A NATIONAL PROBLEM

Margate’s mixed fortunes are just one example of the problem’s facing Britain’s ‘bucket-and-spade’ resorts. While a few have experienced a resurgence, often linked to new art and culture establishments, many are struggling. As the government’s Future of Seaside Town’s report published this April noted: ‘The British seaside has been perceived as a sort of national embarrassment.’

‘It is perhaps surprising to learn that 15 of the top 20 most deprived communities in the UK are coastal,’ says Stephen Essex, associate professor of geography at the University of Plymouth. ‘Resorts no longer attract holiday makers for one or two week holidays, but have become much more dependent on short breaks and day visits. The impacts of this change are spatially uneven, with growth focused on the south coast and smaller resorts in the southwest, while the larger, traditional resorts, such as Blackpool, experienced considerable contraction in tourism-related employment.’ In September, government figures showed that eight of the ten most deprived neighborhoods in England are in Blackpool. Stephen points to the infrastructural problems created as 19th century buildings and amenities decline, poor transport links and a government regeneration policy that has typically focused on large port towns. But he also notes that too heavy a focus on nostalgia can be damaging. ‘Local leadership in resorts influenced by large, retired populations can become ultra-conservative and unwilling to encourage radical change,’ he says. ‘Emotional attachment and nostalgia for how resorts “used to be” can prevent tough decisions being made about their future.’