I have no experience of this location but have looked at the charts etc. It seems at low water there is up to a mile of mud off Chalkwell beach so it may be you will have a very short window around high tide for enough water to make launch/recovery. If you make a mistake re times when you are out it will be impossible to get back in once the tide is out any distance.
In any case a beach launch can be challenging and sometimes impossible solo... I'd do anything to avoid that for a first outing. In fact with 50+yrs on the water since a kid I avoid it full stop.
I've just looked it up (
https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rc...5tfd9R_CgQUiFl - scroll to item 53) and it seems they are trying to discourage launching from the beach as the charge is £38 a day! Of course there might not be anyone about to collect this time of year but it's a high charge if they catch you.
Leigh marina is a possibility as their daily charge for a smallcraft is lower than the beach (I think) but their slip is still only usable at HW +/- 2hrs... to me a very narrow window for smallcraft.
The ramp at Two Tree island looks a slightly better option. The charge there is £25 to launch and again this time of year there might not be anyone on site to collect, they also want you to have proof of insurance. It seems that is usable through more of the tide range as it goes into a small creek which looks to have water at all but the very lowest tides.
Essex Marina on the Crouch would give you access straight to deep water at all tide states and mean you started off in a sheltered location so to me it has massive advantage for you. No idea if they allow smallcraft launch or about their charges.
Across the Crouch is the Burnham Yacht Marina... not been there for years but I think they allow smallcraft launch for about £15/day plus harbour dues.... their slip is mucky at low tide.
It may be further than you want to travel but the hour to West Mersea on Mersea Island would be well spent to get the ideal launch situation for someone starting out. The hard packed gravel slip adj the RNLI (always good to know the boys are nearby!) is free and hasn't any significant mud at all but the very lowest tides. It is uncontrolled so no-one needs to see insurance (but I'd still get it) etc. Immediately adj to the slip there is an excellent pontoon with toilets, wash tap & café at the top. Small car park nearby on the front and close by free street parking if that's full.
For a first trip out where you are new to the sea and to your outfit here is huge benefit in somewhere like Mersea where you launch into sheltered water with a pontoon yards away. If you realise you've left something in the car, the motor splutters or anything else happens you can paddle to the pontoon tie up and sort yourself out.
Here is a review of Mersea I wrote a while ago... not saying it's the only place but it's the only place I know in the area that ticks all the boxes for someone starting out.
http://www.rib.net/forum/f50/launchi...sea-52571.html
See in particular my posts from #16 onwards with some images to give an idea of the location.
