The eventual loss of the coast road at Slapton is inevitable and will change the lives and businesses of people in the surrounding South Hams parishes and towns forever.

Informed by an independent engineer's report, a partnership of local authorities and organisations concluded that a substantial breach of the Slapton road will become increasingly likely over the next 20-50 years and - although the timing is uncertain - storms will cause the route to be lost in the long term.

The Slapton Line Partnership of South Hams District Council (SHDC), Devon County Council and Natural England is committed to rebuilding any lesser breaches of the route to keep the A379 open for as long as possible.

However, with the loss now irrefutable, the focus is now on helping the affected residents and businesses to adapt to a future without the road.

Funding has been secured from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to support these communities in their preparations. An adaptation plan has been compiled with local community input setting out a wide range of actions to be tackled, from diversion signage and traffic routing to economic development and environmental tourism.

This funding was won by the Slapton Line Partnership after a national bidding round and is given as part of the government’s Making Space for Water strategy.

The three-year adaptation programme is to be managed by a new part-time project manager, Alan Denbigh, working with a new part-time communications officer, James Spencer, reporting to the partnership’s technical group.

This coincides both with the coming of a new Slapton Line Partnership chairman, SHDC strategic director for communities Alan Robinson, and a number of newly elected district councillors for the area.

Amongst other projects, the funding will help to provide road signage for alternative routes, an up-to-date website, improved communications to the public in the event of a breach, and planning by service and transport providers.

This article appears in the South Hams, the glossy magazine of the SHDC. The council has kindly given permission to 999Kingsbridge to publish the story.