The seafront area of Clacton is the principal tourist attraction in the Tendring District. Its enhancement along with investment in its facilities and attractions is key to the wider rejuvenation of the town and its promotion as a 21st Century year-round resort.
In keeping with many other British seaside resorts, Clacton has experienced some challenges since the height of the tourism boom in the 1960s, but the desire to regenerate Clacton and reinvent the visitor experience for a 21st Century tourist has led to the development of a number of strategies for the town centre and seafront.
‘Celebrate-on-Sea: Putting the fun back into Clacton’ is our strategy for enhancing and promoting the town’s greatest asset, its seafront area. It identifies a number of interventions including public realm enhancements, development opportunities and marketing advice designed to bring Clacton into the 21st Century (see Useful Documents on the right of this page).
The proposals were prepared in partnership with architects Broadway Malyan and award-winning designers Wayne and Gerardine Hemingway MBE, following consultation with key stakeholders, local residents, businesses and visitors to the town.
The core objectives of the document are to:
- Create a distinctive destination and a unique Clacton brand;
- Encourage investment in new development and improvements to the seafront;
- Create new business and tourism opportunities;
- Improve pedestrian links between the station, town centre and the seafront;
- Enrich the existing character of the seafront and the town’s cultural heritage;
- Phase proposals to make best use of available funding and investment; and
- Promote a new image for the town.
“Clacton Seafront: A New Future 2012 – 2016, A Breath of Fresh Air” (see Useful Documents on the right of this page) identifies a number of projects and development opportunities designed to bring the town’s greatest asset, its seafront area, into the 21st Century. It is based on “Celebrate-on-Sea: Putting the fun back into Clacton”.
The Council has recently completed a number of seafront improvement projects and it has several others either underway or being developed as part of its regeneration programme. This new document seeks to integrate the ongoing regeneration programme with the forthcoming sea defence works to the Clacton and Holland-on-Sea frontage, exploiting opportunities as they arise. It demonstrates the council’s commitment to regenerating Clacton seafront and it will be used to support bids for external funding and to attract private sector investment.
