Last few places: Sandscapes: celebrating the natural and cultural capital of coastal landscapes, 11th & 12th October, Southport

The last few places are still available at the North West Coastal Forum’s Biennial Coastal Conference so we’ve extended booking until Friday 7th October.

This year our conference is being run as a joint event with the Sefton Coast Landscape Partnership. It’s free-to-attend event and includes a full day field trip to the Sefton coast on the 11th October, with a full day conference at Southport’s flagship museum and gallery – The Atkinson – on 12th October in Southport. An informal conference dinner (at a cost to delegates of £20 and £25 depending on number of courses chosen) is being held on the evening of the 11th.

For more information and to register your place download the conference flyer and programme, both available below:

Background to the event

Cultural and natural capital are increasingly being recognised as key drivers for economic growth and sustainable development. This is reflected in a range of policy and strategy coming forward both locally and nationally. Working in partnership at the landscape scale is recognised as a valuable approach to managing complex wide-scale issues. It shares many aspects of integrated coastal management and so can be particularly useful in a coastal setting where the dynamic nature of the coast and its natural processes pose particular challenges – and opportunities – for local communities, coastal managers and everyone who visits and enjoys the coast.

The Sefton Coast Landscape Partnership Scheme ran from 2011 to 2015 and was a great success, raising the profile of natural and cultural coastal assets and getting local people involved in exploring, recording and enjoying the richness of Sefton’s coastal heritage. Morecambe Bay’s Headlands to Headspace is still running and is another great North West example of this kind of partnership working, and there are other great examples elsewhere such as Touching the Tide in Suffolk. Accordingly this conference and its associated field trip are designed to:

– Demonstrate the benefits of working at the landscape scale and in partnership by showcasing the work and achievements of coastal Landscape Partnerships:

• The Sefton Coast Landscape Partnership
• Headlands to Headspace – Morecambe Bay’s Landscape Partnership
• Touching the Tide – Suffolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’s Landscape Partnership

– Explore the value of the natural and cultural assets of the coast and their links to growth, prosperity and wellbeing, explaining the concept of natural and cultural capital and ecosystem services and how these can be used.

– Celebrate the achievements of individuals, community groups and organisations/businesses with the North West Awards for Coastal Excellence – categories include Coastal Champion, Coastal Community Action and Coastal Best Practice

Value of attending:

The event is designed to help you gain a greater understanding of the value of working in partnership at the landscape scale and the concepts of natural and cultural capital and ecosystems services. We hope you will be inspired by the work of the partnerships and what they have achieved, and by the work and commitment of the NW ACE winners. On Tuesday the 11^th October there will be an optional field trip to the Sefton coast to see the coastal landscape and its assets and challenges, and discuss the SCLP achievements with the project staff and partner organisations, in particular the National Trust who are hosting a guided walk. There will also be an informal networking dinner.