A visiting group who left a beach covered in litter have been slapped with a warning after a council investigation.

The mess on Margate beach was condemned after 20 tonnes of waste was strewn across the beach and seafront.

Enforcement officers from Thanet District Council have now tracked down two groups - who were not from Kent - after the town's Main Sands were left in a terrible state.

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A review of CCTV in the area by council teams and police worked to find out exactly who had been responsible for the litter, described by council leader Bob Bayford as "shocking and heartbreaking".

Some 500 people were on the beach for separate events on July 27.

The council said one of the events had been arranged through its events team and approval was obtained to host it and CCTV proved they were not responsible for the littering.

But a second group of individuals, which had sold tickets online for an unauthorised event, had not carried out the proper process to seek approval from the council to host a large event on the beach.

Enforcement teams were able to track down the organisers after working with coach companies that had bussed people to Margate for the day.

That group has now been served with a Community Protection Warning Notice but escaped a fine because the law states the warning notice is the highest punishment that could be issued at this stage.

TDC says the intelligence gathered during the investigation will be shared with agencies in Essex and London in a hope to deter further incidents and show the council will take a stand against anyone causing harm to the district.

A council statement said: "The warning ensures that if the organisers of the group intend to return to Thanet to host another event, that they must receive permission from Thanet District Council to do so, and adhere to our events procedure.

"It also incorporates actions to protect the coach companies from anti-social behaviour, which they and their drivers experienced two weeks ago.

"We want to send a strong message to those responsible that this behaviour was and will always be unacceptable.
"Being able to identify the group and take the legal action available, is a positive step to ensure this does not happen again.

"We do not ever want others to experience such a shocking disregard for our beaches in the future.

"Once again, we want to thank those of you who take such pride in helping to keep our beaches clean in Margate and across the rest of Thanet."

If the group fails to comply with the warning, the council can issue a formal Community Protection Notice (CPN) which aims to deal with ongoing issues and persistent anti-social behaviour affecting a community's quality of life.

A group can be fined up to £20,000 and individuals up to £2,500 for breaching a CPN.

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