Tyne and Wear beaches get excellent water quality grades

Two beaches in the region have earned unwanted attention in the annual Brown Flag Awards, which highlight coastal areas with the lowest water quality ratings.

Tynemouth, Cullercoats, and Littlehaven Beach were named among 17 UK sites with a ‘poor’ rating from the Environment Agency in the awards compiled by Holiday Park Guru.

The Brown Flag Awards are given to beaches that receive the lowest possible water quality rating based on Environment Agency data.

Despite the poor ratings for Cullercoats and Littlehaven, Tyne and Wear still boasts several highly rated beaches.

Which beaches received the highest ratings?

According to the Environment Agency’s 2026 water quality data, six beaches in the county achieved the top three-star ‘excellent’ rating:

• Marsden
• Roker
• Tynemouth King Edwards Bay
• Tynemouth Long Sands North
• Tynemouth Long Sands South

• Whitley Bay.

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Seaburn and South Shields both received a two-star ‘good’ rating.

No beaches in Tyne and Wear were rated ‘sufficient,’ but Cullercoats and Littlehaven received the lowest ‘poor’ rating.

The data was compiled as part of the Holiday Park Guru Brown Flag Awards, which identify the least desirable beaches for swimmers in the UK.