Parkdean Resorts, the UK’s leading holiday park operator, recently welcomed Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon, to Ruda Holiday Park.

The team gave Ms Saxby a tour of the facilities at the park, and discussed how Parkdean Resorts is committed to caring for its parks, people, and planet to create a positive environmental impact on nature and resources.

Ruda Holiday Park is no stranger to protecting the local environment in Croyde. The holiday park, which employs over 200 people during the peak season and welcomed more than 90,000 visitors last year, carries out regular beach cleans alongside volunteers from the local community to ensure it remains safe for swimmers, surfers and walkers, as well as the diverse flora and fauna which inhabit the beach. Ruda is also committed to the restoration and protection of the beach’s sand dunes in collaboration with local environmental charities.

Orinta Pavilonyte, General Manager at Ruda Holiday Park, said: “We’re passionate about ensuring Croyde Beach remains beautiful and safe for locals, tourists and wildlife alike. It was great to meet with Ms Saxby and share an update on our ongoing work including the sand dune restoration project, our Bat Surveys – which recently recorded 14 of the 18 British bat species at the lakes, and our newly expanded team of qualified Marine Mammal Medics who treat injured marine animals.

“We look forward to continue working closely with Ms Saxby over the coming years to expand on our community and environmental work in North Devon.”

Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon, added: “It was wonderful to visit Ruda again to take a tour of the park and hear the latest updates on their ongoing initiatives to support local wildlife and the people of North Devon. I was particularly impressed by the work that was put in this summer to improve accessibility at the beach, with a new beach wheelchair and adaptive surfboard unveiled this year.

“I’ll be keeping in touch with the team at Ruda about how we can continue supporting the community and look forward to visiting again soon – I’m keen to try surfing next time!”

Ruda Holiday Park recently took part in the Great British Beach Clean, an annual event organised by the Marine Conservation Society. Working together with generous volunteers, the team collected 12 bags of litter in a day weighing in at 16.2kg, or more than 35lbs.

The park was also awarded a prestigious Blue Flag by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy this year. The Blue Flag and Seaside Awards are aimed at improving the quality of England’s coastline and promoting the country’s best beaches, and this year Croyde Beach met the high standards required through Ruda Holiday Park’s ongoing work to keep the beach clean and improve the water quality.

Parkdean Resorts owns a total of 66 holiday parks across the UK. Last year the company launched 25 environmental, social and governance commitments which it will achieve by 2025, including reducing CO2 by 25%, a 75% reduction in waste to landfill, and the publication of an annual report detailing how it will care for its parks, people, and planet.