Scarborough Town Council To Hold Public Meeting Over Harbour Strategy Concerns

Scarborough's Mayor has announced a public meeting this Thursday evening to address mounting concerns over North Yorkshire Council's ten-year strategy for the region's harbours.

Scarborough Town Council is set to host a public meeting on Thursday evening to discuss the controversial draft harbour strategy for Scarborough, Whitby, and Filey.

The North Yorkshire Council Harbours Strategy 2026–2036 aims to transform the maritime gateways over the next decade. The comprehensive new draft strategy provides a ten-year roadmap to revitalise the harbours, alongside the historic Filey Coble Landing, turning them into safe, sustainable, and economically vibrant hubs.

However, the proposals have faced strong criticism from local residents, industry workers, and harbour users who feel they have not been adequately consulted. The draft strategy is currently in a period of formal public consultation, which is scheduled to run until 22 March 2026, with the council encouraging feedback via their website.

At a recent meeting of the coastal area committee, residents suggested that the almost 30-page policy was nothing but a desktop study. Councillors also raised concerns about plans for the development of Scarborough's West Pier and pressed the authority to commit to a boat lift on the ageing pier.

Scarborough Mayor, Councillor Thomas Murray, expressed his frustration ahead of the meeting.

He said:

"The town council is holding a public meeting on the harbour strategy.

One of the concerns, the many concerns we hear from harbour users and residents... is that they have not been consulted on it. Being asked to put comments in on a website just isn't good enough.

I did invite Chris Bourne and Mark Crane to this public meeting. However they declined to attend. So we're going to hold it anyway as a town council. I'm going to chair it.

We're going to go through the harbour strategy and take comments and questions for the public that we're going to document and then I will put to Chris Bourne in a separate meeting."

The strategy marks the first time a unified vision has been set for the locations following the local government reorganisation in 2023. It seeks to balance the preservation of rich maritime heritage with the necessity for modern innovation.

A significant portion of the strategy focuses on the potential for economic diversification, looking toward the burgeoning offshore renewables sector as a primary opportunity for growth. It identifies Scarborough's geographic position as particularly attractive for the offshore wind farm supply chain.

Despite these ambitions, local leaders argue that the region is falling behind.

Councillor Murray said:

"I just think North Yorkshire Council need to do more consultation with harbour users, with industry, to put industry first for the harbour. There's massive opportunities if you set out with the renewables industry and wind farms for our harbour. However it's been left to decay and decline through Scarborough Borough Council which North Yorkshire Council have inherited.

And this strategy if you think they were amalgamated in 2023 and it's now 2026, so it's 3 years for this harbour strategy to come out. And throughout those many years the harbour just continues to decay and decline.

North Yorkshire Council are missing the boat on this one. These opportunities we should have seized years ago in extending the pier and building the boat hoist and just getting on with it for Scarborough because that will bring jobs and opportunity."

Chris Bourne, the North Yorkshire Council Head of Harbours and Coastal Infrastructure, has previously been candid about the challenges facing these coastal assets. He acknowledged that the current state of the harbours is a result of long-term maintenance issues that the new council is determined to address.

The report accompanying the strategy highlights that the infrastructure has been in a period of decline due to ageing piers and structural issues, such as accelerated low water corrosion affecting steel piles.

The council is exploring the provision of a boat lift in Scarborough to allow for better vessel maintenance, which would prevent local boat owners from having to travel to Bridlington or further afield for essential repairs.

Thursday evening's meeting will provide an opportunity for the public to voice their opinions directly. The feedback gathered will then be presented to North Yorkshire Council as part of the ongoing consultation process.

The Harbour Strategy Meeting Public Forum is taking place on Thursday 19th March 2026 at 18:00 – 20:00 In the Ballroom at The Royal Hotel, St. Nicholas Street.

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