Young people in Pembrokeshire who are meeting up on the county’s beaches with their friends are being urged to do so safely and with consideration for others.

The message comes from Pembrokeshire County Council, Dyfed Powys Police, and other local agencies.

“It’s been a tough year for young people,” said Clr. Tessa Hodgson, Pembrokeshire’s Cabinet Member for social services.

“They spent much of the winter cooped up at home. Many have also been studying and had assessments. It’s natural to want to socialise – and to enjoy spending time on the beach.

“But please do so safely. If you’re a parent, please advise your child not to meet others at isolated beaches with poor mobile phone reception.

“We haven’t seen these problems so far, but if a young person has a drug or drink-related incident on an isolated beach, then it’s much harder for them to get help. The same goes if there’s an issue linked to reckless behaviour.”

Young people are also asked to act responsibly while at the beach, and to respect the local community.

It follows some instances where tins and bottles and the contents of bins were left strewn across the sand following gatherings.

Earlier this month, police tackled incidences of anti-social behaviour on Tenby’s North Beach which led to officers recovering broken glass from the sands after a large number of youths were drinking on the beach.

Issuing images on social media of the aftermath of local youths found drinking and causing ASB at the North Beach late into the evening, Tenby police’s Twitter account posted: “Do you know where your children were last night? - Broken glass, cans and bottles recovered from the beach by officers.“With a large police presence in the seaside resort over the weekends, with Dyfed-Powys Police launching its Operation Lion scheme earlier than normal this year to provide a visible presence throughout the town and its neighbouring village of Saundersfoot, officers were forced to conduct a clean-up themselves, collecting broken glass and litter from the beach.

Operation Lion is a partnership initiative with the aim to ensure public safety and deter anti-social behaviour, low level public order and drink related problems, to make Tenby an enjoyable place to live, work and visit over the forthcoming months.

“Young people are generally sensible and we hope these were isolated incidents, but we would like to take this opportunity to remind them to respect the environment, put litter in bins or take it home,” said Clr. Hodgson.

“Please enjoy going to the beach – but please behave and allow others to enjoy it as well.”

National Park Authority Chairman, Clr. Paul Harries added: “As well as having a negative impact on other people who want to enjoy the beach, actions such as littering can also have negative impacts on wildlife.

“We would urge everyone to tread lightly as they enjoy the Pembrokeshire Coast so that all who visit or call this place home can do so safely.”