Overview

• Council removed the platforms early in the summer holidays after the RNLI advised they lay outside the lifeguard’s primary response zone, creating blind spots that pose hazards.
• Insurer refused to provide cover for risks below a £30m claims threshold, prompting the council to act on insurance constraints.
• Local petition drives have surpassed 3,900 signatures as swimmers press for reinstatement of the decades-old rafts.
• Campaigners warn that without the floating platforms children may attempt riskier cliff or pier jumps.
• Council denies a cost-cutting motive; it says work is under way with RNLI advisers to satisfy health and safety obligations prior to reinstalling the floating rafts.