According to a report in Whitby Today, work costing £500,000 begins this month on the pontoons - currently under construction at Solent Marine – while building work is set to start in April. But now Scarborough Council has submitted a new planning application detailing more than 35 changes to the building and the land surrounding it.

The changes include the addition of a single storey brick-built electrical sub-station raised above ground level, a waste disposal building for bins, chemicals and oil and the extension of a balcony around the corners of the building which the council says is for ‘structural integrity’.

Other changes include the provision of an external fire escape which was missed off the original plans, loss of planting in some areas and the revision of the parking layout to include more motorcycle spaces and parking spaces for the disabled.

Independent planning consultant Spawforths, which has submitted the planning application on behalf of the council's renaissance section, says the changes do not fundamentally change the design of the approved scheme.