SG Seaside Awards for Wyre's beaches

Beach award poster showing people running on a beach.
Seaside Award Winners
Published on Wednesday, 12th June 2019

Once again four beaches in Wyre will be flying flags this summer that distinguish them as amongst the best in the country.

Rossall Beach and Jubilee Beach in Cleveleys plus Marine Beach and Ferry Beach in Fleetwood have all been awarded Seaside Awards for another year.

Keep Britain Tidy’s Seaside Awards are the nationwide standard for the best beaches across the UK. The flag is a symbol of quality which ensures visitors are guaranteed to find a clean, safe, attractive and well-managed coastal stretch.

Alison Boden, Coast and Countryside Manager at Wyre Council comments, “The awards are recognition for our beautiful beaches and all that hard work that goes into managing them.

“Here at Wyre we work all year round to maintain our 8.5km long stretch of coastline to the high standard that residents and visitors have come to expect.

“The awards can only be achieved with additional support from the many volunteers who take part in community beach cleans along the coast every week and we thank them for their continued help.”

Wyre also has two bathing waters, designated outdoor swimming spots at Cleveleys and Fleetwood, which are both classified as ‘good’ in terms of water quality under tough European cleanliness standards.

Members of the public can play a big part in improving beaches and bathing waters by thinking about what they flush, not dropping litter, joining in beach cleans through the LOVEmyBEACH campaign, take part in a 2 minute beach clean and always picking up after their dogs. In order to maintain the bathing water standards, dogs are not allowed on Marine Beach in Fleetwood and Jubilee Beach in Cleveleys from 1 May to 30 September.

Alison continues, “We recognise that people love taking their dogs on to the beach and prom and we want everyone to enjoy our great outdoors, but we do ask people to keep their pets away from two sections of the beach during summer – there’s much more beach space either side to enjoy. This is because these sections form the bathing beach areas, they are popular for people going into the sea for a paddle and some users come because of this.  We want to make sure it’s as clean as possible. Where dogs are allowed, dog owners must pick up their mess and all beach users must take away their litter for the benefit of everyone and the marine life.”

Keep Britain Tidy’s Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton comments, “Visiting beaches with the Blue Flag or Seaside Award status means beach-goers can feel more relaxed in a setting that is environmentally considerate. 

“We as individuals feel emotionally connected to the environment more than ever, with so many experiencing eco-anxiety. Keep Britain Tidy continues to push for more environmentally responsible beaches, where visitors needn’t feel this stress.

“We’re incredibly pleased to have even more winners this year than last, proving the great dedication of the beach staff. From environmental education for the local community and ensuring responsible beach use, to cleaning regimes and an increasing number of recycling facilities, it is a full-time commitment to create beaches worthy of the awards.”

Go to Discover Wyre and search for ‘beach’ for a list of beach cleans you can join. To read more about where dogs are not allowed during the summer months go to Public Space Protection Orders (PSPO's).