A highly unpopular move on Health and safety grounds by Cornwall Council sees the installation of industrial steel fencing and a combination lock gate to halt access to Whipsiderry Beach which was best accessed from this cliff footpath descending to the beach. Recent controversial attempts to build luxury homes on a clifftop plot directly above the beach involved reinforcement stabilizing work at the base of the cliff. Shortly after a series of huge rock falls began. After a huge public protest followed by an official inspection the permission to continue was rescinded on safety grounds. With the footpath directly adjacent to the crumbling cliff a decision to close the path and "observe" until a decision on action can be discussed in early 2025. Meanwhile, over fifty surfers could be counted in the sea just days ago. Beach users have been disinclined to heed safety signage clambering around the temporary security fencing to reach the beach and sea. Whipsiderry path serves as a vital escape route for people making the long tidal beach walk from Watergate Bay towards Newquay, Coastguard and Lifeguard callouts occur every year as people find themselves cut off by the tide. The plan is that folk in distress on calling the emergency services will be given the combination to the lock allowing escape from the beach. Doubts are raised that cold wet survivors perhaps in darkness or without a phone signal may easily extricate themselves. As anyone who has tried to access a holiday rental in better conditions will attest. Last year large numbers of Boardmasters fans descended on this beach and this possibility recurring seems to have influenced the Council decision to act. Senior Beach Officer Sue Nicholls of Council-owned Building Company Cormac is supervising the works and says that attempts to find a more aesthetic fencing option for such an iconic site were not successful. The story just begins.