A SECTION of Clacton's promenade has been closed to allow works to take place on a historic Martello Tower.

Last week it was announced that Historic England has awarded a grant of £118,000 towards essential repairs on Martello Tower E, which is owned by Tendring Council.

Contractors have now begun the works and a section of the prom at Martello Bay has been closed to ensure people's safety.

The works will see the old render removed from the side of the Napoleonic-era tower.

It is anticipated the closure will be in place until Monday, but may be extended depending on what the engineers find as they carry out the work.

Further temporary closures of the prom may be required at later stages in the project.

Both the beach and the promenade can still be accessed using the ramps located at the Beach Diner and slightly past the tower towards Jaywick.

Carlo Guglielmi, the council's deputy leader and cabinet member for finance, apologised for any inconvenience caused.

“We’re aware this is a popular walking route between Clacton and Jaywick, but this temporary closure is needed to keep people safe,” he said.

“Our contractors will work hard to keep any closure as short as possible, and access still remains to the beach and the prom further up.”

But the crumbling structure, a scheduled ancient monument dating back to 1812, requires urgent repair work to make it safe and water-tight.

After the end of the Napoleonic Wars the towers were rendered obsolete by technological developments.

By 1935, it was part of the Butlin’s Holiday Camp and the roof was used to mount a cistern supplying water to the chalets, but after the holiday camp closed in the 1980s, the condition of the tower deteriorated.

The £118,000 grant from Historic England will cover 80 per cent of the works and will enable work to make the building safe by removing the damaged exterior render and installing temporary support to the internal floor.

The gun platform floor will be repaired and drainage installed.