Bracklesham Bay

Bracklesham Bay is a coastal site of special scientific interest on the west side of the Manhood Peninsula in West Sussex. It faces the English Channel and offers views of the Isle of Wight, the Nab Tower lighthouse and the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth. The villages of Bracklesham and East Wittering lie in the centre of the bay, while Selsey borders it to the south-east and West Wittering to the west. The bay covers 200.6 hectares and includes unimproved grazing pastures, shingle, salt marsh, reed beds and ditches. Seasonal flooding supports breeding and overwintering birds, and the site contains fossil-rich Eocene beds with over 160 fish species. The Medmerry managed realignment scheme transformed part of the bay into an RSPB nature reserve. An earth embankment built in the 1960s was replaced after frequent flooding led to unsustainable conditions. Consultations in 2008 led to a new 7 km inland floodbank and breach in the shingle wall, completed in 2013. The £28 million project became Europe’s largest open-coast scheme and one of the Environment Agency’s most sustainable projects. Environmental artists Mark Antony Haden Ford and Rebecca Ford created a periwinkle art installation from willow and wire, sometimes mistaken for the poop emoji. Visitors find a landscape shaped by nature and human intervention. Salt marsh and reed beds provide habitats for birds, while the shingle and pastures support diverse wildlife. Fossil hunters can search the Eocene beds for remains of ancient fish. The Medmerry RSPB nature reserve offers walking trails and birdwatching opportunities along the new floodbank. Views stretch across the English Channel to the Isle of Wight and nearby landmarks. The bay remains a place where geology, ecology and coastal management come together.