The public have been praised for following safety guidelines over the bank holiday weekend.

The West Bay Coastguard Rescue Team along with teams from across Dorset conducted high visibility patrols, paying particular attention to known incident hotspots.

A spokesman for West Bay Coastguard said: "It was also a great opportunity to check that emergency access to certain area’s was being maintained should an incident occur.

"Whist safety advice was given on a number of occasions, it was great to see that for the most part, members of the public in our local area were looking after themselves and their families, especially as most of our beaches are not currently life-guarded.

"It was also noted that very few inflatables were being used in the sea as per the current beach safety guidelines, and this goes a long way to keeping families safe, and reducing the amount of potential callouts to coastguard rescue teams and lifeboat crews.

"Although sea swimming, surfing and other sea-based watersports are now permitted, please remember that there is currently no lifeguard cover on any local beaches, and please follow all the recommended safety advice before entering the water.

"If you do find yourself in difficulty or see something that gives you cause for concern, do not hesitate, dial 999 and ask for the coastguard."