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UK’s Best Blue Flag Beaches

With the recent mediterranean style weather we have been experiencing within the UK, it’s hardly suprising that everyones mind is set on a day out at the seaside. In light of this we’ve put together a list of Blue Flag Beaches within the UK, to help you decide on the best place to spend your day.

Beaches are assessed on a yearly basis to see if they meet Blue Flag criteria by the FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education), and are only awarded Blue Flag status if they can prove they have the highest quality in water, safety and facilities. Because of these strict assessment measures you can be guarenteed that if you take your family to a Blue Flag beach this summer you’ll be visiting some of the finest beaches in the country.

The award is now recognised as a sign of quality across 41 countries and a total of 3,450 beaches. Over 100 of these Blue Flag beaches are within the UK.

Below is a run down of awarded beaches throughout the UK in 2010, or use the links to jump to the area you’re interested in.

You can also view the list of official Blue Flag Beaches 2011.

North East Beaches
Yorkshire Beaches
Midlands Beaches
East Beaches
South West Beaches
South East Beaches
Scotland Beaches

North East Beaches

In total there are 7 Blue Flag beaches along the North East coastline:

1) Cullercoats Beach, 2) Roker Beach, 3) Sandhaven Beach, 4) Seaburn Beach, 5) Seaton Carew Foreshore, 6) Tynemouth King Edwards Bay, 7) Tynemouth Longsands

Yorkshire Beaches

Yorkshire boasts 4 award winning beaches along the length of its coastline:

1) Cleethorpes Central Beach, 2) Filey Beach, 3) Scarborough North Bay, 4) Whitby West Cliff

Midlands Beaches

The Midlands have the least amount of award winning beaches with just three:

1) Central Beach, Mablethorpe, 2) Central Beach, Skegness, 3) Central Beach, Sutton On Sea

East Beaches

There are 11 Blue flag beaches stretching along the East Coast of Britain from Kings Lynn to Southend on Sea:

1) Brightlingsea Beach, 2) Clacton on sea, Martello Bay, 3) Cromer, 4) Dovercourt Bay, 5) East Beach, Shoeburyness, 6) Hunstanton, 7) North of Claremont Pier, Lowestoft, 8) South of Claremont Pier, Lowestoft, 9) Sea Palling, 10) Sheringham, 11) Shoebury Common Beach

South West Beaches

The South West of the UK boasts the largest number of blue flag beaches in the country. With 26 top class beaches it’s no wonder that the beaches of Devon, Cornwall and Hampshire are a holiday hotspot:

1) Bigbury on Sea, 2) Blackpool Sands, 3) Alum Chime, Bournemouth, 4) Durley Chime, Bournemouth, 5) Fishermans Walk, 6) Southbourne Beach, 7) Charbis Bay, 8) Challaborough, 9) Dawlish Warren, 10) Gyllyngvase, 11) Polzeath, 12) Branksome Chine, Poole, 13) Clanford Cliffs Chine, 14) Sandbanks Peninsular, 15) Shore Road, Poole, 16) Porthmeor, 17) Sandy Bay, 18) Sennen Cove, 19) Swanage Central, 20) Breakwater Beach, Torbay, 21) Broadsands Beach, Torbay, 22) Meadfoot Beach, Torbay, 23) Oddicombe Beach, Torbay, 24) Tunnels Beaches, 25) Westward Ho!, 26) Woolacombe Sands

South East Beaches

There are 13 award winning beaches along the South East coast:

1) Botany Bay, Broadstairs, 2) Hayling Island, Beachlands, 3) Hove Lawns, 4) Joss Bay, 5) Littlehampton Coastguards, 6) Ramsgate Main Sands, 7) Sandown, 8) Shanklin, 9) Stone Bay, Broadstairs, 10) Ventnor, 11) West Street, 12) West Wittering Beach, 13) West Brook Bay

Scottish Beaches

All of Scotlands Blue Flag beaches appear on the east coast, between the borders and Dundee:

1) Aberdour Silver Sands, 2) Broughty Ferry, 3) Burntisland, 4) Coldingham Bay, 5) Elie Woodhaven, 6) Leven East Beach, 7) St Andrews West Sands