Demolition works continue at 'iconic' Birling Gap Hotel café

The Birling Gap Hotel is within the property known as Crowlink, Birling Gap and Belle Tout, which is owned by The National Trust.

The National Trust plans to move its café and visitor centre to the rear of the building and has plans for the rest of the west wing of the building to be demolished.

Since the announcement, work has gone underway for the demolition of the site.

One eyewitness to the demolition Andrew Diack said: “In bitterly cold weather, the demolition team carefully removed the roof slates one by one in case any bats were roosting there.

“Daily inspections were made for bats but only one was reportedly seen in the vicinity. When work on the interior café infrastructure was finished, a new wall was built to act as the outside wall for the time when it would be needed.

“On January 16, the work became more mechanised and the landmark and much loved café building began to disappear from the iconic landscape of which it was once part.

“As I watched the demolition taking place, a lady bystander said to me “that she remembered her children playing football on the land in front of the hotel.”

Rock falls have closed Birling Gap Beach several times this year.

A National Trust spokeswoman said: “Through the course of this year we’ve been moving our café and visitor centre to the rear of the building, so that we can adapt to coastal change here and continue to welcome visitors to the café here.

"The final part of the process is taking place now, to take down the front of the building and keep it safe from future storms and cliff erosion. The building has the same footprint as before, with just the front section removed.

“The visitor building here at Birling Gap sits on a shoreline that's constantly changing due to rising sea levels, erosion and weathering.

"These natural processes have been occurring for centuries and have shaped Birling Gap and the Seven Sisters that are seen here today. The National Trust takes a long-term view to planning for the future by working with these coastal processes where possible.”