Who owns the beach in front of my house

[Beachlife55]

Anyone know anything about the use of the foreshore? I live next door but one to a restaurant and face the beach. The restaurant have just put 2 huge tables wit attached seating so not moveable, along with windbreak and parasols, on the beach directly in front of my house. I asked the Planning department and they said the restaurant was fine to do this as it's an area that people socialise in already. They already have tables on the pathway in front of their restaurant. To me this sounds dodgy and I am trying to pursue it by finding out about beach ownership. I think I read somewhere that the property owner owns the beach above the high water mark in front of their house, and the Crown owns it between high and low water mark. And it can't be used for commercial purposes. Looking for advice before I take this further but don't know what to do next.

As previous posters have said, this may not actually be on the foreshore. You can have a look at a map of the area to see who owns any particular bit of land.

A PP gave an example of what these maps look like. You can search here:

https://search-property-information.service.gov.uk/search/map-search/find-by-map

or alternatively here:

https://www.landregistry-uk.com/map-search

which gives you an "Inspire ID" which you can then use to search here:

https://search-property-information.service.gov.uk/search/search-by-inspire-id

You can really zoom in, especially on the land registry map.

It will then cost you £3 to order the title deeds and that will give you details of who owns that particular bit of land where the tables are.

I would say that the council owns the land (technically, even though the Crown may in theory). In any case I would have thought they'd need to put through a planning permission request to use the area as an extension of their business - and you should have got a notification through the post.

Definitely speak to your local councillor. This is their jurisdiction and they should be able to advise you.

I don't have the beach frontage you have but have had pubs as neighbours. When it came to the local council, Planning was useless but Licencing had real teeth. Does your area have Licencing officers? It's their duty to intervene on behalf of neighbours affected by noise and anti-social behavior. In case this helps (point three under 'in practice' https://stupidhospitalityquestions.com/what-should-you-know-before-the-licensing-officer-visit/) LOs need a complaint in order to act.

We need a diagram or a photograph or both!!!

Another one who can’t really help but wanted to give solidarity. Outrageous behaviour from them.

I would definitely second having another go at planning as it’s so easy to get a different answer on a different day from a different person particularly at the moment.

This sort of thread is Mumsnet at its best with so many knowledgeable people.

Also here for the diagram……

Put your own table and chair out and sit on the beach with a glass of wine and a carafe, like Shirley Valentine.

Or keep throwing their table and chairs into the sea and say the tide came in.

Same 😂😂😂

I would be all over this – pass the parcel round the table, volleyball over the table, a photography meet taking pictures of the table and the beach behind it, I mean I guess you can sit on the table if they’ve put it in an area designed for public socialising 🤷🏻

Another vote for contacting your councillor; they love to involve themselves in things like this, but best just hope they're not friends or relatives of the business owners

^ Yep, this.

I'd love to see their H&S risk assessment for selling and serving food on the beach...

I know they are intimidating. So why not put an anonymous post on somewhere like MN with the location pointing out that the cafe are trying to claim public space, and encouraging people to reclaim it? I would happily take a barbecue down there for the day.

Not all beaches are owned by the Crown. There are privately owned beaches scattered around. Some even own up to the mid tide line as opposed to high water line.

Could you put your bins there?

If they can do it....so can you....so get your own table / chair right in front of theirs.
Or as others have said, just use it, nothing they can do about it, sign or no sign!
You could do all sorts on the beach - put up a fence around their tables!

A large multinational used to have a sign at the entrance to their vast car park in my town that read 'Trespassers will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law'. Intimidating for some but entirely meaningless.

@Beachlife55
@BoudiccaOfSuburbia

essentially this.

id keep removing their signs & eating dinner out there every night then tipping the table iver like a turtle (if you can) every night until it's sorted!!

@allwewant I feel an MN Summer Event coming on, don't you?

I can even borrow some kids & dogs for it!!

An MN summer event is a brilliant idea. We can all bring lots of children!

@PrimaDoner

thats just given me another idea!! If anyone can use the area for commercial purposes @Beachlife55 you could use their table for your own business, I offer up hair dressing/dog grooming...

Very nice of them to put out tables for you and your many friends to use at peak food times.

@Doesanyoneknowwhattheyaredoing

Do you have a link to one that'll stop teenagers loitering? It's going to be that or murder!!

I wouldn't mind so much but there's a great big bloody park virtually across the road!

im a bit nervous to tell them to shove off as I quite like my windows & car!!

Buckets of Comfrey in water are brilliant fertiliser after a few weeks/a entire summer season's worth of brewing.

They are incredibly smelly, though, so you'd need to keep them right at the bottom of your garden. If you have a cat, I'd strongly recommend compostable cat litter, too. That also needs to go as far down the end of your garden as possible for about six months.

I'd love to see the insurance liability on this, for staff and customers!!