Purpose

The Dovercourt Leading Lights and Causeway are
Tendring District Council owned assets listed on the Historic
England Heritage at Risk Register as Scheduled Ancient Monuments
(entry number 1017200), first listed in October 1975 with a further
update in November 2022 listing their conditions as
‘declining and generally unsatisfactory with major localised
problems’.
To enable a project of this complexity and scale to be managed
effectively from a time, cost, resourcing and care of restoration
perspective, it has been split into two key phases: ‘Phase 1
– Condition and Structural Survey’ to provide a full
and thorough analysis including all costs, and ‘Phase 2
– Full Restoration Works’.
Phase 1 - Condition and Structural Survey
Initial phase 1 survey has been completed, with a final report now
received. Upon full assessment, it became apparent that due to
shifting and rising shorelines over time, the legs of the
structures could be up to 3 metres buried in the sand. Therefore,
surveyors were unable to assess this aspect of the structures.
Additional exploratory works and assessments are required to
further de-risk this project and ascertain the condition of the
legs that are unsighted, creating a ‘Phase 1b - Condition and
Structural Survey of the unsighted legs’.
Potential Funding Options – Phase 1b
In April 2024, Historic England wrote to inform us that our funding
application for ‘Phase 1b - Structural and Condition
survey’ had been successfully awarded £47,440 from
their Heritage at Risk Repairs Grant Fund, with the additional
£5,272 identified from underspend from Dovercourt Leading
Lighthouse and Causeway ‘Phase 1a_Structural and Condition
Survey’. Officers request approval to accept the grant
awarded by Historic England. Furthermore Officers request an
exemption to procurement for the award of contract.
The Dovercourt Leading Lighthouse Restoration is listed within the
Heritage Strategy and fundraising for the restoration is listed as
a key aim in Tendring District Council’s Corporate Plan
aligning to the theme of promoting our heritage offer.

Content

To accept funding awarded by Historic England
to the amount of £47,440 to continue the structural and
condition work on the Dovercourt Leading Lighthouse and Causeway
(identified as ‘Phase 1b_Structural and Condition Survey of
Unsighted Legs’), and to proceed with the exemption to
procurement.