Sea defences remedial works

In 1976, the Borough Council of Hastings, on the South coast of England, undertook the first stage of reinforcement works to the 19^th century Harbour Arm, with partial funding assistance from the UK's then Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries & Food and from the EEC (FEOGA) (precursor of the European Union).

A gap in the inner section of the Arm was closed by a bank of 7½ tonne "Stabit" precast concrete wave armour units, supported by a heavy reinforced-concrete grillage panel. The Contract, carried out by Dean & Dyball (acquired in 2008 by Balfour Beatty plc), concluded with some local replenishment of the beach, using imported shingle.

This modest contract was Andrew Sadleir's first assignment as a Resident Engineer.

A crucial operation in the Works, captured here by a local press photographer, is depicted on the cover of Outlook, house magazine of consulting engineers Sir William Halcrow & Partners (now part of ch2m).

The Harbour Arm shelters an old-established fishing beach, the Stade - for more background, visit the Hastings Fishermen's Protection Society website.

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One of the Stade's most likeable (and brave) characters was the then Coxswain and Mechanic of the RNLI's Hastings Lifeboat, Joe Martin (obit. 2012), to whose worthy memory this page is respectfully dedicated.