Latest news with #KatyMabin
Telegraph
2 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
‘Beloved' 1930s campsite closed over safety concerns
A 'beloved' beach campsite founded in the 1930s has been ordered to close over health and safety fears. Families who have camped at Sandway Beach in Cornwall for generations have so far defied eviction notices and are locked in a standoff with the council. Cornwall and Plymouth city councils, which own and manage the beach, said they will not renew the campsite's licence over fears that campers could be killed by landslips, rockfalls or floods. Officials ordered members of the Sandway Campers Association to 'vacate the land immediately due to the risks of immediate danger/death', citing a lack of sufficient escape routes should the tide rise high enough. The Environment Agency has backed the councils in their concerns over landslips and flooding. The Rame Peninsula campsite was founded by fishermen in the 1930s, who used bell tents on the beach. A petition has been launched by Katy Mabin to urge the local authorities to preserve the 'irreplaceable cultural landmark', which has seen its structures passed down through five generations. Ms Mabin said: 'The historical value of this site is not merely in its longevity but in the cultural heritage it represents. 'Sandway Point has been a sanctuary where lifelong friendships were formed, where children explored the wonders of nature for the first time, and where the gently, lapping waves provided the soundtrack to countless family gatherings and restful nights. 'Losing this beloved site would erase nearly a century of community history and tradition, a detrimental blow not just to camping enthusiasts, but to the very fabric of Kingsand's identity.' Julia Koonde, one of the campers, told the BBC: 'We learnt to fish here and we caught rabbits in the fields and my mum made rabbit stew. 'The material things don't matter when you're here, it's just nice to get away from the rat race.' Both Cornwall council and Plymouth city council granted a lease to the trustees of the Sandway Campsite Association for 15 years from March 2009. The lease allowed members of the association to erect tents for holiday use only and during intermittent periods of the year on land near Sandway Beach. But in 2015 Cornwall council authorised a report that detected risks in relation to the actual stability of the cliff next to the land. The association's right to occupy the beach expired with their lease on 24 March 2024. A joint statement by the councils said: 'No further lease or licence has been granted to the association or any other party. 'This means that the members of the association who have been camping on the land after March 24, 2024 have been trespassing.' Plymouth city council sent letters and emails to members between July and October 2024 ordering them to vacate, but members have returned to the land since April 2024.
BBC News
30-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Upset over fears popular Cornwall camping spot could be shut
People from the Rame Peninsula are "gutted" a popular camping spot might be closed over safety comes after Plymouth and Cornwall councils have decided not to renew a licence allowing people to use the historic Sandway Campsite, close to the villages of Kingsand and Cawsand, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.A petition has been launched by Katy Mabin calling for Cornwall Council to "work actively" to preserve the campsite and avoid issuing eviction councils said they asked campers last year to "vacate the land immediately due to the risks of immediate danger/death" from flooding and landslips, and they were concerned about people camping there. Ms Mabin said: "Losing this beloved site would erase nearly a century of community history and tradition - a detrimental blow not just to camping enthusiasts, but to the very fabric of Kingsand's identity."Kate Ewert, who represents the Rame Peninsula on Cornwall Council, challenged the authorities to do a new report into safety said no-one was staying at the site after notices went up this year telling them to set up bell tents on the beach in the 1930s, which have since been replaced by Beach is owned and managed by Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council and they granted a 15-year lease from 2009 to the Sandway Campsite Association for holiday use only. 'Insufficient escape route' A 2013 Cornwall Council report identified risks about the stability of the cliff and there were several landslides leading up to March a joint statement, the councils said there were concerns that there is "no sufficient" escape route for campers and the Environment Agency had also highlighted safety risks."If the tide rises high enough and sweeps over the tents, then the beach could well become flooded and the occupants would be trapped. "That risk would be even greater if flooding happened overnight whilst the occupants were asleep," the councils councils said they asked campers last year to "vacate the land immediately due to the risks of immediate danger/death" because of the risks of flooding and landslips" and were concerned about people camping there. Ewert said notices had been put up asking people to leave, but no-one was camping said: "I am gutted about the state of affairs at Sandway. "Cornwall Council's planning committee granted permission last year after campers argued they did not use the site during the spring tide or when there was a risk from storm called for a new report to update the findings of the 2013 said five more planning consents were issued and campers were able to use the land in the intervening 11 said: "I asked for a new full study to be completed."It seems a geological expert reviewed the report and referred back to the 2013 report and said the land is unstable and that's that."The Rame Peninsula has come to the fore recently after being featured in the book The Salt Path and its accompanying movie.
