A coastal holiday park is seeking permission to relocate dozens of caravans away from a cliff edge, to prevent them falling into the sea.

The static caravans at Woodhill Holiday Park, near East Runton, are at risk because of the threat posed by coastal erosion, with recent cliff falls making the situation "critical".

Under plans submitted to North Norfolk District Council (NNDC), the site's owners, Blue Sky Leisure (BSL), want to move them further inland, and demolish a toilet block and laundry building which are also close to the cliff edge.

The plans would see the caravans moved seven miles along the coast to another site owned by the company, Kelling Heath Holiday Park, in Weybourne, where it wants to create 40 new pitches for them.

Separately, the firm also wants to relocate 73 pitches for touring caravans on the western side of the Woodhill site, away from the cliff edge.

This is the second time BSL have had to relocate caravans from the cliff edge.

A previous 'rollback' scheme was used in the 1990s, with some of the threatened caravans moved to Kelling Heath.

A report to NNDC's planning department by John Long Planning Ltd said: "This represents the next phase of rollback and will ensure that the business will continue to operate and provide much needed holiday accommodation and employment in North Norfolk.

"The situation at Woodhill Holiday Park has recently become critical due to substantial cliff falls, which has effectively reduced the operational area of the holiday park.

“BSL, have for a number of years, been planning for and dealing with the effects of the cliff erosion due to the significant impact it has on the park and its operations.”

A coastal erosion vulnerability assessment to NNDC shows that the type of ground at the site can lead to sudden cliff slips which are “difficult to predict” but particularly likely to follow prolonged wet weather.

Eastern Daily Press: An aerial view of the coastal erosion at East Runton, taken in late 2017. Photo: BlueSky UAV SpecialistsAn aerial view of the coastal erosion at East Runton, taken in late 2017. Photo: BlueSky UAV Specialists (Image: BlueSky UAV Specialists)

The Kelling Heath scheme would see the loss of a "significant" number of trees in the Hundred Acre Wood area.

To mitigate the loss BSL is proposing tree planting at Squirrel Wood, near Kelling, which is also owned by the company.

The report to planners said the relocation was "critical" and would be less intrusive than creating permanent pitches on the Western Field at Woodhill.

It added: "BSL is confident that it can use its extensive experience of developing Holiday Parks in ecologically and visually sensitive landscapes to create an environmentally acceptable and viable development at the site proposed at Kelling Heath Holiday Park."