A Freedom of Information response says BCP Council has not carried out formal checks at Alum Chine Tropical Gardens since safety concerns closed paths last year. No ground stability surveys or formal risk assessments have been carried out at Alum Chine Tropical Gardens. A Freedom of Information request says BCP Council has not commissioned those checks since routes near the cliff face were closed in January 2025 because of concerns about public safety. Engineering staff have carried out visual inspections only, and the council says those checks noted possible slips along the banks, with no
No ground stability surveys or formal risk assessments have been carried out at Alum Chine Tropical Gardens.
A Freedom of Information request says BCP Council has not commissioned those checks since routes near the cliff face were closed in January 2025 because of concerns about public safety.
Engineering staff have carried out visual inspections only, and the council says those checks noted possible slips along the banks, with no ground surveys currently commissioned and no reopening date announced.
Alum Chine is one of Bournemouth’s four chines, and its tropical gardens were laid out in the 1920s before the site was replanted in 1996, when a paved viewing area was also added.
Councillor Richard Herrett, who holds the council’s destination, leisure and commercial operations brief, said "public safety is our priority", and said the closed paths would stay shut while funding options are considered.
He added that "there is still access through the rest of the gardens on other paths", while the council said teams monitor more than 15 miles of coastline across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.
