Lifeboat Station and Restaurant, Chapel St Leonard

A defensive wall of large timber groynes provides a fort-like enclosure. Large sections of the wall slide back to reveal the various activities housed within. To the South a large section rolls back to allow the lifeboat it's much needed swift release. Larger doors to the seafront and North side slide back during clement weather to reveal a sheltered inner courtyard with seating, served by a chip shop through a hatch in the inner wall. Gaps between the groynes allow light in and glimpses of the sea beyond when the doors are semi-closed to protect against windy conditions. The building mass sitting to the South of the site also provides shelter from the predominantly South-Westerly wind. The chip shop also operates out of season when visitors trickle through from the town to the seafront looking for hot food.

Glazed to three sides the restaurant dining space acts as a beacon during the day and evening; clearly visible diners, tables and chairs creating a self-evident advert. It also provides views of Chapel St Leonards, beyond the theatre kitchen, and the beach to the front.

A telescope, poking up over the balustrade of the public observation deck, advertises it's availability to those below, drawing them up through the building to look back out over the land and across the Wash. Looking through the telescope reveals the ever-expanding carpet of caravans and bungalows that spreads out from Chapel St Leonards along the coast, and the delights on offer at Fantasy Island, a theme park seen as a gleaming mountain range of steel on the horizon. Here, light red cladding reflects the primarily-coloured enticements of the arcades nearby.