As winds are set to batter the south coast, the caretakers of Brighton's ravaged West Pier are bracing themselves for more collapses.

Last week, a large chunk of the structure fell fell into the stormy waves.

Today, Rachel Clarke, Chief Executive of the West Pier Trust, said: “Having the collapse last week has certainly weakened the structure.

"We do expect further collapses but the level of engineering is such that you can never know. It has already lasted so long.”

Brighton and Hove, along with East and West Sussex, is currently subject to an amber be prepared warning for wind. 

The Met Office says it is expecting winds of up to 80mph to batter the south coast during the course of the day.

The warning has just been upgraded to red for North Wales and part of northern England, which means residents should take action to protect themselves from hurricane force winds.