THE cleanest county for sea swimming in England has been revealed.
Northumberland retained its title for the second year in a row, with Dorset and Cornwall making up the rest of the top three cleanest counties.
The North East county tops the league table of coastal counties with 92 per cent of its beaches rated ‘excellent’ for water quality, including Newbiggin, Beadnell and Bamburgh Castle.
The league table is part of the annual Brown Flag Awards, which hands out prizes to England’s dirtiest beaches.
The awards are now in their third year and are organised by travel website HolidayParkGuru.co.uk. It analyses Environment Agency data from hundreds of beaches.
Fifteen beaches in England have been given Brown Flags for 2026, including beaches in Blackpool, Weston-Super-Mare and Bognor. That’s a slight drop on last year, when 19 beaches were ‘top of the plops’.
The dirtiest beaches are offered brown flags featuring a smiling poo emoji to warn bathers.
None of Northumberland’s beaches are rated as Brown Flag Beaches.
Keen sea-swimmer Robbie Lane from HolidayParkGuru.co.uk said: “As we saw on the TV programme Dirty Business, some of England’s beaches are in an appalling state and are deserving of brown flags to warn swimmers.
"Northumberland then deserves praise for being top of the table again. To have 92 per cent of beaches rated as excellent - and none earning a Brown Flag – is an outstanding result. It’s one of the best places in the country for a sea swim, and a benchmark for everyone else.”
Across England as a whole, 68 per cent of beaches are now rated ‘excellent’ for water quality, a slight improvement on last year’s figure of 66.5 per cent.
At the current rate of progress, it would take until 2047 for every beach in England to reach the top standard.
Water quality is measured by the Environment Agency from May to September based on levels of bacteria such as E. coli, which can come from sewage, livestock, wildlife and surface water runoff.
HolidayParkGuru.co.uk created the Brown Flag Awards as a light-hearted campaign to raise awareness of water quality issues at England’s beaches. It does not have any official link to the Environment Agency.
The awards take place each year to coincide with the May Bank Holiday, when many families will head to the seaside.
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