AN ALMOST 100-year tradition started by fishermen, which sees a unique beach campsite used for Cornish locals rather than tourists, is under threat due to flood risk concerns raised by the Environment Agency. However, users are dismayed saying the risks are negligible and they are doing everything they can to mitigate any safety issues.

An association of users of the private campsite at Sandway Beach at Kingsand has applied to Cornwall Council for planning permission to pitch 20 tents, which resemble beach huts, between April 1 and September 30 each year for five years alongside the installation of emergency evacuation steps. Supporters say when the tents go up it’s a sign for everyone in the area that summer has begun.

A meeting of the council’s east sub-area planning committee heard this week that the tents have historically been erected on concrete platforms between the rocky foreshore and beneath cliffs on the Rame Peninsula coastline.

The tradition started in 1936 when fishermen from Plymouth set up tents while working the sea. The fishermen’s descendants still use the tents each summer.

Planning officer George Shirley, who recommended refusal, said: “For many years, planning permissions have been issued on this site on a temporary basis, owing to the detached location and exposed position of the campsite. In the last couple of decades flood risk has become an increasingly important issue, with the impacts of climate change and sea level rise beginning to take effect. In 2021, planning permission was refused for the first time on the back of a strong objection from the Environment Agency.

“The campsite is accessible to Kingsand via footpaths which lead to bus and pedestrian ferry connections. However, whilst there are identifiable economic and social benefits to the scheme, it must be noted that the scheme does not provide any environmental benefits as required by policy and it is likely that the scheme would result in a degree of environmental harm due to the potential flood risk to users.”

The Environment Agency again submitted a strong objection on flood risk grounds and the Coast Authority also objected on the basis of coastal vulnerability.

Mr Shirley added: “Sympathy is held for the applicant and the association in that this is clearly a much-loved campsite, fostering a small summertime community each year, and it may be that occupants are well versed in the risk from wave action at certain high tides or weather conditions. However, this does not detract from the very real safety risks from using the campsite which are increasing with the impacts of climate change and sea level rise.”

There was strong support for the community campsite to continue despite the recommendation to refuse.

Cllr Dawn Williams, of Maker with Rame Parish Council, said the tents had “continued for the last 80 years and are a really lovely part of our culture and history. When the tents go up, summer has arrived and it’s a really lovely thing. This is very much a benefit for local people and people from Plymouth. This is not an Airbnb activity. They are an escape for local people.

“We do, as a parish council, recognise the realities of global warming and increasing heights of the tide. However, the tents are on a raised platform and only occupied in the summer months.” She said people who stay in them sign up for Environment Agency warnings so are very aware if bad weather is approaching.

She added that any disabled users wouldn’t have to rely on the proposed emergency ladder as there is a flat and level path towards Kingsand.

Cllr Williams said that the parish council believed the recommendation to refuse showed an “abundance of caution”. She said there had never been loss of life, impact on people staying in the tents or any other issues as far as she was aware. The meeting was told that the Coastguard has no record of any incidents at the site.

Applicant Tim Fishleigh told the committee the fishermen originally got permission from the Mount Edgcumbe Estate to camp for a small ground rate and the third generation of the fishermen’s families still use the site. “Sandway campsite has not and never has been a commercial organisation. We are just leaseholders for the 20 members.”

He said a flood risk assessment has been carried out, hence the application for the five-year plan. A noticeboard with tide times and heights would be put up, with an order for no camping during certain weather conditions.

“I and many other third generations of families owe everything to those young fishermen who settled at Sandway and what they created. There is no other place where you can feel so close to home and at the same time feel a million miles away. It’s unique in every sense of the word – it’s special,” added Mr Fishleigh.

The local Cornwall councillor Kate Ewert reiterated that the campsite was beloved of people living on the Rame Peninsula and as far away as Plymouth.

She said: “The fact that the tents are inhabited by local families and not tourists makes them even more special. They are one of the last things solely for the local community in the summer.

“This summer just gone is the first in many, many years where the tents have not been in situ. Not only were residents and visitors alike upset not to see them, but we saw a huge increase in anti-social behaviour, littering and fly-tipping in the area as there was no one there to act as guardian for the site.”

She said there had been no maritime incidents because the users are locals who understand the tides and small risks. “They would not be using their tents if the forecasts were bad; they would not be putting their families at risk. They have a deep respect for the area and deep understanding of the coastal environment.”

Cllr Ewert believed the risk outlined by the EA was overstated. “The limited danger is outweighed by the benefit of the temporary five-year permission,” she added.

Cllr Barry Jordan aired his concerns about people being at the mercy of high tides and crashing waves. Cllr Dominic Fairman said it was “dangerous territory” not to listen to the Environment Agency. “In 30 years we won’t be here because it will be underwater so we have to take precautions,” he added.

Taking an opposing view, Cllr Adrian Parsons said the council should support the residents: “I think what a miserable society we’ve become. They understand the tides and seasons. I don’t know who we are to put a stop to this culture and identity they’ve enjoyed for over a century.”

Cllr Andrew Long agreed: “We’re not talking about the general public here. We’re talking about a specialist area. It is a question of managing and mitigating risk. I understand the officer recommendation as this is a unique one.”

The committee was reminded that it was granting planning permission for a use of land not to a group of people, and they shouldn’t place an over-reliance on the good local knowledge about flood risk. “The fact is, the site could be used by anybody,” added an officer.

The meeting heard the campsite is leased from Plymouth City Council and Cornwall Council, on behalf of Mount Edgcumbe Estate. Neither authority had been told about the application.

The committee voted to defer as it came to light during the meeting that the applicant mistakenly stated they owned the land, rather than leased it, so the correct legal documentation was required before a decision could be made. The committee was minded to approve and wanted more information from the Environment Agency before making a decision at a future meeting.