Cattle grid fails to halt goat's village rampage

A £40,000 cattle grid may have to be redesigned after it failed to stop wild goats escaping from their beauty spot home and causing damage in a village.

The 70-strong herd has lived for centuries in the Valley of the Rocks - a site of special scientific interest overlooking Lynton in north Devon.

It was hoped that years of problems caused by escaped goats would be solved by the grid, which was installed mainly to keep in ponies introduced to help keep down ground cover.

But a dozen goats from the herd, a major tourist attraction, found a way to negotiate the grid and have been wandering and eating their way through the village.

Lynton Mayor Suzette Hibbert said today: "They are very destructive, especially in our lovely cemetery. They get in and eat the cut flowers."

The grid, paid for by the town council and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, is now being re-examined, said Mrs Hibbert.