Pembrokeshire coroner, Mark Layton, will use his powers to raise concerns with Pembrokeshire County Council over safety at Pembroke Mill Pond.

The move comes after an inquest into the death of Robert Mansfield, who drowned at the Mill Pond while celebrating his eighteenth birthday.

The inquest heard that Mr Mansfield had “a bit of an infatuation with Pembroke Mill Pond” as well as “a history of messing about in water when drunk”.

He had gone into the Mill Pond on previous occasions after drinking.

In the early hours of July 27, 2015, the teenager had entered the water after an evening out in Pembroke to celebrate his 18th birthday.

His friends ran down shouting at him to get out the water. When he didn’t they looked for him, but he could not be seen or heard. They rang the emergency services at 2.44am.

The Mill Pond was drained the next morning and Robert’s body recovered.

“He knew there was a risk going into the pond, but he didn’t understand,” said a statement from his aunt read out at the inquest. The family added that Robert was not a "risk taker".

A post mortem gave the cause of death as 1a) drowning and 1b) acute alcohol intoxication; the level of alcohol in Robert’s blood was three times over the legal drink drive limit.

A council risk assessment, provided at the request of the coroner’s office, said that there was a low risk of slips, trips and falls into the water at the Mill Pond. However signs were to be erected advising people not to swim and a life ring to be installed by the barrage.

The council’s assessment was disputed by Robert’s family who have been campaigning for better safety measures at the pond, including more lighting and fencing.

"So many people have commented on how dangerous Castle Walk is,” said his father. “This is the third incident this year. How can this be low risk?"

Pembrokeshire Coroner, Mark Layton, returned a conclusion of accidental death, saying: “Mr Mansfield was out celebrating his 18th birthday and had consumed a large amount of alcohol, as is traditional on these events.

"He had on previous occasions entered the Mill Pond after drinking. Having entered the Mill Pond he had clearly got into difficulty, resulting in his death. This was a tragic accident.”

Mr Layton said he would use his powers under regulation 28 to log his concerns with Pembrokeshire County Council.

“Given the number of deaths there is a real need to consider fencing, warning notices and lighting,” he said.

Pembrokeshire County Council has a statutory duty to respond to the coroner’s concerns within 56 days.