West Sussex beaches receive prestigious Seaside Awards

And Littlehampton Coastguards beach has won a Seaside Award.

Across the South East – which incorporates Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex – 34 beaches have been presented with awards recognising the quality of the beaches, the way they are managed and the facilities they offer to visitors.

The Blue Flag is the world’s most recognised award for beaches, marinas and inland bathing waters and, to qualify, each applicant must meet and maintain a series of stringent environmental, educational, safety and accessibility criteria.

Bognor Regis East also received the Seaside Award, while West Wittering Beach got the Seaside Award and the Blue Flag.

Keep Britain Tidy’s Chief Executive, Allison Ogden-Newton OBE said: “As an island community, the quality of our beaches and blue spaces crucial to our environment and vital for our economy, particularly in terms of tourism and employment.

"Achieving this accreditation shows the commitment of beach managers and local authorities to protect them for years to come.

“In England we are lucky enough to have some of the best beaches in the world. It’s wonderful to see the flags flying proudly over 34 of them in the South East, demonstrating their quality to residents and visitors alike.

“The awards are a credit to the collective efforts of beach and site managers, volunteers, residents and businesses who should take pride today in their tireless efforts to maintain and improve some of our best-loved and most popular blue spaces.”

The Blue Flag and Seaside Awards are aimed at improving the quality of England’s coastline and blue spaces and promoting the country’s best beaches.

Blue Flag beaches are free for all to enjoy, with visitors able to experience the same quality as destinations like Spain or Trinidad and Tobago without the environmental impact - or price tag - of flying.

Blue Flag is an environmental education programme managed by Keep Britain Tidy on behalf of the Foundation for Environmental Education.

Among the criteria beaches are assessed against are:

• Safety and services such as first aid, and lifeguards where necessary
• Environmental information, including displaying details about local ecosystems
• Environmental management, including litter and waste
• Water quality – Blue Flag beaches must meet the ‘excellent’ water quality standard as set out in the EU bathing water directive and Seaside Award winners must meet the 'sufficient’ standard.
• Blue Flag is only presented to beaches and inland bathing waters with bathing water which has achieved the highest classification as set by the EU Bathing Water Directive and have an environmental education programme, while Seaside Awards are presented to the best beaches in England and celebrate the quality and diversity of our coastline.