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Year 7

Threats to the UK's coastline

I can describe how the UK's coastline is at risk from threats such as rising sea levels.

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New
New
Year 7

Threats to the UK's coastline

I can describe how the UK's coastline is at risk from threats such as rising sea levels.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The UK's coastline is at risk due to sea level rise as a result of climate change.
  2. Rising sea levels are speeding up rates of erosion, leading to the east coast of England eroding quickly.
  3. When cliffs erode quickly they put homes and buildings on top of the cliffs at risk of falling into the sea.
  4. Some parts of the UK's coastline are eroding at a rate of more than 2 metres a year.

Keywords

  • Global warming - Global warming is the increase in Earth's average temperature over a long period of time.

  • Climate change - Climate change is a large-scale and long-term change in the planet’s climate, including weather patterns and average temperatures.

  • Sea level - Sea level is the average height reached by the sea or an ocean, mesaured between high tide and low tide.

  • Erosion - Erosion is the process of Earth’s surface, e.g. rock or soil, being worn away and transported from its original site.

  • Risk - Risk means the possibility that something bad or unpleasant might happen to either the built or the natural environment.

Common misconception

That climate change causes global warming, or that climate change and global warming are the same thing.

Global warming is the rise in average temperatures as a result of the greenhouse effect. Climate change is changes to weather patterns (including temperatures and rainfall patterns) as a result of global warming.


To help you plan your year 7 geography lesson on: Threats to the UK's coastline, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Use old and new maps to work out distances of settlements from cliffs in different time periods as evidence of coastal retreat. Students could also track and list buildings, roads or entire settlements that have been lost to the sea as a result of coastal erosion.
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Content guidance

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Adult supervision required

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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is erosion?
The process of building new land along the coast
Correct answer: The process of Earth’s surface being worn and transported away
The growth of new plants on the coast
Q2.
The is the boundary between the land and the sea or ocean.
Correct answer: coastline
motorway
surf
Q3.
Match the key terms, they all mean something different and all have an effect at the UK's coastline.
Correct Answer:Climate ,The long-term average of weather patterns in a specific region
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The long-term average of weather patterns in a specific region

Correct Answer:Weather,The day-to-day atmospheric conditions, e.g. it's raining today
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The day-to-day atmospheric conditions, e.g. it's raining today

Correct Answer:Climate change,A long-term shift in global or regional climate patterns
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A long-term shift in global or regional climate patterns

Correct Answer:Global warming,The gradual increase in Earth’s average temperature
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The gradual increase in Earth’s average temperature

Q4.
What is weathering?
Correct answer: The breakdown of rocks in place
The movement of materials by wind and water
The process of forming new rocks
Q5.
What is sea level?
The height of the highest mountain on Earth
Correct answer: The average level of the ocean's surface, used to measure the height of land
The level of water in a river
The point where the sky meets the sea
Q6.
What could be done to protect the coastline from erosion?
Correct answer: Building sea walls to stop waves from wearing away the coast
Cutting down trees near the coast
Adding more buildings along the coast

4 Questions

Q1.
Global is the increase in Earth's average temperature over a long period of time.
Correct Answer: warming
Q2.
change is the large-scale, long-term change in the planet’s climate, including weather patterns and average temperature.
Correct Answer: Climate
Q3.
What is happening to sea levels around the world?
1 - Global temperatures increase,
2 - ice sheets and glaciers melt,
3 - water from ice melt enters rivers and seas,
4 - sea levels rise.
Q4.
The east coast of England experiences some of the highest rates of in the UK. As sea levels are rising, they are contributing to the increase.
Correct Answer: erosion