Geography›Dorset Coast — Swanage & the Jurassic Coast
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Section C — Coastal LandscapesUK coastlinePaper 1
Dorset Coast — Swanage & the Jurassic Coast
Erosion and deposition landforms · UNESCO World Heritage Site · headlands, bays, arches, stacks, stumps.
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142km
Coastline length
2001
UNESCO designation
Key facts — from Seaford 2025–27 case study notes
Location & geology
Swanage is a seaside town in Dorset on the south coast of England
Part of the Jurassic Coast — UNESCO World Heritage Site (designated 2001) extending from Exmouth, Devon to Old Harry Rocks
Discordant coastline — alternating bands of hard (headlands) and soft (bays) rock, creating contrasting landforms
Concordant coastline to the south — limestone runs parallel, creating a smoother coastline with Lulworth Cove where waves broke through a weakness
Landforms of erosion
Headlands and bays — formed where hard and soft rock bands meet the coast
Durdle Door — a natural arch formed by wave erosion cutting through a headland
Old Harry Rocks — a stack and stump, formed from progressive erosion of a headland (cave → arch → stack → stump)
Lulworth Cove — formed where waves broke through the hard limestone revealing softer rock behind
Landforms of deposition & habitats
Studland Bay — lagoons, saltmarshes and sand dunes formed by longshore drift and deposition
Habitat for wildlife — attracts significant tourism to the area
Wide sandy beaches at Swanage formed by deposition in the sheltered bay
Exam questions — 2 questions · 10 marks
⚡ Geography exam tip: Always use named examples with specific data. "An earthquake in Nepal" scores fewer marks than "The 2015 Nepal earthquake (magnitude 7.9, 9,000 deaths)." Learn the statistics on this page.
1 markDiscordant coastline
What creates a discordant coastline like the Dorset coast?
A A coastline with all the same rock type running parallel to the sea
B Alternating bands of hard and soft rock meeting the coastline at right angles, creating headlands and bays
C A coastline formed entirely by deposition of sediment
D A coastline that changes direction frequently due to tectonic activity
4 marksFormation of Old Harry Rocks
Describe the sequence of events that leads to the formation of a stack such as Old Harry Rocks. (4 marks)
Hint: This is a sequence question — describe cave, arch, stack, stump in order. Name Durdle Door and Old Harry Rocks where relevant.