A man who was cut off by the tide on a treacherous part of the Jurassic Coast ended up being airlifted to safety.

The young man, from Kent, was reported to be stranded at Black Ven between Lyme Regis and Charmouth earlier on Saturday evening.

The cliff at Black Ven is prone to mudslides and the area is popular with fossil hunters.

Lyme Regis RNLI lifeboat crew launched at just after 6pm and Coastguard officers were also alerted.

Two members of the lifeboat crew went ashore to assist the man in their inflatable X-boat, which is used when the large lifeboat cannot get close inshore because of sea conditions.

However, the RNLI said the man was later airlifted to safety by the coastguard helicopter, which came from St Athan in south Wales. It landed him on Lyme's football pitch. He was reported to be unhurt.

The lifeboat volunteers returned to Lyme Regis harbour at 7.50pm.

West Bay Coastguard sent seven officers.

On arrival, the West Bay officers came under the command of the Lyme Regis officer in charge and stood by in a nearby car park ready to assist whilst the Lyme team kept observations from the sea wall.

A spokesman said: "The RNLI had landed crew members on the beach near the casualty to assess the best rescue method pending the arrival on the Coastguard Helicopter.

"Due to the state of the tide and sea conditions, it was decided that a helicopter extraction would be the safest method of rescue and the West Bay officers were tasked with setting up an emergency helicopter landing site.

"The casualty was safely winched from the beach and flown the short distance to the landing site to be passed into the care of the awaiting officers. No medical assistance was required, safety advice was given and details were taken. The West Bay team was then stood down to return to station."

The spokesman urged visitors to the coast to pay attention to local warning signage and take note of the tide times. Wear appropriate clothing and make sure you have a method of calling for help.

Lyme Regis Coastguard said: "Despite the casualty’s request to be set down at Charmouth, the helicopter was landed at Lyme Regis football club pitch. The casualty was given a welfare check and found to be safe and well.

"This weekend sees high spring tides in ‘high water’ the morning and evening. Please check the tide times and plan your activities accordingly."

If you do find yourself in difficulty, dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard.