The Outstrays - February 2026 Update

Update on Skeffling and Winestead Pumping Stations

After a great construction season last year, JBA Bentley staff were able to finish building Skeffling pumping station in November, on time and according to their work schedule. The pumps were then tested in December and responsibility for their operation is due to be handed over to the Environment Agency this month or in March. The pumps have been specially designed to be eel friendly, allowing mature eels to migrate from the drains on site to the Sargasso Sea to spawn, but also allowing returning juvenile eels to safely pass from the sea to freshwater in Soak Drain. In recognition of this achievement, JBA Bentley manager Rob Culledge was invited to make a presentation about designing and building less damaging pumps at a European Knowledge Transfer conference in November last year.

The new pumping station at Skeffling in December 2025, with a pond in the foreground, created to enhance the range of habitats on site

In April demolition of the existing pumping station at Skeffling will begin with preparatory work commencing in March. Once this task is completed, the works compound off Long Lane will be removed. Part of the existing tarmacked site compound will then be turned into a public car park, big enough to hold 20 cars. In the autumn this year a plot next to the car park will be planted with seedlings of deciduous trees including maple, apple, cherry and oak and then surrounded by a hedgerow of hawthorn, blackthorn, holly and guelder rose. Deer proof fencing will be used around this to protect the young seedlings.

JBA Bentley staff will also install the two remaining interpretation panels for the site. One will be placed in the new car park and the last one on the embankment, close to the old Skeffling pumping station, offering a map of the site to guide visitors around it.

Work on Winestead pumping station will also restart in early March, with JBA Bentley staff returning to site at the end of February to prepare for the new construction season. If the weather is favourable and everything goes to plan, this pumping station should be completed by the end of the year. JBA Bentley will then return in 2027 to demolish the existing Winestead pumping station, once the new one is fully operational.

Access on The Outstrays: Paths and Bridleways

At both pumping station sites, we will still need to put in place some access restrictions this year to ensure the safety of all visitors to The Outstrays. These are described below.

a) From the Eastern (Skeffling) end of the scheme In the last newsletter we mentioned our intention to remove the existing diversion onto Long Lane and open up the bridleway along the embankment, once work on the new Skeffling pumping station was completed. Currently there is a gate across the embankment top, and directions for walkers to follow the diversion to avoid going past the new pumping station. However, this change has been delayed as we must work out a design that will meet required bridleway standards of access whilst limiting vehicle access on top of the embankment. We have met with ERYC’s Public Right of Way officer to finalise plans for this and intend to open up the route along the embankment after the old pumping station is demolished. This route will not be suitable for disabled visitors; instead, wheelchair users and other disabled visitors should follow the route to the bridleway from the new Skeffling car park.

The gate across the embankment at Skeffling pumping station, in place until after the pumping station is demolished

The demolition of the old Skeffling pumping station in April this year should not affect public access along this section of the bridleway for site users. Our contractors will manage the site very carefully to maintain access and meet public safety standards whilst the work is carried out and the car park on the dry side of the embankment will still be open. However, visitors will no longer be able to park their cars on top of the embankment whilst the demolition is carried out.

b) From the Western (Outstrays) end

At some point later on this year, we anticipate that the track to the existing Winestead pumping station will need to be temporarily closed to the public. This is because the excavation of inlet and outlet channels to and from the new pumping station will cut cross this path to connect to Winestead Drain, resulting in vehicles working on the track. This work is likely to be in the summer / autumn months. We know that the track is a popular route for walkers and so hope to reopen it at the end of October this year, once the new pumping station is built. However, we’ll probably need to close it again in 2027 when work to demolish the old pumping station begins. We’ll provide more information about any restrictions here after plans for this year’s construction are finalised.

Whilst work on the new Winestead pumping station continues during 2026, we will need to divert a section of the King Charles III England Coast Path (ECP) on Sunk Island around Outstrays Farm. We are currently working with ERYC officers and our contractors to develop a route for this and will give details of this diversion later in the year.

c) Around the Wet Grassland Area and Haverfield The current route for the diversion of the ECP at Outstrays Farm (shown in darker blue on the map to the right), avoiding the small bridge over Winestead Drain, will continue until next year. In spite of this, the boundary track around the wet grassland area (shown in turquoise) remains open for now. However, this will be closed to the public when work begins to strengthen this bridge in 2027. After this work is completed, the ECP diversion will be permanently removed, avoiding the long trek to Patrington Haven and down Mulberry Lane. You can find an up-to-date version of the route for this section of the coast path at the ECP interactive website; King Charles III England Coast Path - North East Map and Information - National Trails. Just click on the map for the trail running from the Humber Bridge to Easington and enlarge the section from Sunk Island to Skeffling to see the route (turquoise line shown above). This is the approved route around the managed realignment site.

Screenshot from the King Charles III England Coast Path website, showing the diversion of the path around the western end of the site

Please be aware that if you are using an old map to navigate around the site, the paths shown will no longer be accurate. This includes former rights of way across the West Two wet grassland area which no longer exist. Crossing this protected area disturbs wildlife and so is not permitted. The same is true for the old flood embankment; it is no longer a designated route. It is also not possible for visitors to cross the intertidal area south of Welwick, to reach Welwick Saltmarsh; this is not accessible to the public.

We plan to put some additional signs in place this spring to help visitors navigate around the site and keep to public paths. If you spot somewhere where you think there are gaps in the signage and some extra signs would help indicate the right route to take, please let us know, using the project’s email address (supplied at the end of this newsletter).

Please make sure you follow all instructions on site and avoid climbing over gates and fences where signs indicate that there is no public access. These restrictions have been put in place to provide safe spaces for wildlife in the new intertidal and wet grassland habitats, where they can nest and breed without being disturbed by humans or dogs. Disturbing birds is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. So, if you see anyone ignoring instructions to stay out of fenced-off areas, please notify the police of a potential wildlife crime by visiting www.humberside.police.uk. or calling 101.

Connecting Bridleways Another finishing touch to the scheme will be to designate a new bridleway through Haverfield, connecting two existing ‘dead-end’ bridleways at each end of the site, one off Sheep Trod Lane and the other from Mulberry Lane. This creates a route which allows horse riders to travel from Skeffling to Patrington Haven without having to use the main road. We have been liaising with ERYC officers to agree the details of this route. To avoid a sensitive area of grassland along the southern edge of Haverfield, the route will run beside the drainage ditch at the northern edge; there is already a track here for occasional drain maintenance. Last autumn, we did a survey to ensure the proposed path would not damage existing habitats in that area and then drew up some plans. This will involve some vegetation clearance before bird nesting season this year to connect a path from the entrance off Mulberry Lane to the path along the drain. We are also finalising gate designs at this entrance to Haverfield to discourages motorcycle access but permit horse riders, walkers and cyclists. This is a difficult balance to achieve.

In December last year, project manager Anthony Kidd (right) met with ERYC's Public Rights of Way Officer Andrew Chudley and senior engineer Rebecca Johnson from WSP to check details of the route for the new bridleway

Photo of Haverfield from 1989, after quarrying of the sand and gravel there had stopped, supplied by Howard Frost. This is now covered in trees and scrub

You may already know that part of Haverfield is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and was once a stretch of sand dunes and a beach on the edge of the estuary, facing Sunk Island. The sandy, calcium-rich soils found here attract a very different range of wildlife, suited to these conditions. In the last century sand and gravel was quarried here, probably from the 1920’s until the early 1950’s, creating the landscape shown in the photo to the left. The southern side of this stretch of land is particularly favourable for butterflies because of the shelter from bushes on the northern side and the wildflowers and grasses beside the track. Howard Frost, member of the Outstrays Recording Group and previously voluntary warden for Haverfield, reports that 19 of the 23 butterfly species recorded across the Outstrays site since about 1985 have been spotted in this relatively small area! It was also here that the only wild orchid ever seen in Haverfield was recorded in 2022.

For anyone interested in knowing more about the Environment Agency funded archaeological recording of the Second World War gun battery site at Welwick, an article about the work has just been published in ‘Fort; the international journal of fortification and military architecture’. You can read it here: https://engageenvironmentagency.uk.engagementhq.com/38044/widgets/144486/documents/101247

As part of The Outstrays scheme, we had to demolish the unsafe Nissen hut, so this was archaeologically recorded beforehand, to produce an archive record of the structure. We also recorded the associated gun-site, which remains in-situ, and can be seen from the new footpath. An interpretation board has been erected on the footpath overlooking the site of the battery.

Managing The Outstrays

Whilst we continue to work to find a manager for the site, JBA Bentley’s ecology team will monitor a range of environmental variables on the intertidal and wet grassland areas on our behalf. This will give us a baseline record of changes as these habitats evolve after the breach was created. This information will help us measure how the site is performing as a whole. Once a site manager is in post, we hope to publish annual reports, sharing the results of monitoring activities and data collection from the site.

Contact Us

Environment Agency

For enquiries, you can contact us by email: Welwick.Skeffling@environment-agency.gov.uk. Or by phoning our National Customer Contact Centre on 03708 506506 and asking for Anthony Kidd, Project Manager, or Nikky Wilson, Engagement Specialist.

JBA Bentley

For enquiries about the work on site, contact Paul Craig, the site manager on 07837 454048. He will continue to take calls during the winter when the site compound at Outstrays is closed.