Keep Britain Tidy announces winners of this year’s Blue Flag and Seaside Awards
Flying the flag – England can boast some of the world’s best beaches.
This year 141 beaches across England will be flying flags that tell the public they are the best in the country.
From Tynemouth to Polzeath, Clacton to Westward Ho!, 61 beaches in England will be flying the Blue Flag Award – the international standard for the best beaches in the world – an increase of four on last year’s total.
England can now boast more Blue Flag Award-winning beaches than Cyprus or Mexico and now ranks in the Top Ten in the world for beaches that meet the very high standards set for the award.
In addition, 111 beaches have received the Seaside Award – Keep Britain Tidy’s own award for the beaches that meet the very highest standards for cleanliness and facilities.
Both the Blue Flag and Seaside Awards are the quality marks for our beaches and mean those visiting them can be sure that they are clean and safe and meet the highest environmental standards, as well the tough bathing water quality standards.
This year, two of the country’s most popular areas for holidaymakers – Thanet in Kent and Cornwall – have achieved the most Blue Flags, boasting seven each.
New recipients of the Blue Flag Award this year include Hunstanton Main, Bridlington North and Ramsgate Main Sands.
Torbay in Devon can claim the most Seaside Awards with a grand total of ten, closely followed by Cornwall with nine awards.
Keep Britain Tidy’s Coastal Award manager Paul Todd said: ‘It is great to be able to celebrate another fantastic year for the Blue Flag and Seaside Awards.
‘As an environmental charity, Keep Britain Tidy is committed to improving the quality of the places where people live, work and holiday and these winners have proved their commitment to providing the best possible beaches for locals and visitors alike.
‘The public can be sure, if they visit a Blue Flag or Seaside Award winning beach, that they are visiting one of the best beaches in the world.
‘The fact that 141 beaches will be flying a Blue Flag or Seaside Award this summer is testament to the hard work of beach managers up and down the country. They understand that great beaches are good for the communities they serve, good for visitors and, therefore, good for the economy, as more visitors means more money going into our coastal resorts.’
Keep Britain Tidy is a leading environmental charity. We inspire people to be litter-free, to waste less and to live more. We are run programmes including Eco-Schools, the Green Flag Award for parks and green spaces and the Blue Flag/ Seaside Awards for beaches. To find out more about Keep Britain Tidy, our programmes and campaigns visit www.keepbritaintidy.org.
Click here for Blue Flag Beaches and Seaside Award Beaches
