Wales Coasts and Seas Partnership (CaSP Cymru): 5 February 2026

David Tudor: CaSP Chair
Kirsty Lindenbaum: Natural Resources Wales
Gareth Cunningham: Marine Conservation Society 
Reece Halstead: Ocean Literacy Co-ordinator
Jon Parker: Aquaculture Industry Wales 
Julie Webb: Bangor University
Simon Preddy: Keep Wales Tidy
Jacob Keverne: Wales Coastal Forum Group
Caryn Le Roux: Welsh Government
Chris Roderick: Welsh Government 
Samuel Dorrington: Welsh Government
Emily Payne: Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water
Dewi Davies: National Trust 
David Boden: British Association for Shooting & Conservation (Wales)
John Cray: Saundersfoot Harbour

Guests

Gregory Miles: Marine Futures Intern
Bronwen Fleming: Marine Futures Intern
Tom Galley: Bangor University School of Ocean Sciences
Lowri Norrington-Davies: Welsh Government - Flood and Water

Leanne Cullen-Unsworth: Project Seagrass 
Jenny Oates: Natural Resources Wales
Michel Regelous: Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority
Jennifer Godwin: Seabed User and Developer Group
John O’Connor: Angling Cymru
Jetske Germing: Pembrokeshire Coastal Forum and Marine Evidence Wales
Katie Harvard Smith: Association of Severn Estuary Relevant Authorities
Emily Williams-Slater: RSPB Cymru
Alys Morris: Severn Estuary Partnership
Phil Turner: The Crown Estate
Nicole Esteban: Swansea University
Claire Stephenson: ABP
Rose Malleson: Welsh Government
Alice Teague: Welsh Government

Camilla Curry: MACC hub

Note: A large number of announcements were shared during this meeting which were summarised and shared separately via our newsletter. For further information about these, or to receive our newsletter, please contact us at Wales Coasts and Seas Partnership. 

Rydym yn croesawu galwadau’n Gymraeg / We welcome calls in Welsh.

Overview from the Chair since last meeting

DT welcomed attendees, noted apologies received and provided an overview of the day’s agenda. Due to several new attendees, DT asked everyone to introduce themselves. 

Actions from last meeting

CLR provided a summary of updates on actions since the last partnership meeting on 9 October 2025. Several updates were covered in more detail during the relevant agenda items.

Website development and feedback

CLR reported that the long-awaited Wales Coasts and Seas Partnership website is nearing completion. A link (and temporary login details) will be shared with members, seeking initial feedback over the next two weeks. Members were encouraged to review the proposed content, provide feedback, and submit any organisational logos that are missing, along with suitable website links for inclusion.

Highlight report and end-of-term review

CLR noted delays in finalising the draft highlight report from the previous year but confirmed that all previous highlight reports will be collated for an ‘end-of-term’ review, with the aim to update the delivery plan after the Senedd elections in May.

Management group and future planning post election 

CLR explained that the management group, comprising the CaSP Cymru Chair, the theme leads and the Welsh Government Secretariat has had some initial discussions regarding the partnership post the Senedd elections in May. Current plans include:

• an analysis of the new Programme for Government against CaSP themes
• a workshop (most likely to be part of the partnership meeting in October 2026) to agree the outcomes and deliverables for the new Senedd term 

DT’s reappointment as Chair of the partnership for a further three-year term has also now been confirmed. 

Ocean Literacy: Lead - Kirsty Lindenbaum, NRW 

Y Môr a Ni

RH and KL provided comprehensive updates on progress made with the Y Môr a Ni ocean literacy work, including project structuring, a National Lottery Heritage Fund bid, partnership collaborations, and ongoing activities. 

RH outlined the consolidation of over forty ideas suggested through recent workshops into seven flagship projects across three wider work packages: Communities and culture, Knowledge and skills, and Access and experience. The proposed lead partner, Menter Môn, is finalising the logistics of the £5.5m funding bid to the NLHF, which is currently being prepared (including 10% match funding), with a two-year development and three-year delivery plan nearing completion. 

The Welsh Government’s recent Marine Resilience Challenge Fund has enabled the retention of the Marine Futures interns, Bron Fleming and Greg Miles, who are currently mapping ocean literacy projects and partners across Wales and are developing a communications plan, with outputs that will be hosted on the new CaSP Cymru website. 

A few other points of note:

• the Ocean Literacy Survey is due to be rerun for Wales shortly 
• Y Môr a Ni and Team Wales are collaborating in relation to this year’s Commonwealth Games. There will be a baton relay around the Welsh coast in June, with ocean literacy as a key theme
• links are also being sustained with the Centre for Ocean Literacy in Canada, sharing resources and learnings with other interested nations

Marine National Parks

KL noted that a Marine National Parks event took place on 3 February to share how Wales has an opportunity to take a lead on new National Parks for the sea, sponsored by Joel James MS and led by the Campaign for National Parks (CNP). 

A pilot will be running in Pembrokeshire, seeking to raise awareness of the importance of the sea, and taking a landscape approach, and aiming to engage people, to celebrate the sea and influence local decision-making.

It was noted how similar these aims are to Y Mor a Ni’s strategic objectives. KL had requested that the project links back to Y Môr a Ni and its aims.

JNG queried the objectives and implications of the Marine National Park pilot running in Pembrokeshire, with KL and JTG clarifying that the pilot is purely exploratory at this stage, focusing on community engagement and management, rather than working towards a formal designation as a National Park, and that further updates will be provided as the pilot progresses.

The group was supportive of the importance of collaboration across related initiatives, such as workforce development and community engagement, to avoid duplication and ensure coherent communication and use of resources.

Actions

JTG to follow up with the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) on their progress and report back to the group at future meetings.

DT to arrange a follow up conversation with Rose O’Neil of CNP.

Blue investment: Lead - Gareth Cunningham, MCS

Blue investment re-focus

As agreed at the last partnership meeting, GC noted that blue investment meetings will be held three times a year moving forward, focusing on upskilling members about blue finance opportunities and inviting speakers to address topics of interest for blue investment, such as low-impact fisheries and ecosystem services. Dates and discussion topics will be notified soon.

This led to AT providing an update on a pilot nutrient trading scheme in West Wales, which is in its initial stages and will build on existing work in this area. PT shared that the Environment Agency is collating efforts in England on incentivising nutrient management and nature-based solutions, offering to report back to the group on findings.

Marine Fund Cymru update

GC updated the group on progress in relation to Marine Fund Cymru, which was officially launched at the Coastal Futures conference in January and has also received its first major investment of £500,000 from The Crown Estate. The governance structures and ethical policies have also now been finalised.

A call for ideas will be issued soon to inform the first grant round, aiming to complement other funding streams and to avoid duplication of funding. 

DT congratulated everyone involved in getting the fund up and running, and particularly Anna Elliott of WCVA and PT in securing the initial contribution from The Crown Estate. 

Marine Resilience Challenge Fund projects 

CLR provided a brief update on the Marine Resilience Challenge Fund, which is supporting twelve short-term projects up to the end of this financial year, focussing on various areas, including communications, taxonomy, ecosystem services, pollution remediation, and blue career pathways, with outcomes to be shared in future meetings.

Actions

Secretariat to share the Marine Fund website with the CaSP partners when ready. 

Secretariat to share a list of the Marine Resilience Challenge Fund projects with CaSP partners.

Coastal Capacity Building: Lead - David Tudor

Coastal co-ordination network 

Funded by a Welsh Government challenge fund as a result of the CCB work, three coastal coordinators, hosted by key organisations, are mobilising across Wales to strengthen place-based delivery of marine policy and coastal resilience. They will focus on local systems mapping, engagement, and evidence gathering, together with a Wales-wide Community of Practice to facilitate knowledge sharing and training. The CoP will also provide a link between Welsh Government policy, CaSP Cymru and will strengthen alignment with the UK Coastal Partnerships Network.

TL has been appointed by Pembrokeshire Coastal Forum, while Severn Estuary Partnership and Pen Llŷn a’r Sarnau are in the process of recruiting their roles. One of TL’s first outputs will be the next Festival of the Sea, to be held in Milford Haven on 1 March.

Coastal stakeholder mapping

CLR provided an update on the Coastal stakeholder mapping exercise, intended to extend our stakeholder reach, especially in relation to underrepresented groups, and to identify good practice examples of coastal capacity building. A second aim is to refresh the previous coastal directory on the Marine Planning Portal. A survey is currently being compiled and will be distributed in the coming weeks. The intention is for this to be distributed as widely as possible, and all partners are requested to share this with their own networks.

Monitoring and evaluation of the Coastal co-ordination work

Preliminary thinking has begun on building evaluation into the coastal co-ordination work at an early stage, with consideration of appropriate evaluation techniques and integration with ongoing project assessments. CLR highlighted that evaluating Coastal Capacity Building will be a challenging task, but this will be taken forward alongside that of Y Môr a Ni and the Blue Investment/Marine Fund Cymru areas.

Marine Biodiversity Expert Group: Lead - Kirsty Lindenbaum, NRW

Update from last meeting

KL summarised the most recent activities of the Marine biodiversity expert group, including evidence needs for the 30by30 targets, the development of tools and directories for restoration, and the importance of aligning biodiversity and finance efforts.

The group acknowledged the existence of multiple tools for assessing progress towards 30by30 targets and the need to ensure agreement on definitions and metrics. Discussion of the 30by30 framework and targets will continue in the MBEG group.

The MBEG meetings had also covered the development and use of the Marine Enhancement Directory (on mend.eco), for the ReMeMaRe project (on ecsa.international), and ongoing development supported by the Environment Agency and the Crown Estate, which it was noted could prove useful for informing Marine Fund Cymru. 

The need for increased finance to support restoration projects more widely was highlighted, with the group recognising the importance of linking biodiversity objectives with blue investment initiatives and ensuring that tools and strategies are inclusive of offshore and non-MPA environments.

Presentation (Jenny Oates, NRW) 

JO provided an overview of the marine section of the State of Natural Resources report 2025, detailing key findings on marine ecosystem condition, pressures, and opportunities, and demonstrated how to access and use the report’s outputs and evidence portal. The presentation covers:

• an overview of the condition and value of Welsh marine ecosystems
• key environmental pressures affecting the marine environment
• findings on Marine Protected Area condition
• an introduction to the report, website, and evidence portal
• how users can access evidence, assessments, and trend information
• use of the evidence to support marine management and decision‑making
• links to policy tools, developer requirements, and funding mechanisms

JO also provided links to the various related documents:

• SoNaRR 2025 (on naturalresources.wales)
• Welsh MPA condition assessments (on naturalresources.wales)
• DataMap Wales (on datamap.gov.wales)

NRW have also published their ‘Bridges to the Future' document (on naturalresources.wales) as part of SoNaRR, which although seeming very terrestrial focussed, does align with some of CaSP’s themes around systems change.

Discussion was around the need to link the two planning systems at the land/sea interface with water quality and nutrients a key theme. This led to further discussion of nature finance, and the need to facilitate linking together funders and projects, with a query as to whether the Sustainable Farming Scheme could also help with this.

Actions

CaSP partners are asked to take note of the wealth of evidence within SoNaRR and to continue to flag the marine and coastal messages.

DT introduced this session, inviting JK and CC to present on issues around climate adaptation before opening the discussion to the group.

The case for coastal adaptation in Wales, and working with the Marine Climate Change Impacts partnership: Jacob Kevern, Wales Coastal Groups Forum

JK provided a comprehensive overview of the legislative context and policy frameworks guiding coastal adaptation in Wales, highlighting the strengths and gaps in current approaches. His presentation (attached separately) contained:

• policy context: Wales’ adaptation landscape is guided by the Well‑being of Future Generations Act, SMPs, and the national flood and coastal strategy, but lacks a coast‑specific framework 
• practice and approaches: Strong practitioner alignment with SMPs continues despite challenges like managed realignment, and dynamic adaptation pathways offer a more flexible future approach 
• projects and challenges: UK and international examples inform progress, while the MCCIP COCO project is identifying barriers and creating a practical adaptation‑pathway blueprint

The Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership (MCCIP) has published new resources as part of its Coastal Communities project (on mccip.org.uk), examining climate‑related risks facing coastal towns and their impacts on community health and wellbeing. The report detailing the results of the project’s recent consultation is now available, and the site will also host the forthcoming Blueprint report once finalised.

Maximising adaptation to climate change: Camilla Curry, MACC Hub

CC presented the MACC Hub project, outlining its objectives, activities, and partnerships across the UK, with a focus on supporting adaptation through knowledge exchange, training, and practical projects, particularly in Wales. Her presentation (attached separately) contains:

• MACC Hub overview: a UK‑wide project improving climate adaptation by strengthening evidence, identifying barriers, and enhancing access to data
• activities and impacts: training, policy labs, a knowledge portal, and funded place‑based projects, including the Anglesey adaptation work with people with learning disabilities, plus support for Welsh Public Service Boards
• engagement opportunities: shared learning through the Climate Coordinators Network and chances to join events, surveys, and case‑study sharing

Water Quality summit and nutrient trading

AT summarised the recent water quality summit, which focused on agriculture's role in improving water quality and the development of a nutrient trading pilot, noting the need for farmer engagement and technical advice on stacking.

Biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction Bill

AT reported that the bill is in its final stages in the UK Parliament, with the Welsh Government and other devolved governments having contributed to its development. This is expected to receive Royal Assent shortly.

Crown Estate nature and marine publication

PT announced the launch of the Crown Estate's new 'Nature in the marine environment' publication, providing an overview of the current evidence base on marine biodiversity, ecosystem health, and opportunities to enhance nature recovery in UK waters. It sets out guiding nature principles for marine business activities and showcases partner projects, including those with CaSP members. The resource supports informed decision‑making across marine planning, conservation, and sustainable development. 

Nature in the marine environment publication (on marinedeliveryroutemap.co.uk) 

The meeting closed with reminders about future meeting dates, and the intention to include a site visit as part of the next meeting. The subject of nutrient management and water quality had been raised several times during the meeting so the Secretariat will explore the potential for a related site visit. 

DT concluded emphasising the need to keep up the momentum established by the partnership throughout this Senedd term, and noted our shared commitment to practical action, partnership, and ensuring that discussions translate into effective delivery for the coasts and seas of Wales.

Dates of 2026 meetings

• 18th June 2026: location tbc
• 15th October 2026: Cathays Park, Cardiff

Jetske Germing to follow up with the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) on their progress and report back to the group at future meetings.

David Tudor to arrange a follow up conversation with Rose O’Neil of CNP

Secretariat to share the Marine Fund Cymru website with the CaSP partners when ready. 

Secretariat to share a list of the Marine Resilience Challenge Fund projects with CaSP partners.

CaSP partners are asked to take note of the wealth of evidence within SoNaRR and to continue to flag the marine and coastal messages.

Secretariat to develop better links between CaSP, WG policy areas and coastal groups.

Coastal Co-ordination Network to facilitate sharing of tools, best practice and information and links with local communities.

Please note that the presentations have been distributed separately.

If you wish to view them, please email: Wales Coasts and Seas Partnership. 

Rydym yn croesawu galwadau’n Gymraeg / We welcome calls in Welsh.