Lia Bennett, who works for BCP Council knows a lot about Poole’s beaches.

And her in-depth knowledge has been put to good use for a new BBC film about Poole’s sand dunes.

Last summer Lia was selected to take part in short film about coastal management for a new BBC Bitesize series to support KS3 Geography. Filming took place on the Sandbanks peninsular, an area considered to have one of the best beaches in the UK.

As part of the casting process, Lia spoke about her role as a coastal engineer including how sand dunes play a developing role in protecting Poole Bay and its world famous beaches.

Lia graduated from Southampton University with a BSc Geography and Geology and a Masters in Engineering in Coastal Environment where her research included a specialism in sand dune evolution. She joined the Flood & Coastal Erosion Management Team at BCP Council as a Coastal Engineer in January 2020.

Cllr Mark Anderson, portfolio holder for Environment and Place, BCP Council said:

“Our centre of excellence continues to be recognised nationally as a leading authority in coastal management and I’m so pleased Lia has been successful in showcasing her hard work for others to learn from. Lia’s film is incredibly informative and sheds light on the brilliant work our coastal engineers do for our coastline.

“Seafront is one of our five major projects as part of BCP Council’s Big Plan. We will work to enhance what is already recognised as among the cleanest and most beautiful coasts in the world.

“I have no doubts that Lia’s inspirational piece for BBC Bitesize will encourage young people to get involved in protecting our beautiful coastline. I’m grateful to BBC Bitesize for giving Lia this platform and I hope KS3 Geography students enjoy studying the subject.”

Lia said: “I thoroughly enjoyed filming this video for BBC Bitesize. It was a great opportunity to highlight what we do as a team and the importance of protecting our coastlines. I hope it might inspire young people to think about a future career in this field.”

BBC Bitesize provides support for learners aged five to 16 plus across a wide range of school subjects. It also supports children and young people’s wellbeing and career choices. Bitesize also has hundreds of published lessons to help students across the UK with home schooling.

To view Lia’s video, please visit: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/z6bd7ty/articles/zhg8kty