Ffrith Beach, Prestatyn

Prestatyn

Prestatyn is a seaside resort, town and community in Denbighshire, North Wales. It is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. At the 2001 Census, Prestatyn had a population of 18,496.-Prehistory:...

, Denbighshire

Denbighshire

Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...

, North Wales

North Wales

North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...

(Postal code

Postal code

A postal code is a series of letters and/or digits appended to a postal address for the purpose of sorting mail. Once postal codes were introduced, other applications became possible.In February 2005, 117 of the 190 member countries of the Universal Postal Union had postal code systems...

 LL19 7AR) is one of three sandy beaches along the Prestatyn coastline - Barkby Beach, Central Beach and Ffrith Beach. A promenade joins the three beaches, and, at around 4-miles in length, is popular for leisurely strolls and cycling. It has recently been incorporated into the new National Cycle Network

National Cycle Network

The National Cycle Network is a network of cycle routes in the United Kingdom.The National Cycle Network was created by the charity Sustrans , and aided by a £42.5 million National Lottery grant. In 2005 it was used for over 230 million trips.Many routes hope to minimise contact with motor...

. There are spectacular views right along the promenade, extending from the Snowdonia

Snowdonia

Snowdonia is a region in north Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three National Parks in Wales, in 1951.-Name and extent:...

n Mountains, the Great Orme

Great Orme

The Great Orme is a prominent limestone headland on the north coast of Wales situated in Llandudno. It is referred to as Cyngreawdr Fynydd in a poem by the 12th century poet Gwalchmai ap Meilyr...

 of Llandudno

Llandudno

Llandudno is a seaside resort and town in Conwy County Borough, Wales. In the 2001 UK census it had a population of 20,090 including that of Penrhyn Bay and Penrhynside, which are within the Llandudno Community...

 and Anglesey

Anglesey

Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...

 to the west, through to The Wirral to the east, and Prestatyn Hillside to the south. On very clear days, glimpses can also be caught of the Isle of Man

Isle of Man

The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...

, the Cumbrian Mountains and Blackpool Tower

Blackpool Tower

Blackpool Tower Eye is a tourist attraction in Blackpool, Lancashire in England which was opened to the public on 14 May 1894. . Inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris, it rises to 518 feet & 9 inches . The tower is a member of the World Federation of Great Towers...

, while the BHP Billiton

BHP Billiton

BHP Billiton is a global mining, oil and gas company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia and with a major management office in London, United Kingdom...

 Petroleum Douglas oil and gas platform in Liverpool Bay

Liverpool Bay

Liverpool Bay is a bay of the Irish Sea between northeast Wales, Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside to the east of the Irish Sea. The bay is a classic example of a region of freshwater influence...

 is usually clearly visible .

Early development

Ffrith Beach was first developed, in modern times, in 1935.

"My first memories of the Ffrith beach are of my grandfather who started the fun fair, which had an arcade, bingo and fair ground. There was also two boating ponds,cafe, ice cream kiosks etc. Many good days were spent on the beach, it's a shame that the Ffrith is no longer a family-oriented place to be. Back in my grandfathers day the Ffrith was packed with holiday makers and day tripers, what happened? Later on in the 70s there was a gokart track added, I can't remember who had the gokarts."

A memory of Prestatyn contributed by Barry Howden .

Recent times

In the latter part of the 20th century there was a great deal of controversy surrounding the Ffrith Beach which had remained empty and derelict since 1993 . On 25 October 2006 Denbighshire County Council announced that it is:

"... to start working with a company to regenerate Prestatyn's Ffrith Beach. The Asset Management Committee yesterday (Tuesday) saw presentations from two companies bidding to develop the site. A preferred bidder was chosen, but for commercial reasons cannot yet be named. Cllr Julian Thompson-Hill, Committee Chairman, said: 'Denbighshire is committed to ensuring that the Ffrith is restored as a site which is an attraction to local people and the county as a whole. This is a major step forward and we are looking forward to working with the preferred bidder to make the most of this important asset.' Denbighshire officers will now work with the preferred bidder over the coming months to develop their initial proposals."

However, whilst negotiations were well underway, arsonists set fire to the derelict complex on 1 March 2007 ,
.

Ffrith Beach Fun Parc

In September 2007, the Ffrith Beach Fun Parc was being developed on Ffrith Beach with the dunes and its wildlife managed by Denbighshire County Council

Denbighshire County Council

Denbighshire County Council is the governing body for the principal area of Denbighshire , one of the administrative subdivisions of Wales....

in conjunction with the developers Ffrith Leisure Ltd. The first new unit to open on Ffrith Beach was La Freccia Ristorante .

The development included a funfair with some of the rides from the closed-down Ocean Beach funfair at Rhyl being transferred to the site, but at the end of 2008 - start of 2009, Ffrith Leisure went bankrupt. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_east/7867199.stm The local council is running the site as a going concern with a view to finding another company to take on the site.

Most of the funfair rides have now been removed and some transferred to the rear of the buildings. http://www.northwestseasidetowns.t35.com/ffrith/.

These rides included the Pepsi Loop coaster which is rumoured to have been sold to a buyer in Holland.

External links

• www.conceptnews.org/ffrith Pictures of Ffrith Beach in 2008.
• Ffrith Beach Festival Gardens (BBC North East)
• Ffrith Beach Fun Parc Featured on attractionsnorthwales.co.uk
• The Good Beach Guide Featuring Ffrith Beach
• rhyl-prestatyn.co.uk Rhyl and Prestatyn Beaches
• rdjfl.leaguerepublic.com