THE South West of England has one of the highest rates of beach litter, according to the results of a decade-long survey.

Researchers from the University of Exeter and Plymouth Marine Laboratory have studied findings from a 10-year period made by volunteers for the Marine Conservation Society's Beachwatch programme.

Some types of litter had increased in number significantly over that period and urgent action has been called for to tackle the problem.

While overall litter quantities showed no significant change over the decade, several types of litter had increased in number including plastic food packaging, wet wipes, polystyrene foam, balloons and large fishing nets.

The beaches of the South West of England and South Wales were observed to have the highest rates of litter items, whilst beaches to the North and West of Scotland had the lowest.

The South West of England and South Wales also had the highest levels of fishing litter and food and drinks packaging, while Eastern England showed the highest numbers of wet wipes.

The majority of material was identified as being of land-based origin, mainly from public littering.