Holiday park says it can't be blamed for 'everything that is wrong' in Cornish town

A holiday park, which has faced considerable criticism in a Cornish town, has fought back telling locals it’s not to blame for “everything that is wrong” in the area.

The resort, called Gwel an Mor, was responding to backlash it faced from local residents as well as the parish council after applying for new planning permission.

The holiday park, which provides luxury lodge accommodation overlooking Portreath on Cornwall’s north coast, said the only thing it could be blamed for was "wanting to boost local tourism" and "giving holidaymakers a quality experience".

It had registered two applications with Cornwall Council – one to knock down 10 lodges and replace them with nine bigger and better dwellings, and another to build 10 more lodges.

Residents rejoiced last month as Portreath councillors objected to both with allegations of applications leading to expansion by stealth.

Gwel an Mor has now responded to comments made by local people following the application in a lengthy statement.

A spokesperson began: "Everything that is wrong in Portreath is the fault of Gwel an Mor, or so we are led to believe.

"The streets of Portreath are covered in poo. The beach is empty. The town is being overdeveloped and it’s over-crowded. Over-crowded?

"How strange then that the man who owns the surf shop says there is a decreasing number of visitors and it’s the terrible weather that’s driving them away."

The statement went on to add: “Gwel an Mor have asked for planning permission from Cornwall Council to demolish 10 lodges and build nine modern ones in their place, as well as build an additional 10 lodges.

"A nice boost for tourism one would have thought. Portreath Parish Council don’t like this and many of the wildly inaccurate arguments outlined above seem to have influenced the councillors.

“This may be one of the finest examples of Nimbyism seen in England for quite some time."

It went on to highlight that many had condemned the park for being owned by an American company but pointed out that it is run from a UK base employing locals.

The spokesperson also listed a number of other benefits it has to the area including the 121 jobs it had created for Cornish people, the £1.3million spent with local suppliers and tradespeople and the introduction of a shuttle service to reduce the number of cars in the area.

They concluded: "We have installed a sensory play park – open to the local community, acknowledging the need for a place for families to be able to play together when one or more of the family members may have sensory needs or indeed be in a wheelchair.

"This helps families be together, whereas, in other play parks, this is not catered for. This has been welcomed by the local community and guests alike.

"It is also worth mentioning that we had several meetings with the local council where we shared our plans and asked for their help in distributing funds to local charities and good causes.

"Not only did we get no comment despite our repeated email requests but the information did not get passed on to the charities and local initiatives."

Credit: Lee Trewhela, Local Democracy Reporting Service