Todays Learning:

To investigate key features of

the Holderness Coast.

Challe
nge:
What
is this
feature
?

Write a short paragraph to describe the location of the Holderness Coast

What processes are acting upon this coastline?

Geology Map of Holderness

Altitude Map of Holderness

How might the geology of the area affect the shape of the
coastline?

What processes are acting upon this coastline?

The Holderness Coastline is made up of soft boulder clays (tills) left after the
retreat of the Devensian ice sheets about 12 000 years ago. They can be seen
on the coast, being rapidly eroded by the sea. To look at, they are a mass of
brown clay containing pieces of rock (erratics) brought here by the glaciers from
Scandinavia, Scotland, the Lake District and Northeast England. These soft,
recent deposits sit on a platform of chalk which slopes away gently to the east.

Erratics in till at Mappleton

What processes are acting upon this coastline?

Erosion of the Holderness cliffs is a cyclic, four stage process:
1.
2.
3.
4.

The soft Boulder Clay cliffs become saturated with rain water and lose their
strength.
The cliff is too steep and fails either as a block of material or as a slurry slide
Cliff failure reduces the angle and prevents further erosion but
Large waves from the North East remove the debris in longshore drift to the
South and the cliff oversteepens, rain falls and the cycle begins again.

The order of this presentation

1.

Flamborough Head.

2.

Mappleton

3.

Aldbrough

4.

Withernsea

5.

Kilnsea

6.

Spurn Head

1. Flamborough Head
The chalk of Flamborough is a resistant rock that provides examples of erosion,
features such as caves, arches and stacks. The chalk has formed a headland.

2. Mappleton
Situated approximately 3km south of Hornsea lies the village
of Mappleton. Supporting approximately 50 properties, the
village has been subject to intense erosion at a rate of 2.0m
per year, resulting in the access road being only 50m from
the cliff edge at its closest point.
Mappleton lies upon unconsolidated till (boulder clay). This material
was deposited by glaciers during the last ice age 12,000 years ago.

Mappleton
Mappleton is an excellent case study of an attempt at coastal management. In 1991 two
rock groynes and a rock revetment made from huge blocks of Scandinavian rock were
built.
As a consequence a substantial beach accumulated between the groynes halting erosion
(picture 1 below). However, further south the rate of erosion has increased significantly
(picture 2 below). This is because material which is being carried south is not being
replaced (it is trapped within the groynes). Therefore there is no beach to protect the cliffs.
Even during a neap tide ( a tide which is 30% less than the average tidal range) the sea
reaches the base of the soft cliffs and erosion occurs.

1 Cliffs to the north. Sea defences mean

that the beach has grown and the cliffs are
stable (look at the grass growing!)

2 Cliffs to the south. The sea defences

dont protect this area and the land is
retreating rapidly.

Mappleton
Northern section
Defences = Beach build up

Southern section
No defences = Beach erosion

3. Spurn Head
The area known as Spurn forms the southern extremity of the Holderness coast and includes
the unique feature of Spurn Head, a sand and shingle spit 5.5km long, reaching across the
mouth of the Humber. Spurn is made up of the material which has been transported along
the Holderness Coast. This includes sand, sediment and shingle.

Spurn Point provides evidence of

longshore drift on the Holderness
Coast. It is an excellent example of a
spit.

How would sea defences along

the coastline affect Spurn?

Spurn Head
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

6.

The material eroded from the Holderness cliffs is swept southwards.

North easterly waves move the coarser sands and gravel down towards the mouth of the
Humber
The finer sands and clays are swept offshore and continue southwards towards the Wash.
Spurn Head hangs like a rudder for six kilometres off the end of Holderness, built by the
sands and gravels eroded from the cliffs and transported south by longshore drift
In the past Spurn Head
seems to have grown and
been washed away in a
regular cycle, slowly moving
towards the east to keep
pace with the erosion of the
Holderness cliffs.
For over 100 years the
position of Spurn has been
fixed by artificial sea
defences. These defences
are now falling into disrepair
and the sea is starting to
erode parts of the peninsula
once again.

Spurn Head
Spurn Head changes position. Most of the spit has
flexible road surfaces, which are like mats that can be
picked up and moved following major storms.

There is plenty of evidence of this

movement. Former railway tracks that
were built to move building materials
along Spurn (for the building of Bull
Fort in the Humber Estuary) now
appear to lead into the sea.

Spurn Head
Is Spurn eroding?

The end of Spurn is fairly stable. This is due to

its size and the presence of deep rooted plants.

The rest of Spurn erodes and moves constantly.

There are some groynes to protect it, but these
are very old now.

Task 1:
Use the tablets and Atlases to accurately locate on the
map.
Mappleton, Ulrome, Spurn Point and Flamborough
Head.
I will give out your challenge cards for the next tasks.