A sex toy, human faeces and dirty nappies buried in the sand were among the many unpleasant finds made by volunteers clearing up one of the county's most picturesque beaches.

After just one weekend of spring-like weather and a high numbers of visitors, hard-working residents of Botany Bay in Kingsgate were again left to pick up the waste left behind.

Barry Manners, who runs the Friends of Botany Bay and Kingsgate group, says little surprises him any more, but the sex toy was a bit of a shock.

"I was chatting to one of the volunteers by the lifeguard hut where people sit on the steps and drink - it's one of the grottier spots," he said.

"I picked it up and thought 'is that what I think it is?'.

"It may have come in on the tide and a dog carried it up the beach, who knows. Not really what we normally find among the sanitary towels and bottles.

"On Monday, two lots of human faeces were found by the cliff steps, two people had squatted against the cliff.

"That's not a regular occurrence in the winter, although happens daily in the summer."

Mr Manners says the sex toy is a "man bites dog" story and that the real issue on the Kingsgate beach is the human faeces, wet wipes and nappies.

"We're seeing people taking off their babies' nappies and burying them in the sand, that's the reality of what we're facing," he said.

"The problem is you have all this rubbish and if we call the council to come to collect it, it may take a couple of days by which point the tide has come in and taken all that plastic out to sea."

He says the sunny weather over the weekend brought with it lots of visitors, but with public amenities shut it meant the beauty spot suffered.

"There are no toilets at the moment, the pub is shut and so there is nowhere for people to go," he said.

Last summer, the beaches were crammed with sunseekers, despite Thanet District Council urging people to stay away during the heatwave.

Heartbroken volunteers would come down to the beach in the evening to be faced with huge amounts of rubbish.

Piles of bags were collected each day in a desperate attempt to stop the litter ending up in the sea and to make the beach beautiful again - only for the same to happen the following day.

"The number of visitors and the scale of it - the beach was trashed," said Mr Manners.

"Volunteers end up getting burned out trying to keep on top of it."

The issue has prompted him to set up The Friends of Botany Bay CIC, which will not only help keep the much-loved bay clean, but raise money for good causes.

The idea is to encourage people to pay £15 for a beach clean hour, with £5 donated toward's the group's nominated charities.

A volunteer will carry out an hour's cleaning, posting a video or picture to show the result of the work, with money then going to their chosen cause.

The remaining £10 of the fee covers overheads, such as equipment, the website and accounting costs, with any leftover funds going to the charities at year end.

In the three days since it launched, £360-worth has come in.

"We're basically selling beach clean hours and the money goes to a local cause chosen by volunteers - it's like a sponsored beach clean," he said.

"I'm hoping for a corporate sponsor and for large companies to get involved as well.

"It's also for people that care about the environment and want to make some positive change."

He says the current situation with trying to keep the bay clean is unsustainable.

"We've got to find another solution, so we're going to see if this works but it does seem to be working already," he said.

Some 30 to 40 volunteers are involved and charities nominated are Oasis Domestic Abuse Service, the British Divers Marine Life Rescue, Palm Bay Primary School and the 1st St Lawrence Scout Group.

For more information visit botanybaykent.co.uk.

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