Work begins on repairing Sidmouth's sea defences

For the next six to eight weeks, Sidmouth's beaches will be a hive of activity. Work is being carried out to move large loads of shingle that's gathered on the west beach back to the east beach.

East Devon District Council's secured £100,000 for this work from the Environment Agency.

But it's this very work residents who live on Cliff Road above East Beach say has robbed the beach, directly below their homes, of around five metres of protective shingle.

Paul Griew says when he bought his house in 1997, the rate of erosion was around 10cm a year. Since the creation of groynes, that's gone up to around a metre a year.

Paul says this isn't just about his home but with the cliff face eroding at this rate, the protection it offers the town from prevailing conditions is, he says being compromised and Sidmouth itself could be at a greater risk of flooding.

For now though, weather permitting this work should be completed by the end of February.

Watch the full report by Claire Manning here: