There was unexpected good news this week with the revelation that the toilets at Poldhu Cove have reopened for Easter and will remain open through the summer.

It will no doubt be a relief to all visitors of the beach but in particular parents of small children, who have found themselves caught short over the winter months when the toilets have been closed.

It was not know if they would reopen for the tourist season, after Mullion Parish Council announced last June that it had no option but to terminate the lease it took on from Cornwall Council in 2013, due to the soakaway failing and a new one being impossible to install due to the high water table there.

Investigations into the septic tank also showed that a sewage treatment plant would not work, due to the close proximity of the beach to the toilets.

The toilets were handed back to the county authority on November 30.

Cornwall Council said it had now started a joint project with the National Trust to find a long-term way of managing the car park and public toilets at the beach, which sees thousand of visitors every year.

They are working with Mullion Parish Council, as well as Poldhu Beach Cafe and Dan Joel Surf School, which both have businesses at the beach, to make this possible.

A spokesperson for Cornwall Council said: "As a starting point Cornwall Council intends to reopen the facilities over Easter using a temporary solution to waste water management and is clear this will be dependent on securing the support of all stakeholders to make this happen.

"Over the course of the summer Cornwall Council and the National Trust will continue to take the lead role working with the café operator and Mullion Parish Council on developing proposals for the longer term and hope to have reached an agreement on this by the end of the year."

The spokesperson confirmed that the toilets would now remain open through to the autumn.

It is understood that Cornwall Council has covered most of the funding for work to allow the toilets to open, with the cleaning costs being paid by the parish council and the two businesses.

Carolyn Rule, Cornwall councillor for Mullion and Grade-Ruan, said: “We have been working very hard to find a sustainable long-term solution. I am grateful to Mullion Parish Council both for managing the public toilets and for now coming together with Cornwall Council, the National Trust and other businesses based at the beach to find a way forward.”