A long awaited scheme to regenerate Porth Promenade is due to be completed by the end of August.

The aim to provide a new gateway to the beach near Newquay and a focal point for commercial and community activity.

Local residents have campaigned for many years for improvements to the promenade.

The scheme has been developed by Cornwall Council’s Environment Service, with the works being carried out by CORMAC Contracting.

It includes levelling the previously uneven promenade and laying a new decorative surface; installing new concrete seating and constructing a new ramped access to the beach. Cornwall Council staff worked with Disability Cornwall to ensure the design of the area is suitable for people with disabilities and this has ensured that the overall layout, levels and widths of the paths and finishes allow maximum access for all users.

The promenade also acts as a sea defence to protect the road, and the works have been designed to bring the site up to an acceptable standard.

Plans are now being developed for an official opening ceremony for the promenade, which will take place within the next few weeks.

Welcoming the completion of the works, local Cornwall Councillor John Fitter said: “I am delighted that at long last, thanks to the brilliant support of Cornwall Council, we have been able to upgrade the Porth Promenade.

“This is the northern road entrance to Newquay and, guarded by the prehistoric Trevelgue head, it remains a vital part of what is now greater Newquay.

“The researched history of this bay and its headland goes back to the late third and second millennia BC. In much later years this formed part of the parish of St Columb Minor and then in the 1800s became known as St Columb Porth and acted as a port in its own right.

“As the mighty Atlantic Ocean beats at its western door, the promenade still plays a vital part in the summer economy of its grandchild – a town called Newquay.”

Funding worth £359,694 has been secured from: Section 106 Money (£227,894), Environment Agency (£50,000), Cornwall Council (£50,000), Newquay Town Council (£25,000), Porth Beach Tourist Park (£2,000), Porth Residents Association (£2,000), Treviglas School (£1,000), Boardmasters (£1,000), Local Ward Members’ Community Chest (£800).