"You're not welcome": Anger over litter on beaches

Council bosses in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole say those who don't respect the beaches are not welcome back.

Hundreds of thousands have flocked to the coast to soak up the sun in recent days, but some have left behind plastic bottles, cans, broken glass and even nappies.

Clean up teams are currently having to start work at 2.30am.

It's been revealed BCP Council spends £1m every year clearing rubbish from its beaches.

In a statement, the council said: "Our fantastic Seafront Teams are out in the early hours of each morning (often from 2.30am) making sure our beaches are safe and clean by 8am. They work seven days a week, all year round to keep our beaches looking beautiful in the sunshine.

"On Sunday, we collected 35 tonnes of waste from the beaches. We have a team of Community Safety Accreditation Scheme (CSAS) officers out on patrol whose presence provides a level of deterrent to littering.

“We have tripled the volume of bins along the seafront - so there is no excuse for not gathering up your rubbish and putting it in one of our 400 bins dotted along the promenade or just simply take it home. We are grateful to the majority of people who do walk a couple of yards to the nearest bin to dispose of their waste.

“We welcome visitors to come here and have a great time. But as usual –treat our resort with respect, clear up after yourself and stay safe. Those who don’t respect our area, are not welcome back."

Environmental campaigner Oly Rush from Poole is trying to hammer home the message about littering and pollution.

Last year, he broke the world record for swimming around the Isle of Wight to raise awareness and this year he became the first person to swim around Grand Cayman.

He said: “It doesn’t seem to matter how many signs there are – or awareness campaigns – some people don’t take any notice.

“But if you ask them to take their waste home and give them a bag, most people will do it – it just needs mild shaming.

“I am in the process of turning Project Planet into a registered charity so we can do more to help make our beaches and oceans cleaner.

“I want to get into schools to educate the children and also clear our coasts of plastic which can then be recycled. “