A SUMMER of seafront sports kicked off in Boscombe at the weekend.

The Life’s A Beach event was designed to give people a free taste of all the attractions to come.

There was volleyball, slacklining, lacrosse, beach football, surf rowing and more around the rejuvenated Boscombe Pier area.

The cold and windy weather kept numbers down but the people who ventured down enjoyed their taste of what is to come.

Steen Stones, 28, the council’s senior beach ranger, said: “Considering the weather, it was quite a good turnout.

“There will be beach sports at weekends all through the summer and Wednesday evenings will become busy nights.”

The future events planned for the Boscombe seafront include open water swimming from 7pm on Wednesdays from May 21.

Bournemouth Surf Boat Club will hold Rowing Sessions and Wessex Volleyball Club will host beach Volleyball from Mondays to Thursdays from 6pm to 8pm.

Bournemouth University is also staging beach lacrosse training sessions on Tuesdays from 5pm to 7pm The Life’s A Beach event also had another purpose – to attract young people from deprived areas of Bournemouth.

Dave Hamilton, a Boscombe warden, said: “It’s surprising how many of them never make it down here and we wanted to give young people a taste of beach life.”