Epic pictures of the sea defence works in Southsea to double the size of the beach - with part of it reopened

Huge progress has been made over works to double the size of Southsea Beach with the team continuing works to import shingle onto the beach near South Parade Pier.

The Southsea Coastal Defence team is working day and night to import over a million tonnes of shingle onto the beach which is increasing the usable size of the beach as the primary sea defence for the area.

Eventually this will continue along the beach all of the way from the Pyramids to The Coffee Cup in Eastney, with the dredger carrying approximately 10,000 cubic metres of beach material per load.

The team are focusing their efforts on the area to the east of South Parade Pier behind the Southsea Beach Cafe, however the team has been able to reopen around 200m of beach to the west of South Parade Pier, in between the pictured fence lines.

A Southsea Coastal Defence spokesperson said: “Members of the public are advised to not pass the fences at the low water line and to stay clear of the sinker line near the rock groyne and our storage area near South Parade Pier.

“The beach will be temporarily closed again for around a week from 18 December as we start dismantling the pipes that have been used to import the shingle here. Thank you for your patience over this time, enjoy the beach!”

Pictures by My Portsmouth By Drone:

News you can trust since 1877
Follow us
© 2026 Iconic Media Group Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice