Residents to have say over Sidmouth cliffs

RESIDENTS living above Salcombe Cliffs will meet with district council officers, its consultants and other interested parties on April 24 over the erosion of Pennington Point.

RESIDENTS living above Salcombe Cliffs will meet with district council officers, its consultants and other interested parties on April 24 over the erosion of Pennington Point.

They had been excluded from original discussions prior to consultants Royal Haskoning producing a report suggesting no emergency action was needed to protect the cliffs near the mouth of the River Sid.

After protests voiced through Salcombe Hill Association, led by its chairman Peter Hand, EDDC's executive agreed a delay to hear their views.

The meeting, at Honiton Business Park at 10am, will, said Mr Hand, be limited to 15 people, including five officers from EDDC, two town council representatives, A Royal Haskoning representative, Robert Crick, chairman of the Vision Group for Sidmouth, Mark Seward, president of Sidmouth & District Hospitality Association, and four residents: Mr Hand, John Radford, Martin McInerney and David Jeffrey.

Devon County Council will be represented by Councillor Stuart Hughes and Councillor Graham Liverton will be there as district portfolio holder environment.

"There would seem to be no-one officially from DCC or from the Environment Agency, National Trust or Natural England," said Mr Hand, who thought it might end up as EDDC/Royal Haskoning versus the rest on "technical grounds".

*Sidmouth Hospitality Association will hold a residents meeting on the subject at All Saints Hall, Sidmouth, from 7pm on May 1, to which councillors, possibly MP Hugo Swire and Vision Group representatives may be invited.