Rubbish piles up as hot weather hits the West Country
Plenty of people enjoyed the bank holiday weekend with temperatures soaring to over 20C across the West Country.
A number of tourist hotspots saw higher numbers of visitors than usual but it has also seen a large increase in the amount of litter.
There had been appeals from local councils and from litter-picking groups in the build up to the weekend, encouraging people to think about their rubbish to prevent damage to the region.
Clevedon seafront saw huge numbers of visitors but there was also a large increase in litter left behind.
A photo showed a bin overflowing with rubbish with people leaving bags next to it instead of taking it home.
LitterFree coast and sea posted on Twitter in the build up to the bank holiday encouraging everyone to protect the beauty spots around the region.
They also highlighted a new banner declaring that West Bay in Dorset was "a litter free beach" and that people should take litter away with them.
The group completed a major clean-up operation on Monday 31 May, with more than 300 volunteers coming out to help remove litter from beaches around Dorset.
There are also concerns the increase in the amount of litter could continue into this week with half-term meaning more people will still be visiting hotspots.
The West Country is already preparing for a busy summer with a number of people expected to swap trips abroad for staycations because of the pandemic.
Litter pickers in Torbay had said they were concerned about the potential increase in visitors ahead of the summer, with the leader of the council Steve Darling saying he was worried about the period.
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