Bathing Water Quality

There are more than 450 designated bathing waters in England.

When a bathing water is designated, it means we monitor its water quality during the bathing season which runs from May to the end of September. The data we collect is made available to the public to help inform decisions on when and where to bathe. It also helps us to identify potential sources of pollution which include land run-off, storm overflow discharges, diffuse pollution from agriculture, highway drainage, birds and animals.

We take targeted action at all bathing waters that are classified as poor and work with councils, water companies, farmers, local businesses and communities to investigate, maintain and improve water quality at all designated bathing waters.

Hello Lamp Post

We are piloting this novel approach for collecting and sharing data and information. If you live near any of the following locations, look out for our Hello Lamp Post signs. We would love to hear from you!

Windemere, Cumbria- Rayrigg and Miller Ground / Ribble River, Lancashire- Edisford Bridge / Nidd River, Yorkshire-Harrogate / Par Beach, Cornwall / Combe Martin, Devon

Send us your information using the online service(External link) or scan the QR code in the picture.

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Annual Classifications

The Environment Agency and Defra published the annual classifications of bathing water sites in England on 26 November 2024. Further action is needed to improve bathing water quality
Read the blog(External link).
Read the press release(External link).

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Swim healthy

Open water swimming refers to swimming in lakes, rivers and the sea, rather than in a swimming pool and carries different risks. Read more on these and how to reduce the risk of getting ill in the guidance(External link) we have produced with UKHSA.

(External link)Water quality monitoring data

Data is collected and used to produce an annual classification for each bathing water. There are four classifications(External link): Excellent, the highest cleanest class; Good, generally good water quality; Sufficient, the water quality meets the minimum standard and Poor, the water quality has not met the minimum standard.

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Behind the scenes

Environment Agency scientist Emily Egglestone explains how a bathing water sample is tested(External link) to see how clean it is. 

Thank you for visiting our new water hub. This is a pilot service. We acknowledge not everything is covered here yet, this is a new offering which will grow over the coming months.