Cornwall Council is holding a drop in session next Monday (February 22) at the Summerhouse on Leverlake Road from 10am to 7pm to gather views on draft proposals for enhancements to the coast at Widemouth Bay.

The proposals cover the car park, dunes and surrounding cliffs and the council is keen to hear the views of local people.

Widemouth is amongst east Cornwall's most popular beaches and is heavily used throughout the year. The draft proposals seek to enhance the car park as well as look at access, interpretation and land management.

Wider issues such as dune stabilization are addressed in the plans along with better management of the cliff top to benefit wildlife.

Local Councillor Phil Tucker said: "It's important the authority works closely with local people and takes on board their views. We have a small amount of capital to invest at Widemouth, which I am sure will make a difference to the quality of the services in this area."

The scheme looks at improving car park capacity whilst acknowledging the constraints of the existing area. As well as improving facilities, changes will also be made to management practices to further benefit the environment.

Graham Holland, Cornwall Council's East Cornwall Car Parks Manager said: "Many of the changes are small scale but will have a much bigger impact. Local residents highlighted that orchids in the overflow car park were being damaged. By changing the timing of the cutting regime I hope we can contribute to their longer term conservation."

Issues relating to the car park and access to the beach have been raised at the Beach Users Forum which is chaired by Paul Tilzey who says: "I hope the plans will reflect the issues raised at the forum and with the Beach Ranger Service. It's encouraging to see different services within the council attempting to achieve a better end product for beach users through a common sense approach."

Cornwall Council's Beach Ranger Service is currently producing a new management plan for the beach and the consultation will enable beach users to raise specific issues with relevant staff.

The intention is that the community will help deliver the environmental improvements and people attending the consultation will be encouraged to sign up to a volunteer list for future events.