A man has forced his local council into a climbdown over two street signs which had distances marked in metres but not yards.

Roy Shaw, a retired pilot from Rustington, was strolling along the seafront near his home when he spotted the sign.

The sign, put up by Arun District Council to direct pedestrians to the centre of Littlehampton, gave the distance as 1,280 metres, with no imperial equivalent.

Further inquiries revealed a second sign in the town which gave the distance to six different destinations in metres but not yards.

Mr Shaw, 70, of Broadmark Avenue, complained to the council but was told the signs were perfectly in order.

Undeterred he contacted the UK Independence Party, which told him the council had broken the law and advised him how to pursue his complaint.

According to the 1994 Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions, road sign distances should be in miles and yards.

Mr Shaw went back to the local authority, and after two months of wrangling the council backed down.

The offending signs have now been covered up and the council is considering replacing them with ones which provide the distances in both sets of measurements.

In a letter to Mr Shaw, the council said: "Arun Council now accepts that the pedestrian signposts on Littlehampton seafront should not display distances in metric units. Accordingly the metric distances will be removed from the signs."

Mr Shaw said: "It's a small victory but I am delighted, particularly as I was originally told I was wasting my time.

"I was very distressed when I saw the sign on Littlehampton promenade. It felt like we were slowly being swallowed up by Europe whether we wanted it or not, without any consultation.

"I am not anti-Europe - I travel regularly and have friends who live in Europe. However, I am also proud to be British and I feel it is important to protect our traditions.

Last year Brighton and Hove City Council was made to alter a road sign at the start of Grand Parade in Brighton which gave the distance to a university building in metres and not yards.

The mistake was spotted by lawyer Tony Bennett, who was visiting Brighton for a business meeting.