Category: Blog

Seven beaches in Tendring have been handed prestigious awards by Keep Britain Tidy – including three of the top Blue Flags.

Beaches at Brightlingsea, Dovercourt Bay, Harwich, Frinton, Walton-on-the-Naze and the town’s Albion beach, and Martello Bay in Clacton have all been given Seaside Awards in recognition of their quality.

In addition the beaches at Dovercourt Bay, Brightlingsea and Walton’s Albion beach kept their Blue Flag status, which Walton was awarded for the first time last year.

It means all Tendring seafronts have kept their accreditation from 2020.

Alex Porter, Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Tourism at Tendring District Council (TDC), said the awards were well-deserved recognition of the beauty of the area’s seafronts.

“The Essex Sunshine Coast is stunning, a brilliant asset for residents, visitors and the whole tourism industry,” Councillor Porter said.

“Recognising this is why we invest so much into them, with our Beach Patrol service in the high season, regular improvements to seafronts and promenades, or creating and protecting them with new beaches and cliff stabilisation projections.

“The awards are a great advert for the Essex Sunshine Coast, and it must be recognised that it is not easy to keep Blue Flag and Seaside Award status.

“Due to the Covid-19 restrictions we are anticipating a busy summer season – possibly the busiest ever – and these awards will boost that. We have been preparing for some time for this possible influx, and hope it will help our district get back to business.”

Keep Britain Tidy’s Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton OBE said: “This year, more than ever, we are going to be relying on our country’s beautiful beaches to escape for a much-needed break after all the stresses and strains of the past year.

“Last year, due to the pandemic, we did not have the opportunity to celebrate all the great award-winning beaches around the coast so this year we are delighted to have even more winners than we did in 2019, thanks to the incredible work of the teams around the country that make our beaches clean and safe for us all to enjoy.

“From environmental education for the local community and ensuring responsible beach use, to cleaning regimes and an increasing number of recycling facilities, it is a full-time commitment to create beaches worthy of these awards.

“As we all plan our 2021 holidays much closer to home, thanks to the Blue Flag and Seaside Award those choosing to holiday at a destination with an award-winning beach can be assured it will be clean and safe and meet the highest standards for water quality and management.”

Clacton residents and holidaymakers past and present are being asked to share their memories as part of an anniversary project.

This year the town celebrates its 150th anniversary, and a series of events and projects to mark the occasion are being held – helped with a £250,000 grant awarded in September 2020 from the National Heritage Lottery Fund

The year 1871 is seen as the founding of modern Clacton when a group of businessmen built the Pier and Royal Hotel to spark the creation of a new holidaymaker resort, with the town officially incorporated in 1872.

Now those working on the Clacton 150 project, which is taking place in the area from Jaywick Sands to Holland-on-Sea, want to hear your memories of the town – or even family links back to the founding in 1871 – ahead of activities this summer.

Councillor Alex Porter, Tendring District Council Cabinet Member for Leisure and Tourism, said: “We’re already working really closely with the Clacton and District History Society and other community groups, who are brilliantly supportive and helpful, but we also want to hear your personal stories.

“Whether it’s happy memories of going to Butlins, ice creams on the beach, watching a show on the Pier or going on the rides on the Pavilion – maybe the first ever Clacton Airshow – we want to hear your stories. And if you have pictures – or even video – then so much the better.

“Your memories don’t have to go back 150 years, we’re looking to chart the town’s history since 1871 so anything from then to more modern times is welcomed.”

Anne Jenkins, Director, Midlands and East, National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “We are delighted to support this project which, thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, will mean that more people will be able to get involved with, protect, and learn about the exciting heritage right on their doorstep.”

Information provided will be used as part of the heritage trail around the town, and could also form part of listening benches or other exhibitions.

People can share their stories and pictures by emailing clacton150@tendringdc.gov.uk or posting them for the attention of Clacton 150 to: Town Hall, Station Road, Clacton, Essex, CO15 1SE. Please include a stamped address envelope so items can be returned afterwards.

For details on how the council will hold the data supplied, visit https://www.tendringdc.gov.uk/council/your-right-know/data-protection-privacy-notice-and-cookies.

Visit our Clacton 150 web page  or Clacton 150 Facebook page for further information.

Up to £70,000 of grant funding is now open for applications across two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Essex and Suffolk.   Closing 17^th May 2021.

The Sustainable Development Fund opens to applications for projects that benefit the Coast & Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty or the Dedham Vale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. 

The Sustainable Development Fund is available to a variety of community and conservation organisations (or individuals) to support projects for the conservation and enhancement of the Coast & Heaths AONB and the Dedham Vale AONB.

The AONB is seeking applications from local community projects that are innovative, socially inclusive, sustainable, that benefit the public and involve partnership working.

Whether you have a project that works in the arts, media, conservation, learning, heritage, food, health, accessibility, and diversity, to give you but a few examples, we welcome your applications.

There is no limit to the amount of funding projects can apply for.  In 2020-21 the Sustainable Development Fund awarded in the region of £500 to £4,700 per project.  In 2020-21 the Sustainable Development Fund supported 43 projects across the AONBs.  Previous projects that have been funded by the Sustainable Development Fund include climate change awareness courses, art workshops for tackling men’s mental health, training for canoe trips, and improving access to nature for people on the autistic spectrum.

The following grant is now open for applications:

Sustainable Development Fund  – For projects in a defined geographical area covering both AONBs.  Applications to be received by 17^th May 2021 for projects running between July 2021 and end of March 2022.

Coast & Heaths AONB Sustainable Development Fund

Dedham Vale AONB Sustainable Development Fund

Applicants need not necessarily come from, or be based in, the AONB. However, projects must further the conservation and enhancement of the AONB.

The Sustainable Development Fund is a fund provided by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to enable local communities and other organisations to make a difference in AONBs by promoting and achieving sustainable development, partnership, and social inclusion.

These projects focus on integrating the environment, local communities, and the economy so that the unique landscape of the AONB is conserved and its natural beauty enhanced, making it more enjoyable for all.

The closing date for applications to be received for the Sustainable Development Fund is Monday 17^th May 2021. For more information, visit suffolkcoastandheaths.org or dedhamvalestourvalley.org or contact Oka Last, Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Grants Officer, on 01394 445225 or AONBgrants@suffolk.gov.uk.

For 10 weeks in this summer of 2021, the Octopus Ahoy! art sculptures will form a public art trail across Harwich, Tendring and the wider Essex area to celebrate the Mayflower 400™️ project and 150 Years of Clacton.

The art trail, featuring 30 4ft-by-4ft octopus sculptures, can be followed on the Octopus Ahoy! app (free to download on iPhone and Android); every time you reach an octopus and GPS picks up your location (or you scan the QR code on the plinth of the sculpture), you earn a prize!

These large octopus sculptures will be auctioned towards the end of the project with all profits going to Essex-based charities.

More information about downloading the app will be posted soon – keep an eye out on the Octopus Ahoy! website and social media pages.

The smaller 2ft-by-2ft octopus sculptures from the education programme will also be available to follow on the art trail app, and are to be hosted in internal locations throughout the summer – but no app prizes will be awarded for these. They will be returned to their schools/community groups at the end of the project.

The project, in partnership with Tendring District Council and the Harwich Tourism Group, is being created and delivered, on behalf of Mayflower 400™️ and 150 Years of Clacton, by KAT Marketing, a full, dynamic, creative agency with a longstanding background in events.

Delivering digital and traditional marketing campaigns in Essex, London and across the East of England, KAT Marketing was the driving force behind the highly acclaimed Stand Tall for Giraffes campaign in 2013, which marked Colchester Zoo’s 50th birthday, and its ongoing legacy for the town. An amazing £115,400 was raised for charity from the auction of the giraffe sculptures.

The KAT Marketing team is pleased to deliver and support the creation and implementation of Octopus Ahoy! for Mayflower 400™️, 150 Years of Clacton, and Harwich, Tendring and the wider Essex area.

WHAT IS A SCULPTURE PROJECT?
The concept of sculpture trails is known worldwide, having been staged throughout the UK, Europe and Africa – from Liverpool’s Superlambanana, Wenlock and Mandeville made famous throughout the 2012 Olympics and the huge international project that started it all, Cow Parade. These types of project provide a sense of community, give businesses – and the public – the chance to be imaginative and embrace art on a large scale and above all, they’re fun!

Other local projects in recent years include Stand Tall for Giraffes for Colchester Zoo’s 50th birthday, and Pigs Gone Wild and Elmer’s Parade in Ipswich for St Elizabeth Hospice.

Octopus Ahoy! will join the list of vibrant community art projects that paved the way… a free activity for one and all to enjoy in the summer months – and all for a very worthy cause!

CELEBRATIONS IN TENDRING FOR THE SUMMER OF 2021
From 150 years of Clacton through to 400 years of Mayflower (401!) the Octopus Ahoy! project is nearly here! We are ready to provide post lockdown joy in the area and the very best stay-cation summer entertainment ever! The Octopus Ahoy! app has amazing prizes and rewards from locals and national companies in the area – grab yourself a free afternoon tea by enjoying just 5 of the octopus and scanning their QR codes on the base of the sculptures. Celebrate art, help business and enjoy the educational benefits of this project this summer.

 

The new Code allows people of all ages and backgrounds to enjoy the health and wellbeing benefits that nature offers, while giving it the respect it deserves.

A new, refreshed Countryside Code has been launched today by Natural England and Natural Resources Wales, coinciding with the 70th anniversary of the creation of the founding booklet.

With more people enjoying the outdoors than ever before, the code has been revised to help people enjoy countryside in a safe and respectful way.

The first Countryside Code booklet was published in 1951. This update – the first in over a decade – has been shaped by nearly 4,000 stakeholder responses to an online survey, which sought views on best practices for visiting the countryside and protecting the natural environment and saw a huge response.

Changes include advice on creating a welcoming environment, for example by saying hello to fellow visitors; clearer rules to underline the importance of clearing away dog poo; staying on footpaths; and not feeding livestock. It also provides advice on how to seek permissions for activities such as wild swimming.

Key changes to the Countryside Code include:

New advice for people to ‘be nice, say hello, share the space’ as well as ‘enjoy your visit, have fun, make a memory’.

A reminder not to feed livestock, horses or wild animals.

To stay on marked footpaths, even if they are muddy, to protect crops and wildlife.

Information on permissions to do certain outdoor activities, such as wild swimming.

Clearer rules for dog walkers to take home dog poo and use their own bin if a there are no public waste bins.

A refreshed tone of voice, creating a guide for the public rather than a list of rules – recognising the significant health and wellbeing benefits of spending time in nature.

New wording to make clear that the code applies to all our natural places, including parks and waterways, coast and countryside.

Natural England Chair Tony Juniper said:
The Countryside Code has been providing an excellent guide for people on how to get out and enjoy the outdoors safely for over 70 years.

With more people than ever before seeking solace in nature, this refresh could not come at a more crucial time. We want everyone to be aware of the Code, so people of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy the invaluable health and wellbeing benefits that nature offers, while giving it the respect it deserves.

Rural Affairs Minister Lord Gardiner said:
With so many people visiting the countryside, the Countryside Code has never felt more relevant. Crucially it now covers all green spaces, waterways, the coast and even parks in towns and cities, so that everyone, as we lift restrictions, can enjoy a greener future.

I’d like to thank Natural England and all the many stakeholders who helped shape this updated version. It is an excellent guide and I urge visitors to nature – old and new – to follow its advice.

Ahead of the Easter weekend and the easing of some lockdown restrictions it is expected to be bumper period for visitors to the countryside. In the summer of 2020, the Countryside Code was updated to respond to issues that were being raised during lockdown, such as an increase in littering and sheep worrying by dogs. Today’s refresh aims to help everyone enjoy parks and open spaces in a safe way, whilst encouraging them to look after our natural environments and the livelihoods of those who work there.

The pandemic has changed people’s relationships with nature. Evidence from Natural England shows the importance of nature to people’s health and wellbeing, with 85% of people surveyed saying that being in nature makes them happy.

Natural England’s People and Nature survey findings however show some groups have been able to spend more time in nature than others. Promotion of the refreshed Code will aim to tackle those inequalities and encourage more inclusive access to nature for minority communities and those with diverse physical and sensory needs. This will be done via targeted stakeholder and media promotion, and through partnership work such as Natural England’s work with the Mosaic Charity to encourage people from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities to access the Peak District National Park, and the recently announced green social prescribing sites.

As part of this announcement, Natural England are also setting up a long-term Countryside Code campaign to increase awareness of the Code through 2021 and beyond. The campaign will focus on encouraging behavioural change amongst public audiences to act responsibly when visiting outdoors, by respecting those who manage the land and adhering to the Code.

The updated Countryside Code can be viewed here.

 

(Published by www.gov.uk 1st April 2021)

The National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) are funding a seafront heritage trail in Tendring from Jaywick Sands to Holland Haven but also incorporating Clacton town centre to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the founding of Clacton-on-Sea.

The trail will cover over 5 miles of beautiful coastline and engage with local schools, elder care settings and wider community to be active and promote health and wellbeing whilst learning the local history, it will also include new technology to help bring this to life. This will be a fun and engaging way to convey Clacton’s story.

Listening benches and audio posts will also be added to join and connect individuals with the stories of Clacton through the years.

There are many other projects linked with the trail and celebratory events are being planned for later in the year.