CHILDREN - sometimes as many as 30 at a time - are holding drunken parties on Barmouth beach, sparking concerns.

Police have been called and confiscated alcohol from underage drinkers and are appealing for information.

Author and former mayor John Sam Jones fears youngsters are being attracted from other Meirionnydd towns and travel on buses to congregate on the sands.

Broken glass and litter is becoming a huge problem, he says, especially as the beach has recently retained its world-class Blue Flag status.

Mr Jones said: “Since Easter there have been two parties and a third attempt at a party to which the police came and dispersed the crowd.

“The young people are 15 to 16 years old - some from Barmouth and then some are their school friends. As young people from Barmouth go to school in Tywyn, Dolgellau and Harlech, it seems that they are gathering from across the region.

“One recent Saturday was a particularly bad night in terms of numbers of young people, the disruption they caused and the litter and broken glass they left on Borthwen beach. I walked down with my dogs at about 10pm and there were between 20 and 30 young people partying - a lot of cans and bottles on the ground and some very drunk youngsters.

“The next morning I spent more than an hour cleaning up the broken glass and litter they had left behind, amongst which I found a number of child single tickets from Dolgellau and the school report of a boy attending Tywyn Secondary School.

See the full story in this week’s Meirionnydd edition of the Cambrian News