There seems to be a tendency for the bass to stay later, but this may be waning this year as the Gulf Stream has failed.
I can only guess - in my native Weymouth, they'll be gone in a fortnight at best. That said, I bet a few turn up right through winter.
It'll start getting really interesting again in May, in Dorset. The bass turn up in the oddest places - three weeks ago I was fishing for them in a sluice between a freshwater lake and an open beach - the bass travelled at high tide right up a pipe in the freshwater outflow to where the valve is sited, then hammered the little prawns trapped in the outflow pool.
We didn't catch, but my mate had one of 6 1/2lb on ragworm the week before.
Sometimes really big fish will turn up in really busy places - next to where kids goes crabbing, for example. You just have to be observant and do some mooching around in spring with polaroids. It has to be dawn - ten times more fish to see than at ANY other time.
I've often thought that the perfect way to test the water would be with a bucket of sea livebaits and a pike float rig. Never done it, but live sandeels are the bizzo offshore, so I'd guess few bass could resist a little pout or sandsmelt from the shore.
One day.....