The Mary Stanford Lifeboat House is a listed building maintained as a tribute to the 17 crew who died during a rescue in Rye Bay in 1928. For many years it has been protected by a secure bank of shingle held in place by wooden groynes.
Whilst the shingle bank is restored several times a year by the Environment Agency, the wooden groynes have fallen into disrepair because of what’s described as a “non-intervention policy” put in place by Natural England.
Philip Merricks, whose father died in another lifeboat tragedy in Rye Bay in 1970, says the two agencies, together with the Marine Management Organisation, have been unable to come up with a plan to protect the building. “They are trapped in a three way state of bureaucratic paralysis where holding meetings to agree to write a plan to save the lifeboat house is regarded as action.”
Writing in this week’s Rye News he says his group of friends saw urgent action was needed. “The sea won’t wait for head office officials to write their next strategy document before the moment of truth arrives when high tides coincide with high winds and destroys the building. I emailed the Environment Agency to let them know what we’ve done. I’ve heard nothing back.”
Image Credits: Philip Merricks , James Stewart .
Oh wow! Thank goodness somebody has taken action to preserve the Mary Stanford Lifeboat House. Beaurocracy at its worst when there is total inaction at a point when immediate action is necessary …
Wondering who should/would be responsible for maintaining the groynes …
I am personally extremely grateful to Philip Merricks and his bunch of amazing men for what they have done as this has been a very painful time, and thank goodness they have taken matters into their own hands. The Friends of the Mary Stanford have been jumping through the Natural England and Marine Management Organisation hoops to get a license for this work to be carried out and this has been painful. The Environment Agency are a great organisation and do fantastic work in our area, but their hands are tied by Natural England who will not allow repairs to the groynes which has put the beach and boathouse under threat. It is total madness that the 50 year coastal plan is to lose the Grade II listed boathouse, the emergency road from Rye Harbour, and eventually the nature reserve over the years to come. Icklesham Parish Council have launched a campaign to try and persuade the Secretary of State to looks at this plan again and reverse this decision thus saving this SSSI land with its amazing biodiversity for future generations. We have already lost all the flora and fauna at the boathouse, but Philip’s work means that when the shingle replenishes hopefully the plant life will follow. What an early Christmas present this has been to the village of Rye Harbour, and their heroes of the Mary Stanford lifeboat.
Perhaps Rye News could get the EA and Natural England clarify the situation, we’re only hearing one side of the dispute? While accusations of unreasonable restraints are aimed at both sides, might be worth a statement for both administrations?
Well done, Philip
Common sense agricultural approach to fixing a problem that Natural England and the Environment Agency just kick down the road.
Well done too all involved.
The huge expense of the annual shingle moving exercise could also be dramatically reduced if a small number of the Groynes were put back to reduce the effect of the shingle being dragged continuously eastwards.
Just two or three put back in the centre of the area between Pett Level and the Winchelsea Beach Cafe would potentially save millions of pounds.
This would reduce the amount of shingle that ends up at the entrance to the Rother and slow down the erosion in areas such as by the Mary Stanford Lifeboat house.
Well done indeed to all involved. Could anyone tackle the groynes problem too? Obviously the Environment Agency and Natural England are totally inept and disinterested not to mention disrespectful to the heroic men that lost their lives in 1928.
The Environment Agency are definitely not inept, they are just stymied by Natural England. Icklesham Parish Council have written to the Secretary of State who we hope will step in.
Well said Frank. Total madness.
Very well said – another example of private enterprise showing the way to paper pushers, some well meaning, who fail to understand the real world.
Thankyou for what you have done. I think the time has come where we skip the waiting for the bureaucrats to make a decision. I think the time is coming for placards and protest at the enviromenmental offices. This building cannot be allowed to fall away into the sea.
Also this is a great example of people power.
Well done Phillip and all involved
Thank you for taking the initiative and just doing what common sense needed, well done.
Agree with all of above, having lived in Rye Harbour it became an issue for many, well done to all who took the initiative to do something and show up theslow moving, if at all, beurocracy
Well done and thank you to all those involved.
Well done Philip Merricks and his team!
Well done Philip and team. Hats off for jumping over those who need a meeting to discuss a meeting.
Thank you Philip and friends, the EA should have done it when they add the extra shingle.
Dear Catherine even the Environment Agency have to.apply to the Marine Management Organisation a government quango for an MMO Licence to do this kind of work…. Unfortunately they are not allowed to just do what they want to. As Philip explains there are three people in this marriage…. this is why things take too long. The Friends group had been applying for this licence to get the work done but it is frustrating and all takes too long….
Thanks
The Environment Agency is also a quango. As is Natural England along with over 400 other quangos that control nearly a third of all the UK national budget. For many, many years responsibility has been increasingly divested by government to an ever increasing number of quangos, thus creating ‘the blob’. Unaccountable, authoritarian and incredibly wasteful.
Good on Phil Merricks & Co for challenging them.
I am aware of and understand your frustration over this. I see that Philip’s rocks have helped the sea push shingle back into the gaping hole. EA not needed, the rocks were exactly what was required, for a while at least (nature knows best). I do hope all those organisations and see the sense in his actions.
Laughable!
I am so glad that I emigrated to a place where beaurocracy comes second to common sense! Here in the Azores Islands things that need doing urgently are done immediately, regardless of paperwork.
They are done because those who stand in the way would be ridiculed, held personally accountable and shunned by the community if they put the locals second, above some other abstract “powers” who overestimate their own importance and choose to be a hindrance.
They only get away with this because nobody knows their names. Who are these individuals wasting everyone’s time? Let’s have accountability.
Very well done to the farmers that saved this iconic building in such a practical way.
Now watch the EA and NE have a melt down because you didn’t have the correct permit; didn’t do months of surveys; didn’t do a course on stone moving and didn’t wear high viz or helmets!
Well done Phillip and friends in overcoming beaurocratic paralysis. Pity a few more rocks cant be moved to Winchelsea to overcome beaurocratic paralysis there regarding speeding traffic.
Well done Rye news for bringing the plight of this iconic building , representing one of the most tragic , seafaring histories along the Rye coast to the attention of the Community. As an Architect of some 40 years experience, I took it upon myself to carry out an assessment of the current deteriorating condition of this structure and noting with much concern the undermining of the existing floor and foundation structure, created by the scouring effect of the tidal action. This cantilevered situation evolving is not what these foundations are designed for and as such , I am of the opinion that should immediate action not taken to stem this erosion , this building will eventually collapse. Well done to Philip Merricks and his team of dedicated volunteers for implementing, in my opinion the correct remedial measures to “ arrest “ this natural erosion process and buy time for a more permanent remedial , engineered solution to be actioned on the part of the designated Authorities.
Cheers Tony.
In the short term we need a SE to make a visit if they can, for an initial survey to see what needs to be done for the whole building.
Now that hopefully we have bought a bit of time with the foundations above needs so much attention as well, especially as the roof has been damaged!!
Any SE’s out there that could help initially?
Great effort by Phillip and his friends to complete this emergency work! Thanks to Jaqui Stanford for the explaining the problems with other agencies relating to the preservation of the lifeboat house, I was unaware.
To be a small part of this essential happening is truly humbling considering the sacrifices already paid.
Need to get more and more PEOPLE in action to get this building saved.
I’m in!!
Surely time this building was taken down with care where possible and moved further inland,it’s not only the coastal erosion, but also the roof of the lifeboat house that is in danger of collapsing, remedial measures may be good in the meantime, but the future of this building in the longtime,must be the way forward.