Following a consultation earlier this year a Public Space Protection Order is now in place for Hopes Nose.

Torbay Council, in conjunction with Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust, asked local community groups and residents on the best way to approach the issues of anti social behaviour and littering at Hopes Nose. This resulted in a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 being put in place. The order came into force on 16 September 2016 and will be in place until December 2017 when the decision will be made whether to extend it.

To find out more about the PSPO, why it was needed and what the conditions are, two videos explaining this have been produced: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxJEthkdMvE

In summary the conditions include no camping or temporary shelters, no fires or barbecues, no littering, a restriction on the number of mackerel caught in a 24hr period and the ability for an authorised officer to direct someone to leave the area and not return for a period of 48 hours.

Councillor Robert Excell, Executive Lead for Community Services, said “The problems at Hopes Nose have been getting worse over a period of time and this made the area unpleasant for many residents, walkers and visitors. We could not allow this to carry on.

“Having the Public Spaces Protection Order in place means we can enforce a range of conditions, which means authorised officers will be on site at various times to carry out spot checks. The officers will be able to issue on the spot Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) of £80 to individuals who break the conditions of the Order. Non-payment of the FPN may result in prosecution at Court.

“It is a shame that we have had to resort to this course of action, but Hopes Nose is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, it forms part of the UNESCO Global Geopark status and we want to ensure it can be enjoyed by residents and visitors to Torbay now and in the future.”

The full conditions of the order are on display at Hopes Nose and can also be found here: www.torbay.gov.uk/hopes-nose.

A local voluntary organisation, called Tide Torbay, has been brought together by a shared interest to protect the natural environment for the benefit of residents and visitors of Torbay. They are working with Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust and Torbay Council to provide educational advice for users of Hopes Nose, and along with Trust and council officers, they are also authorised to issue FPNs to enforce the Public Spaces Protection Order.