IN response to the negative letter in last week’s Barry and District News (June 5), I would like to say what a brilliant idea it is to have beach huts on Barry Island. Think what a famous landmark the Brighton and Bournemouth beach huts are. I live in Penarth and would love to have huts on our beach, but we don’t have the space. I was delighted when Cllr Lis Burnett asked the public what they thought of the huts and whether we had any ideas for their use – as a retired politician it’s nice to just be a member of the public now and I jumped at the chance of saying that I would love to hire one of the huts occasionally so that my granddaughters could play outside and I could sit with my knitting and flask of tea – desperately hoping for some nice weather. There are also so many opportunities for small craft businesses to sell their wares from the huts and I’m sure they would be a great attraction to bring people down to Barry in the same way that people go to the craft stalls on the Hayes in Cardiff. I’m sure that over time they will pay for themselves, and bring much needed economic benefit to the area.

Instead of criticising new and exciting opportunities, let’s get behind this scheme and make it work. Having lived in Penarth 45 years, I love our town and we should cherish all our seaside towns and try to make them economic hubs by doing all we can to encourage residents as well as visitors to make the most of them.

Lorraine Barrett

Grove Terrace

Penarth