A Cornish tourist town has spent a whopping £14,500 on security marshals in a bid to curb shoplifters and anti-social behaviour during the summer holidays. 

Looe is a charming coastal spot located in south-east Cornwall that boasts a bustling sandy beach and a working fishing port. 

The destination is popular with families and even starred in BBC drama Beyond Paradise as the fictional town of Shipton Abbott. 

However, security firms have been employed to patrol Looe's beaches and streets after concerns have been raised over bad behaviour. 

Brian Stoyel, Mayor of Saltash, told the BBC: 'There has been a little bit of anti-social behaviour, like people jumping off the platoons and the jetty.

'We're worried about their health really because who knows what is under the water.

'They're not going to arrest people. They're not there for arresting, they're there for advising people [and asking] "is this the right way to behave?"'

He described the action as 'nipping it in the bud'. 

Stephen Remington, Mayor of Looe, insisted it is 'a very safe place to visit' and that the marshals are there to make it 'much safer and more pleasant'.

The town council and Looe Business Forum, made up of 40 member businesses, paid £14,500 for marshals to work from 10am to 7pm during the summer holidays. 

Meanwhile, Saltash Town Council coughed up £6,000 for patrols along the water for a trial period between 2pm and 10pm each day. 

Peter Friend, chairman of the Looe Business Forum, explained how a reduction in police numbers in the area led to them trying to 'augment that' with the implementation of marshals. 

The marshals have turned their hand to all sorts of work in the community, from helping lost children to even pulling a youngster out of the sea who had got into difficulty. 

Locals have noticed a fall in anti-social behaviour in the area and shop owner Tina Riach described the marshals as a 'credit to the town'.

The Daily Mail approached Looe Town Council and Saltash Town Council for comment.  

It comes after another Cornish holiday hotspot was engulfed by chaos as private school pupils descended on beaches for boozy end-of-term parties.

Hundreds of teenagers, whom residents say have come from nearby private schools, gathered on Polzeath beach in July. 

The disturbance from the schoolchildren has become such a nuisance for residents that Devon and Cornwall Police took the unusual step of issuing a dispersal order to prevent any further gatherings. 

Dispersal orders are usually reserved for major anti-social incidents such as protests or riots.