A seaside village’s community council in Pembrokeshire has become the second in the locality to trial a new eco-friendly way of managing overgrown areas, by using goats in its local churchyard.

Saundersfoot Community Council this month have deployed bio-goats to tackle overgrowth at St Issell’s Church.

“We’re delighted to share that, thanks to the overwhelmingly positive feedback from the community, we’ve brought the goats in a little earlier than planned to help tackle the overgrown ivy, brambles and other vegetation in St Issell’s Cemetery,” said a spokesperson for Saundersfoot Community Council.

“They’re now happily munching away on all the tasty (to them!) undergrowth. Don’t worry — they’re safely contained by a ‘Geo Fence’ so they can’t wander off or get near any poisonous plants like laurel and rhododendron.

“Our councillors are also popping by regularly to make sure they’ve got plenty of fresh water. If you have the chance, do go and see them in action over the next few weeks. It’s quite a sight!

“We just recommend keeping a little distance — not because they’re unfriendly, but because the ground is uneven and we wouldn’t want anyone to take a tumble.

“While we were waiting for our new helpers to arrive, we also tidied up the vegetation overhanging the bench by the church wall, so it’s looking much more inviting,” they added.

Last month, Narberth Town Council started the trend of using goats to help enhance the grounds of St Andrew’s Church as part of its ongoing biodiversity and environmental improvement programme.

Councillors saw it as a ‘natural and chemical-free method’ of managing overgrown areas by introducing the ‘bio goats’ – and an eco-friendly solution for controlling brambles and invasive vegetation.

“These goats will help clear excess growth around gravestones and across the site, enabling us to implement a longer-term ground management plan,” said a spokesperson for Narberth Town Council.

The helpers themselves came from Clynderwen-based Biogoats 2 Rent - run by Richard and Dawn for the past six seasons.

Goats from Biogoats 2 Rent, believed to be the only business of its type in the UK, have already been used to provide an eco-friendly service for Pembrokeshire County Council, the national park, and for other local churches.

“They’re most recognised down at Canaston Bridge,” said Dawn, explaining they were used as a eco-friendly way of clearing natural set aside areas on the Robeston Wathen bypass, and had also been used at Tenby’s St Mary’s church, with plans to return there later this summer.

Rather than using collars, the goats are kept in their designated areas using GPS satellite technology, a process recently shown on Clarkson’s Farm, TV star Jeremy Clarkson’s farming programme.

“I think he stole the idea from us,” joked Richard, adding: “We’re the only company in the UK to do this; we get enquiries from all over the UK, but the travel costs can make it unviable for the customers from further away.”

The couple added: “We enjoy what we do and meet some nice people along the way.”