A children's birthday party has been among a number of gatherings reported at Needham Lake - with people being urged not to break Covid regulations as temperatures rise.

Mid Suffolk District Council, which manages the popular nature reserve in Needham Market, said it had a number of reports of people choosing to gather at the site over the weekend.

The council's Covid warden attended the site off Coddenham Road on Saturday following reports of a birthday party taking place and encouraged residents to follow the government's guidelines.

Currently, people are only allowed to meet one person from another household outside and should not travel outside their local area unless absolutely necessary for work or in emergencies.

Mid Suffolk District Council said its teams are working with police to ensure any incidents are responded to swiftly and that all visitors are adhering to the regulations.

A spokesman said: "We have had a number of reports of people choosing to gather at Needham Lake following the nicer weather and have been working closely with the police and our Covid marshal to encourage residents to follow government guidance when visiting the site, as well as ensure any incidents are reported to the police and responded to swiftly.

"Working with the police, we are currently looking at what further action we may be able to take over coming days at the site to discourage people from gathering - in order to keep our residents and communities safe and help stop the spread of Covid-19.

"We will continue to monitor the situation and thank our residents for their patience and understanding at this time."

Officers from Suffolk police attended reports of a gathering but found there was "no sign" of anyone breaching the government's guidelines.

A spokesman said: "Police received a report from a caller of a potential breach of the Covid regulations with reports of a children’s party at Needham Lake on Saturday afternoon.

"Officers attended the location but on arrival there was no sign of any such gathering."

The council said it will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days.