COTSWOLD District Council (CDC) will no longer permit the display of notices or promotional banners on a fence located at the picnic site between Old Cricklade Road and the A419 Cricklade Road in Cirencester.

CDC owns the fence and has in the past permitted local charities to promote events free of charge.

However, local businesses and other organisations have also advertised their activities without permission, and this has resulted in a proliferation of notices and banners at the site.

Attaching so many notices to a wooden fence over the years has caused substantial damage, which could cause personal injury to the public. CDC has therefore concluded that the fence will need to be replaced.

A statement by CDC said: "This will be at a significant cost to taxpayers and, allied to the cost of monitoring the fence regularly to remove information that has either expired or is not permitted.

"The council regrets that it will no longer be able to continue this goodwill gesture once the new fence is in place."

A notice informing the public about this decision will be placed on the new fence, advising that any banners displayed in future will be taken down.

Local charities can contact CDC on 01285 623120 to help promote their activities via the council's social media accounts and the events page of its website.

The nearby Tesco store will continue encouraging local charities to promote events and activities on boards behind the checkouts.