Sutton on Sea, Mablethorpe, and Skegness beaches receive Blue Flag and Seaside Awards

Environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy has today (Tuesday) announced the winners of the prestigious Blue Flag and Seaside Awards for summer 2023 – and three of our beaches have been presented with awards recognising their quality, the way they are managed, and the facilities they offer to visitors.

East Lindsey District Council’s Mablethorpe, Central Beach in Skegness and Central Beach in Sutton on Sea have all retained their Blue Flag awards from last year.

An East Lindsey District Council Spokesperson said “We’re thrilled that the beaches in Mablethorpe, Skegness and Sutton on Sea have retained the Blue Flag award, showcasing the hard work that our officers put into the management to ensure that visitors can enjoy beaches which meet the highest standards for quality, safety and facilities.”

“We’d also like to thank all the local residents who volunteer, giving up their free time to litter pick and care for the sites, they do a fantastic job and help keep our beaches looking great all year round.”

The Blue Flag and Seaside Awards aim to improve the quality of England’s coastline and promoting the country’s best beaches, and is only presented to well-managed beaches with excellent water quality, as defined in the EU Bathing Water Directive, and environmental education programmes.

Among the criteria beaches are assessed against are:

• Safety and services, such as first aid, lifeguards where necessary
• Environmental information, including displaying details about local eco systems
• 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.
• Environmental management, including litter and waste

Keep Britain Tidy’s Chief Executive, Allison Ogden-Newton OBE said: “Visitors to a beach flying a Blue Flag or Seaside Award can be assured the beach will be clean, safe and meet the highest environmental standards, as well as international bathing water quality standards.

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

“We’d therefore like to recognise and applaud all those who have worked so hard to protect and improve some of our best-loved and most popular beaches. The collective efforts of beach managers, volunteers, residents and businesses all contribute to the success of these sites in achieving the incredibly high standards demanded.”