Nicola Jameson, from Atherton, described the scene as “horrendous and a bit sad”
A mum from Greater Manchester has said she was disgusted after what she saw on the beach after Bank Holiday chaos in the area. Formby Beach car park was closed on Monday (May 25) as it reached capacity and police blocked roads leading to the sand.
Dozens of cars were spotted travelling towards towards the beauty spot, leading to large queues in the area. Footage has since been shared of significant amounts of litter left on Formby beach. Hundreds of parking fines were also handed out over the weekend.
Clips were taken by Nicola Jameson while she was out walking her dog on Tuesday, who condemned ‘bone idle’ people after spotting discarded nappies and chicken. Nicola told the ECHO she often travels from her home in Atherton to Formby and was caught by surprise by the state of the beach.
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Nicola, 33, said: “It was horrendous. I just didn’t expect it. It was a bit sad. There were people coming to the beach this morning. I wouldn’t like to take my kids to see that. People are happy to enjoy the beach but not happy to clean up.
“The dog likes going to Formby. I was talking to quite a few locals on the beach – they said every time there’s nice weather, it’s left in a state. There were nappies, barbecues, my dog was eating chicken bones, all things that shouldn’t be there. Cans, vodka bottles too.”
Nicola said individuals, rather than the council, need to take more responsibility for looking after beauty spots such as Formby. She said: “I understand that people want to go and have a nice day but whatever you take with you, take it back. Older people were cleaning it up – that’s not their job.
“There aren’t enough bins but it’s a very difficult place to get to with the sand dunes. The council were there very early this morning. I think people need to take responsibility. You know what’s nice and what’s not nice.
“It was disgusting. The nappies – eugh. It was awful. I think people need to stop being bone idle. People moan about this country. But we have a nice day and a nice place like that gets ruined.
“If they went aboard, they wouldn’t do it there. If one person leaves stuff, everyone else thinks it’s alright and they do the same.”
There were similar scenes at other beaches in Sefton on Monday. A teenager was also taken to hospital after suffering injuries from a ‘bladed weapon’ on Crosby beach.
In response to these issues, Sefton Council issued an urgent warning visitors about the importance of planning and acting responsibly when visiting its beaches following ‘unacceptable’ scenes over the weekend.
The statement said: “During warm and sunny weather, coastal locations including beaches at Ainsdale, Formby and Crosby receive an extraordinary number of visitors. While Sefton Council fully understands why visitors want to visit its beautiful coastline, and welcomes them, this should not be at the cost, inconvenience or safety of local residents.
“Inconsiderate and illegally parking on residential streets near to beaches can make pavements unusable and inaccessible for some. It could also prevent emergency vehicles such as ambulances and fire engines from reaching incidents at the beaches themselves and in local people’s homes.
“Unfortunately, this weekend saw some visitors, who flock to Sefton from across the whole of the North West and beyond, park in this way. Irresponsible and dangerous parking led to around 700 parking fines being issued by enforcement team members across the Bank Holiday weekend.
“Further reports of anti-social behaviour were reported to Sefton Council, with staff from its Green Sefton service diverted from their regular maintenance and community work to deal with its effects, including littering and damage to toilet facilities.
“The council also understands there were anti-social incidents at local rail stations and other locations. Anti-social behaviour impacts residents, other visitors and Sefton’s protected natural habitat, and is unacceptable.”
As Mark Shaw, service manager for the council’s Green Sefton service said: “We have always said that we welcome visitors to our coastline.
“All we ask is that they act responsibly when they come here, show some consideration for the local people who live here all year round and respect the coast. We also ask them to leave the place as they find it, which might mean taking your rubbish away with you.
“That’s not too much to ask and if people can’t manage that or want to engage in unacceptable anti-social behaviour, we’d prefer that they went elsewhere.”









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