A DORCHESTER man has landed “the best job in the world” after becoming the newest National Trust ranger at a famous beauty spot.

Rob Cottrell can’t believe his luck after securing a role as a full-time beach ranger at Studland Beach and Nature Reserve.

The 28-year-old’s appointment follows eight years of providing summer beach cover as a seasonal beach ranger, a role he started whilst studying for a leisure and countryside management degree in Bournemouth.

“The best thing about this job is having this area as your office,” said Rob.

“I know plenty of people who think we have the best job in the world”.

The area was very popular with the children’s writer Enid Blyton, who used Studland as her inspiration for Toytown in the book series Noddy.

Rob, who lives in Armada Way, can now consider one of Britain’s most popular beaches as his workplace and enjoys the gently shelving bathing waters and stunning views of Old Harry Rocks and the Isle of Wight.

He said: “It’s a beautiful area and a lovely place to work.”

He is not surprised the Studland beaches are so popular and Rob and his team welcome more than a million visitors to the area every year.

His responsibilities will include protecting areas of sand dunes.

He said: “There are a variety of bylaws that the trust wants to enforce and it’s a high fire risk area and we have to manage the nudist beach.”

A total of four miles of golden sand and natural Purbeck coastline combine to construct a glorious beach used as a training area before the D-Day landings during the Second World War.

The same stretch of Dorset coastline was also considered one of the area’s most likely to be targeted by a German invasion.

The beach is ideal for water sports such as windsurfing and kayaking and contains the most popular naturist beach in the country.

Deer, varieties of insects and other wildlife can be spotted when following the designated trails through the sand dunes and woodlands since the heath land behind the beach provides a safe haven for native wildlife.