A NORTH Cornwall town council has issued a warning to residents following an operation posing as official council business.

Bude-Stratton Town Council states it is not affiliated with a website called ‘Bude-Stratton Parish Business Directory’.

The organisation is reportedly contacting local businesses via email, asking them to pay for business listing renewals.

A spokesperson from Bude-Stratton Town Council (BSTC) said: “Bude-Stratton Town Council is not affiliated with this website and has not endorsed or sponsored it in any way.”

The website seems to present itself as a community platform and mimics the look of the GOV.UK design.

However, despite this, it stated in the website’s footer that is is not part of HM Government.

A BSTC spokesperson continued: “Some businesses have reported being listed without their knowledge and are subsequently asked to pay for ‘renewing’ their listing.While they may be operating within legal boundaries, their approach can be misleading.

“We encourage you to verify the source of any requests like these, particularly before parting with any money.”