Eleven new beach huts on Walmer Beach will help secure the long term future of the Paddling Pool.

That is the pledge from Your Leisure which is proposing to build the huts on the former crazy golf course in Marine Road, opposite the popular swimming attraction.

The leisure firm, which leases the site from Dover District Council, says surplus funds generated from the rent of the beach huts will go towards improving the Paddling Pool site and ensuring it remains free for families to use.

Your Leisure, who submitted its plans to DDC this month, has also highlighted the significant demand for beach huts in the area, claiming there are 51 names on a waiting list which have all been there since 2014.

Kevin Fordham, deputy managing director of Your Leisure, said: “Over the last couple of years, we have been exploring our options for the use of the space and we have concluded that the best commercial option would be to put some beach huts there.

“The idea is to seek planning permission and rent them out but we haven’t decided whether that will be on a daily, seasonal or all year round basis.

“We are a charitable organisation so we will reinvest the surplus that is generated from the beach huts back into the community.

“At the moment there is no charge for access to the Paddling Pool. The surplus will enable us to continue that and enable us to reinvest in the site for the long term benefit of the community.

“It will also tidy up a really derelict area.”

The site is in a prominent location and falls within the Walmer Seafront Conservation Area, which was originally designated in 1970. It was last used for crazy golf, but is now overgrown with scrubs, and parts of the boundary fence are in a poor condition.

The proposed huts will be identical in appearance to those approved and constructed to the north of the Downs Sailing Club in 2014.

A statement written by heritage planning consultant Clive Alexander said: “The proposed huts have also been arranged so that they would allow filtered views through the site of the sea beyond, thus not appearing as a ‘solid’ visual barrier.

“The beach huts would not project any further forward towards the sea, than the existing Sea Scouts’ building, which would mask all views of the beach huts from north of the site.”

Your Leisure already run about 1,200 across the Thanet coastline. They charge £1025 per annum to rent a hut. Almost 60 of them are available for day hire at a charge of £22.

The planning application also includes two disabled access paths and the replacement of the existing fence.

Walmer Parish Council fully support the plans.

Share your views on the plans at dover.gov.uk/Planning/Planning-Applications using reference number 17/01435.