Future of sold surfing lake remains uncertain



The future of an inland surfing lake remains uncertain as the facility is sold amid a row over finances.

The Wave, on the outskirts of Bristol, shut suddenly on Thursday and cancelled bookings after being placed into technical insolvency.

CEO Hazel Geary announced on Friday evening the site, under the entity Surf Bristol Limited, had been sold to a company called Sea Level Wave Company Ltd.

Negotiations had been taking place with the aim of reopening the facility on Saturday, but the BBC understands those have broken down at the last minute.

Majority owners Sullivan Street Partners claimed the closure followed problems surrounding the bankruptcy of a director of another funding partner, JAR Wave.

The BBC has approached the firm for comment.

There is no clarity as yet for customers and potentially as many as 200 employees of The Wave as to what happens next.

Ms Geary said the site now cannot operate and The Wave Group, owners of the surf park, is unable to "facilitate a smooth handover due to the significant conflicts".

The website is inoperable and Ms Geary claims her access to all digital assets have been blocked, including emails, documents and social media accounts.

In a statement, The Wave Group said these actions have "removed the business from the investors and staff that have built and grown the park". It added: "Whilst this is very disappointing to lose a managed site in this way, we are mostly sorry for the upset the actions of others have caused for Wavemakers and clients of The Wave.  We march on and are determined to continue our mission to deliver an amazing inland surf experience for all."

The company says it remains on track to open a separate namesake site in London in 2027 and also has "several other opportunities under development".

Negotiations regarding the immediate future of the The Wave in Bristol are continuing.

Plans to restore a historic pier are "in jeopardy" after key partner the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) pulled out of the deal.

North Somerset Council confirmed it would have to delay the process of appointing contractors to renovate the pier.

Under the abandoned plans, the RNLI would have established a new base on the pier and had committed to raising £5m towards the cost, according to the council.

Peter Sparkes, RNLI chief executive, said the charity did not have "the confidence needed in the funding or contractual structure" to complete the pier repair.

Councillor Mike Bell, leader of North Somerset Council, said the authority had been working alongside the RNLI on the project for nearly seven years. "This is a shocking decision that breaks faith with residents, volunteers, and everyone who has worked so hard to secure a future for Birnbeck Pier," he said. "The withdrawal has absolutely come out of the blue. I would summarise it as they feel that it's 'too risky' for them as a national charity. We feel very let down, as I'm sure many residents will too. I want to reassure residents that the council, along with our funding partners, remain committed to saving Birnbeck Pier," he added.

Mr Sparkes said the RNLI's initial pledge was based on the "belief it would support the delivery of [the charity's] core purpose, to save lives at sea".



But following a viability review, concerns arose regarding funding and plans to ensure ongoing maintenance costs associated with the historic pier would be met, he added.

"Investing donors' money in a pier restoration project that is not fully funded, with insufficient risk contingency to ensure the project reaches completion, would present an unacceptable on-going financial risk," he said. "As would investing donors' money in a lifeboat station on the island, which is only accessible by a pier for which there is no viable long term maintenance plan." However, he added the charity "remained committed" to securing a permanent lifesaving facility in Weston-super-Mare for their work.



More than £20m has been secured for the project through grants from the UK government, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the National Heritage Memorial Fund and Historic England.

A spokesperson for The National Lottery Heritage Fund and the National Heritage Memorial Fund said: "We are aware of the news that the RNLI have announced today to withdraw from the Birnbeck Pier project. This is obviously disappointing for everyone involved. We continue to be committed to finding a viable future for Birnbeck Pier and are working closely with North Somerset Council, Historic England and the Birnbeck Regeneration Trust to explore all possible options."

North Somerset Council had hoped to appoint contractors on 8 July, with the work expected to begin later this year. The appointment will now be delayed.

From a GWR social media feed yesterday


Will this be addressing the fundamental problem of staff shortages?   Do the  extra 175 units which used to run in Wales come with extra drivers who also used to drive in Wales?

Noting it's in red and white.

Have you spotted a different train operating on our network today?

You might have seen one of our incoming Class 175 trains – unit 175002 – running between Newton Abbot and Plymouth.

It’s part of the testing and training taking place before these trains join our Devon and Cornwall services. The trains will be phased into service from the end of this year to help boost reliability and performance across the wider GWR network

They will have to be put in GWR colours, and I'd guess they will choose to vinyl them as its the cheapest option.

Legally they can't run in their TfW livery.   

16:23 Westbury to Swindon due 17:05
17:35 Swindon to Westbury due 18:18
18:35 Westbury to Swindon due 19:17
19:44 Swindon to Westbury due 20:29

19:44 Swindon to Westbury due 20:29 will be cancelled.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.

Health alerts come into force ahead of second heatwave

Heat health alerts have come into force across most of England as the country braces for a second summer heatwave.

An amber alert covers the East Midlands, south-east, south-west, east and London - meaning various health services and the whole population could be affected by the heat, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

In Yorkshire and the Humber, as well as the West Midlands, less serious yellow alerts apply, meaning that the elderly and vulnerable could be affected.

Temperatures are forecast to rise into the 30s over the weekend, coniciding with Glastonbury Festival, before reaching a new high for the year on Monday, when the Wimbledon tennis championship begins.

Monday could be the hottest day of the year so far with a temperature of 34C, possibly 35C in London towards the Cambridgeshire area, according to BBC Weather. The Met Office says London could reach 34-35C.

That would make Monday the hottest ever start to Wimbledon, exceeding the previous opening-day record of 29.3C in 2001 - although players and spectators can expect more comfortable temperatures in the 20s by the middle of next week. The hottest day during Wimbledon as a whole was on 1 July 2015 when 35.7C was recorded.

Temperatures will remain in the mid to high 20s for the 200,000 festival-goers descending on Glastonbury in Somerset this weekend, with a potential peak of 28C on Sunday.

Mark Savage, the BBC's music correspondent at the festival, said shorts, sun hats, bikini tops and bottled water were the order of the day on Friday. He observed no heat-related health issues - other than the occasional red nose and a few very sleepy children.

Although there was little shade at the Pyramid Stage and temperatures were set to soar higher over the weekend, there was plenty of free water and sun cream around the site.

Conditions are expected to remain dry with sunny spells - free of the mud baths of years past - but warm nights could make things for uncomfortable for campers.

Elsewhere in Britain, dry and sunny spells are forecast, with temperatures in the low to mid 20s this weekend. By Monday, Cardiff could match the 30C highs expected across large parts of England.

(Article continues)

Looks like good BBQ weather on Sunday.

Hmm. 

Is there actually any need to remove vinyls, or change liveries on trains, or uniforms on staff?

They will still be the same stations, trains and staff - it's just the 'behind the scenes direction' that will change, so far as the wider travelling public will know.

It would be extremely wasteful to de-vinyl, repaint fleets of trains and refit thousands of railway staff with new uniforms - to prove what?  That doing that will 'make things better'? 

The staffing situation was acknowledged - as was requiring a 7day railway, as already noted.

Sadly the news reaches me that The Wave just up the road from Pilning has had to close,
as it's having financial difficulties,it shut yesterday at no notice ,hopefully some fix can be found ......

Inland surfing lake closes over financial dispute

A popular inland surfing lake has been closed because of a row over finances.

The Wave, on the outskirts of Bristol, shut suddenly on Thursday and cancelled bookings, with most of its website inoperable.

Majority owners Sullivan Street Partners claimed the closure followed problems surrounding the bankruptcy of a director of another funding partner, JAR Wave. The BBC has approached the firm for comment.

A statement from the majority owners said: "The Wave Group team apologises unreservedly for any upset caused and is doing its best to ensure the situation can be remedied."