Three popular Shropshire swimming sites have been designated as bathing waters ahead of the 2024 bathing season.
Stuart Anderson, South Shropshire Conservatives Parliamentary Candidate, welcomed the designations as part of the Government’s largest ever rollout of the protective health standard. This includes two spots on the River Severn in Ironbridge and Shrewsbury, respectively, as well as at the River Teme in Ludlow, upstream of Dinham Bridge. The designations mean the sites will be subject to a regular programme of testing, which will ensure that any water quality issues can be quickly resolved.
In February, Stuart urged residents to have their say on the plans as part of the public consultation. He has now welcomed the designations, which recognise the three local bathing water sites as important public amenities and valuable assets for the community offering positive social, physical, and health and wellbeing benefits - as well as stimulating the local economy through tourism. The sites will benefit from environmental protections under the Bathing Water Regulations 2013 and will be subject to regular testing by the Environment Agency throughout the bathing season, which runs between 15 May and 30 September. The Regulations require public information about water quality and potential sources of pollution to be available at all bathing waters during the bathing season. This will give bathers a clearer picture on water quality so that they can make informed decisions about swimming in one of the 451 sites. The Environment Agency will also assess what action is needed to improve water quality, working collaboratively with partners including local communities, farmers, and water companies to identify any pollution sources and to put in place actions to improve water quality at these locations.
To strengthen protections for bathing waters, the Government will shortly launch a consultation on proposed changes to the regulations. These will include extending the dates of the bathing water season while maintaining the current offer as a minimum, allowing multiple monitoring points (instead of a single monitoring point) at each bathing water site, preventing automatic de-designation of existing bathing water sites, and extending the definition of ‘bathers’ to include a wider range of water users.
Last year, 96 per cent of bathing waters met minimum standards, up from just 76 per cent in 2010 – despite classification standards becoming stricter in 2015. The latest designations take the total number in England to 451, the highest ever number. This builds on the Government’s work on improving water quality through the ‘Plan for Water’ which focuses on more investment, stronger regulation, and tougher enforcement to tackle every source of river and sea pollution.
Stuart Anderson said:
“Shropshire’s beautiful countryside and waterways are envied around the world. That’s why I am committed to protecting them for the benefit of both our environment and everyone who uses them. As the bathing season commences, I warmly welcome the designation of these popular swimming spots in Shropshire as bathing waters. This means that the sites will benefit from regular testing and faster resolution if there are any issues with water quality.”
The Environment Agency will prepare a bathing water profile for the sites, which will be available on its Swimfo website (https://environment.data.gov.uk/bwq/profiles/) as well as on physical signage displayed at sites. Anyone, including swimming clubs, can apply to designate a site as a bathing water by following the application guidance available at: Designate a bathing water: guidance on how to apply - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
