Thousands spent on legal fees amid worries over part of Blackpool sea wall

Concerns have been raised by residents and ward councillors about cracks in the sea wall which was completed by contractor Balfour Beatty in 2017.

Anchorsholme councillor Tony Williams said the spending on legal advice indicated there were issues still to be resolved.

He said: "The council has not shared details of the issues or the reason why we are in litigation with Balfour Beaty, but it's very worrying when parts of the sea defence in Anchorsholme have already eroded.

"The situation is extremely worrying as storm season will soon be upon us.

"Any potential breaches by the sea could undo all the efforts by the council and the Environment Agency to keep Blackpool flood free.

"This needs sorting as a matter of urgency."

Last November John Blackledge, Blackpool Council director for community and environmental services, said the wall was holding firm and Balfour Beatty was continuing to assess the situation.

He said annual inspections had not shown "any visible signs of deterioration to the sea wall or highway and it is providing a significant barrier to potential flooding."

Neverthless he added that Balfour Beatty were "still responsible for the works and we continue to push them to complete those works.”

Although money has been spent on legal advice, there are currently no court proceedings underway between the council and Balfour Beatty.

The total spend on consultants in 2021/22 is down from £3.9m the previous year and has mainly been spent on big projects which demand specialist advice.

A report to the tourism, economy and communities scrutiny committee says: "For some projects, the use of consultants is critical, taking the museum and the tramway extension as examples.

"In both cases, the funding we have received from external agencies requires us to appoint certain experts to ensure the security of the funding."

Spending on consultants also includes £434,000 in relation to the Winter Gardens conference centre, £385,000 for the tramway extension up Talbot Road, £282,000 for the Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone, £190,000 for the Showtown Museum, £158,000 for the Houndshill Centre, £129,000 for the Multiversity and £128,000 for Abingdon Street Market.