P AND J MACGUIRE of Cornwall Street, Plymouth, write:

We frequently come out from Plymouth to Bigbury as it’s one of our favourite beaches and we love the surrounding countryside. I feel I must register our dismay, though, at the state of the entrance to Bigbury village.

The beautiful pond on the right is a treat to see, but the verge on the left is a real mess, the village sign has been destroyed and a broken trough ‘decorates’ the base of ­ridiculously tiny 30mph sign at the top of an enormously tall pole – surely not visible from an average family car.

Then we are treated to a smashed hydrant and, depending on the day of the week and people’s interest in putting them away, a depressing row of rubbish bins.

Finally, the village green as you enter the village itself is still decorated with the sad, decaying remains of a Christmas tree long after the festive season has gone.

Have the residents lost all sense of pride in their once charming village, or is this yet another instance of a lacklustre and thoroughly disinterested parish council doing what it does best – as little as possible.