An excavator moved in to begin demolition work on a former hotel in Birling Gap, East Sussex, threatened by coastal erosion.

The building is now the National Trust Cafe as work is being carried out to demolish the back of the building and relocate it to a safer position, away from the edge of a cliff.

Built in 1878, the Victorian hotel once had a sun lounge that was been lost to the sea.

Demolition work has been going on for awhile but today the excavator went in and tomorrow it will have been flattened – the building further back will continue to operate as a NT Café and visitors centre until it too must be pulled down due to sea erosion(350,000 visitors a year and most popular NT site in the UK although NT are not encouraging further numbers as facilities can’t cope) The final stages of demolition the former Victorian hotel that was later to become the National Trust Cafe at Birling Gap is underway. Best Demolition have spent months carefully dismantling the inside of the building with work stopping for inspections for bats which are protected (but never found) has come to completion as the building is about to be flattened. Birling Gap is the National Trust's second most popular venue in Britian after Standen, Sir Winston's Churchills former home. The iconic beauty spot is loved and known by many with over 350,000 visitors a year, but cliff erosion has left it precariously close to falling into the sea below. Birling Gap, East Sussex, UKThe old Birling Gap Hotel is being demolished as it its too close to the cliff and the sea below in the Seven Sisters National Park, near Eastbourne. Built in 1878 the Victorian Hotel, once had a sun lounge (already lost to the sea) and until recently was a National Trust Cafe adjoining the visitor centre. Demolition will remove the building and the NT hope ot build a new visitor centre inland as the remaining buildings will soon be in danger from erosion. The hotel once attracted wealthy motorists and had its own golf course behind the Hotel. Birling Gap, East Sussex, UK
A National Trust spokeperson said: ‘Through the course of last 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 cafe 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 will 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.’