Welcome to this month’s update! 

Thank you to everyone who has submitted questions so far. Your feedback is invaluable and helps us shape our communications.

In this edition the focus is on the upcoming vegetation clearance pre-construction enabling works which are due to commence during Summer 2026.

We’ll save Meet the Team for the next issue.

We hope you find this newsletter helpful and we’d be grateful if you shared it with friends, neighbours, family and visitors.

We’d also love to hear from you—what information would you like, and how often? If you have questions or feedback, please email LangstoneCoastalScheme@havant.gov.uk

Planning Committee Decision - 25th June

Havant Borough Council’s Planning Committee unanimously voted to approve the planning application for The Langstone Coastal Scheme.  Before granting final planning permission, the Council need to notify the Secretary of State that it proposes to grant permission based on a Habitat Regulation Assessment. This assessment identifies the local habitat in the area and reports on any negative outcomes.

The Committee accepted that the mitigation and controls within the planning conditions were appropriate and that wider benefits of the scheme outweighed this adverse impact.

The Council will now need wait for a 21-day period, or for the Secretary of State to notify them that it need not wait before granting planning permission. 

Preconstruction Enabling Works - Commencing Summer 2026 

Vegetation clearance, reptile management & nesting birds

 Before construction of the new coastal defences can begin, we need to carry out vegetation clearance in selected areas of the scheme footprint. These works are due to start mid to late August, and we will confirm the actual dates a couple of weeks before the start. We will need to close a short section of the Billy Line from the junction with Mill Road to Langstone Road (opposite The Ship Inn end) for up to one week whilst we carry out these works.

The ecological surveys undertaken to support the planning application identified the presence of reptiles (slow worms and common lizards) in the construction work areas. To enable construction works to begin in April 2027, any reptiles present within the work areas must be safely relocated before October 2026, when they typically enter hibernation.

To safely relocate reptiles, vegetation needs to be cleared gradually, by cutting in stages over a period of weeks. Ecologists will be present throughout the process to carefully search for and translocate reptiles to suitable areas outside the construction areas.  

These areas will be protected either through temporary reptile fencing or by maintaining short-cut vegetation.

Following vegetation clearance works, some areas will look noticeably different and more open than they do today. We understand this change may be significant for those who regularly use and enjoy these spaces. However, clearance will be limited to the areas required for the works and will always be kept to the minimum necessary.

The maps above show where some of these initial works will take place along sections of the Billy Line and in the fields north of Langstone High Street.

As these works will take place during the breeding bird season, a qualified ecologist will also monitor the works for nesting birds.

Only the vegetation required to safely complete the reptile mitigation works will be removed during this period. The remaining clearance will be carried outside the main bird nesting season, which will include areas along Frontage 1A (Billy Line) and additional areas in Frontage 5. Within Frontage 5, vegetation clearance has been carefully planned to avoid disturbance to the nearby egret and heron colony. Works in these sensitive areas will not begin before November 2026 and will be overseen by an ecologist.

While these changes are necessary to enable construction of the coastal defences, they will be temporary. Once construction is complete, the scheme will include new landscaping and habitat enhancements, helping the area continue to support wildlife. We will provide further details of these improvements in a future newsletter but in the meantime, the proposed landscaping plans submitted as part of the planning application can be viewed at: Planning Application: APP/25/00162 then look for 'Site Clearance Plans Jan 2026'.

The FAQs are particularly helpful and have been developed from previous community engagement. The answer to your question(s) may already be there. If not, please use the dedicated email address, where you will receive a reply, and we will continue to update the FAQS to help others.