Bathing water in Sheppey is Excellent

Swale’s popular beaches earn top marks after this year’s monitoring by the Environment Agency.

Minster Leas, Sheerness and Leysdown all achieved the highest rating of Excellent, bringing the beaches one step closer to earning a blue flag in time for summer next year.

The ratings from the Environment Agency are based on more than 30 monitored measures at over 400 bathing waters in England between May and September every year.

Swale Borough Council worked with Southern Water, as part of their £5 million Bathing Water Enhancement Programme, to improve the quality of the water at Leysdown after the bathing water received a Good rating last year.

Martyn Cassell, head of commissioning, environment and leisure at the council, said:

“We’re really proud of the work we’ve done to improve the quality of water at Leysdown this year.
 
“We have worked closely with Southern Water in the past two years to introduce the Beauty of the Beach campaign, which encourages visitors to pick up after their dogs and not feed the seagulls.
 
“The campaign also informed residents about the importance of maintaining their drains at home so that soiled water doesn’t flow into the sea.
 
“We stencilled yellow fish next to drains that run directly into the sea, to remind people not to put anything down the drains that could pollute the bathing waters and harm the delicate eco system in the ocean.
 
“We installed five new Tikspac dog waste stations across all three beaches to provide free biodegradable waste bags for dog owners using the beach.
 
“We also increased the number of uniformed officers to patrol all the beaches to reduce any littering and dog fouling offences.
 
“We’re happy to report that the beaches at Minster Leas and Sheerness have now held an excellent rating for four years.”