Spotlight on reforms and water quality as bathing season starts

BATHING season has kicked off in England with campaigners raising concerns about the Government's planned reforms and protesters calling for more action on sewage pollution.

- REBECCA SPEARE-COLE

The Environment Agency started testing water quality at designated bathing waters yesterday - the start of the official season, which runs from May 15 to the end of September. Applications for new bathing sites are also reopening for the first time since October 2023.

Wild swimming has surged in popularity across the UK in recent years but the rises in sewage discharges and pollution have also made many blue spaces unsafe.

In response to widespread public anger, the Government announced reforms to bathing water regulations earlier this year, which include changes to designation criteria for future sites, more flexible seasons, and an expansion of the legal definition of "bather".

But the Marine Conservation Society is warning the reforms could leave swimmers more at risk from poor water quality, reduce the number of newly designated sites, and shorten rather than lengthen the season, leading to less monitoring.

Meanwhile, thousands of water users around the UK plan to stage a nationwide protest against sewage pollution on Saturday by paddling out into water at dozens of locations.