The Pier decking needs to be replaced in its entirety due to its current condition.

The decking is rotting from within meaning it is only detected when a timber piece
snaps. The Council employed a specialist timber expert who devised a
programme of works and the specification of timber. The replacement decking
will have to be done in several phases.

Southport Pier is a grade II listed structure, the oldest cast iron pier in England
and the second longest in the UK, second to Southend Pier. The asset is a critical element to Southport’s visitor economy along with the wider economy of the Borough.

The Council sets aside an amount of funding each year towards a sinking fund
that is intended for periodic repairs and replacement works such as those
specified above. It will be necessary to add an additional £91,256 during 2022/23
to fund the decking project as the current balance on the fund is insufficient to
cover the full cost. Future annual contributions to the sinking fund will be reduced
to reflect the additional contribution in 2022/23 to ensure there is no additional
cost to the Council.

Council is therefore recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate
of £206,053.

This is likely to be approved at the next full Council meeting on May 17th.

Council is therefore recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate of £206,053.

That's peanuts when you think of the Strand in Bootle.

Originally the deck boards would have been made of oak - the life time of deckboards is now said to be around 20 Years; Below is part of the Report on Southend Pier in Essex:

"Timber deck board refurbishment. The timber deck is an important part of the structure of the pier as it provides lateral restraint to the longitudinal beams and distributes the load between the anchor bays. A separate survey of the decking has been carried out by a timber specialist. This concludes that, in this exposed location, the beams can be expected to have a life of only 20 years. Most of the pier deck boards are reaching the end of their serviceable life with many boards showing signs of rot especially around the fixing bolts. Previously in recent years, aside from areas affected by fire, only localised repairs have been carried out to the deck, however, the lack of strength in the deck as a whole is now a concern and it is now considered that it is time to undertake a more extensive replacement programme to ensure the future stability of the structure and reduce the strain on the historic ironwork that remains. The new boards will be kerunig hardwood with a tighter tek screw fixing which has been designed to prevent water ingress into the timber around the fixing which is where most of the current boards have failed. The dimensions and arrangement of the new decking will match the existing. "

What's the betting a lot of these boards will be spirited away and sold.

Originally Posted by local

What's the betting a lot of these boards will be spirited away and sold.

What will happen to the memory plaques donated by the public at the previous refurbishment ? I presume they will be kept.

Originally Posted by local

What's the betting a lot of these boards will be spirited away and sold.

Yeah, there must be a huge black market for rotting planks of wood.

Originally Posted by donkey22

Yeah, there must be a huge black market for rotting planks of wood.

Walked down there last weekend. Not much is rotting underfoot. I hope all those brass plaques people paid for last time get relocated to the new timbers.

Originally Posted by hja

What will happen to the memory plaques donated by the public at the previous refurbishment ? I presume they will be kept.

They will be unscrewed from the rotting timber boards and screwed into the replacement boards.

Originally Posted by ECHOEONE

Walked down there last weekend. Not much is rotting underfoot. .

Did you read the second sentence of the article?

Originally Posted by salus.populi

Did you read the second sentence of the article?

Yes I did but the point stands. As for the entire pier timbers rotting from within not so long after the last time they were replaced? From what? Weevil words! Did they use lolly sticks last time!

Originally Posted by donkey22

Yeah, there must be a huge black market for rotting planks of wood.

Go and have a look there are thousands of metres of usable timber.

Originally Posted by salus.populi

They will be unscrewed from the rotting timber boards and screwed into the replacement boards.

Do you know that or are you just assuming it?

I hope you are right, but someone could make a few bob by selling them.

Incidentally, they are not just screwed onto the decking a plaque size recess is cut in the board and the plaque is inserted so it is flush with the wood surface.