NEW SHIFTING SANDS REPORT Where are the modern equivalents of Blackpool's iconic Tower or Brighton's majestic Royal Pavilion? Jon Rouse, CABE chief executive

The report, Shifting Sands, says the country's once popular coastal areas have lost 10 million visitors in the last 25 years.

But it says the resorts can reinvent themselves by looking to new design concepts which hark back to the golden age of the seaside, demonstrated in places like Southport, Folkestone, Whitby and Eastbourne.

The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) and English Heritage are behind the report.

Fifteen case studies are used to demonstrate how buildings and other developments can change the fortunes of the historic resorts.

They range from large-scale projects like a new museum and visitor centre inside the walls of Whitby's medieval abbey to smaller designs such as a seafood stall in Folkestone

Other successful projects highlighted are a new pavilion on Southport Pier and a creative solution for a wastewater outlet in Eastbourne.

SHIFTING SANDS Examples of improved seaside resorts In pictures

Jon Rouse, chief executive of CABE, said: "This report demonstrates how seaside towns need to recapture the design excellence and innovation of our Victorian forbears.

"Where are the modern equivalents of Blackpool's iconic Tower or Brighton's majestic Royal Pavilion?

"While there are lots of examples of good new buildings and spaces there is still room for bigger, better and more incentive schemes that recapture the glory of the past to reclaim the English seaside resort as the destination to live, work and play."

Seaside trader Tony Pye, owner of Chummy's Seafood Stall, in Folkestone, highlighted in the report, said he is already benefiting from his new building.

He said: "Chummy's seafood has been famous for fifty years but we were losing our edge and the whole area was getting tatty.

"The new stall has been given us the upper hand and we've gone from being a well-known stall to being the most famous seafood stall being quoted by the likes of Rick Stein."