Keith Davies investigates the curious incident of the village green in a harbour
On 18 December 2008, Newhaven Town Council (a parish council in all but name) applied to East Sussex County Council, as the local registration authority for town and village greens, to register West Beach in Newhaven Harbour, which they did. This is a sand bank in the narrow estuary of the River Ouse, covered by the tide at high water but uncovered at other times when it is enjoyed by holiday-makers as a sandy beach. This narrow estuary is the harbour for the Newhaven–Le Havre international car and passenger ferry traffic, belonging to Newhaven Port and Properties Ltd (NPP) as harbour authority.
NPP objected that any such registration would “fetter” their powers to manage, repair, alter and improve the harbour, eg in the likely event of having to partially reconstruct the breakwater on the western side of the estuary (work which will be needed in the not too distant future). West Beach is situated against the breakwater, from which steps lead
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