27 new bathing sites created in England ahead of summer, government announces
Dozens of new bathing sites have been created in England ahead of the summer months, the government has announced.
The 27 sites, including Goring in West Sussex, will immediately be monitored by the Environment Agency to ensure they are safe to swim in.
It follows proposals by the government to designate some wild swimming sites as official bathing areas, to boost confidence in water quality.
It brings the total number of sites for the 2024 water bathing season, which runs between May 15 and September 30, to 451 across England.
In the South East, five sites have been created. These include Wallingford Beach on the River Thames, Goring Beach and Worthing Beach House in West Sussex, River Avon at Fordingbridge in Hampshire and Rottingdean Beach in East Sussex.
DEFRA said the Government will also launch a further consultation later this year on proposals to reform bathing water regulations in England.
These could enhance monitoring and enable more flexibility around the dates of the monitoring season.
DEFRA said it will seek public and stakeholder views on extending the definition of “bathers” to include a wider range of water users beyond swimmers – such as rowers, kayakers, and paddleboarders.
Last year, 96% of bathing waters in England met minimum annual standards and 90% were rated as “good” or “excellent”.
Areas now also designated as official bathing sites:
Coastguards Beach in Devon
Littlehaven Beach in Tyne and Wear
Manningtree Beach in Essex
River Cam at Sheep’s Green in Cambridge
River Dart Estuary at Dittisham
Steamer Quay, Stoke Gabriel and Warfleet in Devon
River Frome at Farleigh Hungerford and River Tone in French Weir Park in Somerset
River Nidd at the Lido Leisure Park in North Yorkshire
River Ribble at Edisford Bridge in Lancashire
River Severn at Shrewsbury and River Teme at Ludlow in Shropshire
River Stour at Sudbury in Suffolk
River Wharfe at Wetherby Riverside in West Yorkshire
Several spots on Coniston Water and one on Derwent Water, in Cumbria.
Water minister Robbie Moore said: “The value our bathing waters bring to local communities is incredibly valuable – providing social, physical and positive health and wellbeing benefits to people around the country, and I am pleased to have approved a further 27 new bathing water sites for this year.
“I am fully committed to seeing the quality of our coastal waters, rivers, and lakes rise further for the benefit of the environment and everyone who uses them.”
Alan Lovell, Environment Agency chairman, said: “Overall bathing water quality has improved massively over the last decade due to targeted and robust regulation from the Environment Agency, and the good work carried out by partners and local groups.
“We know that improvements can take time and investment from the water industry, farmers and local communities, but where the investment is made, standards can improve.”
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