Upset over fears popular camping spot may shut

People from the Rame Peninsula are "gutted" a popular camping spot might be closed over safety fears.

It 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 notices.

The 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 concerns.

She said no-one was staying at the site after notices went up this year telling them to leave.

Fishermen set up bell tents on the beach in the 1930s, which have since been replaced by huts.

Sandway 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.

A 2013 Cornwall Council report identified risks about the stability of the cliff and there were several landslides leading up to March 2024.

In 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 said.

The 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 there.

She 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 surges.

Ewert called for a new report to update the findings of the 2013 survey.

She said five more planning consents were issued and campers were able to use the land in the intervening 11 years.

She 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.

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