A NEW collaborative programme between the Army’s Outreach Team South West, Sharp’s Brewery, and BeachCare has come together to offer a dynamic, new beach cleaning initiative to coastal communities across the South West, of which the Friends of Bude Sea Pool has benefited.

Led by Neil Hembrow, BeachCare officer, the Sharp’s Beach Clean Battalion has been developing its engagement in various community coastal projects over the last year in the South West. Activities have included cleaning beaches, mending coastpath fences, renovating invaluable National Trust assets, knocking down walls, painting, and a whole host of other activities to support the coastal environment.

Now with an enlarged support package from North Cornwall-based Sharp’s Brewery, the Sharp’s Beach Clean Battalion is made up of voluntary members of BeachCare and the Army’s Outreach Team, and is offering its free coastal care services to any community groups or individuals across Devon and Cornwall.

Teams of six to 12 hardy soldiers will be deployed promptly for at least two days a month throughout 2017 to undertake any coastal cleaning or maintenance that is required.

Beach and coastal community groups and individuals are being encouraged to enter their local needs to ensure they are in with a chance of receiving this complimentary support.

Neil Hembrow, BeachCare officer, who does a lot of work in Bude, said: “This is a service that BeachCare put in place last year and with the collaboration of the Army volunteers, and now the backing of Sharp’s Brewery, the Sharp’s Beach Clean Battalion is ready to take on any job, no matter how big or small, with utter dedication.

“The beaches are benefitting, as we’ve removed over six tonnes of litter so far, helping with a whole host of other community projects across the South West. We now want to offer our services, across Devon and Cornwall, to any worthwhile community project. If you need a job done, these guys will make it happen — and those who take a responsibility for these coastal areas simply need to get in touch with me to add their task or project needs into the mix.”

James Nicholls, senior brand manager at Sharp’s Brewery, said: “With Sharp’s Brewery being based in Rock, North Cornwall, the coastline and our beaches are deeply important to us. For the last two years Sharp’s has supported Keep Britain Tidy and the Blue Flag initiative through sales of our limited release range of beers, and we are delighted to be extending this with our new sponsorship of the beach clean programme led by Neil Hembrow.

“It’s fantastic to have the British Army involved in helping keep beaches and the coast clean and accessing areas that are treacherous to reach. We’re looking forward to supporting the results of this work and also want to say thanks to all of the volunteers and Army members who are contributing their time to this important cause.”

The Friends of Bude Sea Pool recently deployed the Sharp’s Beach Clean Battalion to help with the renovations around their area.

Fay Hargreaves, charity coordinator, said: “It was a huge boost to have the guys along to help us out with our project. The Friends of Bude Sea Pool are renovating an old toilet building into a much needed office and shop. We needed many hands and muscle to knock down some walls and to get rid of the debris. Sharp’s Beach Clean Battalion worked really hard and gave us the initial strength we needed to crack on with our project. They were brilliant.”

The National Trust in North Cornwall has also recently had the team back again working on the cliffs close to Polzeath, renovating an underground Royal Observation Corps Cold War monitoring station that was discovered at Pentire Head.

Groups or individuals who know of a remote beach that needs a clean or a coastal project that needs some muscle or help should contact Neil Hembrow from BeachCare on [email protected].

For further information on BeachCare and the Sharp’s Beach Clean Battalion activity, go to www.facebook.com/beachcare