West Dorset harbours are struggling to balance the books, harbourmasters have reported.

While delivering reports before the Dorset Council Harbours committee, the harbourmasters of Lyme Regis and West Bay both shared their budgets with the committee, with both demonstrating that they are not breaking even.

James Radcliffe, West Bay harbourmaster, said that his harbour’s income for 2018/19 was £166,000, while its expenditures totalled to £167,000.

A similar situation applied to Lyme Regis, with harbourmaster Grahame Forshaw saying that their income for the same period was £140,000 with outgoing costs of £154,000.

The expenditures for both harbours included employees, premises, supplies, services, and transport.

These announcements came at the first meeting of the harbours committee – which looks at West Bay, Lyme Regis and Weymouth – of the newly created Dorset Council.

Cllr Kate Wheller, newly elected chairman of the harbours committee, said: “I very much welcome the idea of this being a harbours committee. They are three very, very diverse harbours. Weymouth is the biggest and busiest harbour, but that doesn’t mean it is most important.”

Cllr Mark Roberts also said: “It is incredibly important that we represent all three harbours.”

As well as sharing their budgets, the harbourmasters also detailed their upcoming projects for the year.

Mr Radcliffe said that projects for West Bay are due to include harbour dredging, which has now started, replacement of missing timber piles and the construction of permanent housing for the dive compressor.

Mr Forshaw highlighted the different challenges facing Lyme Regis as a dry harbour. Lyme Harbour also needs to have dredging work done, which is due to start in early July, and needs to replace timber piles.

The new harbourmaster’s office is due to open at the end of June, which has been extended due to the increasing popularity and number of customers at the harbour.

Work is also planned to resurface and strengthen the structure of The Cobb, which is a Grade I listed.

Mr Forshaw, who is standing down from his position in July, praised his team as ‘exceptional’.

Councillors from the harbours committee were invited to visit the two harbours.