Tor Bay has been awarded the prestigious Blue Flag Awards for six of its beaches, with a further four beaches being awarded with the Seaside Award.

Breakwater, Broadsands, Meadfoot, Oddicombe, Preston and Abbey Sands all get to retain the internationally recognised Blue Flag. These six have also been awarded the Seaside Award along with Anstey’s Cove, Goodrington, Maidencombe and Paignton Beach.

Oddicombe has now held a Blue Flag for 34 years, since the inception of the awards, which was in 1987.

Across England 76 beaches have been awarded the Blue Flag, more than Brazil, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Israel, Malta, Mexico or South Africa. An impressive 33 Blue Flag beaches are in the South West, proving that you don’t need to jet off this summer to visit some of the best beaches in the world.

The international Blue Flag and UK Seaside Awards are the quality marks for our beaches and mean those visiting them can be sure that they are clean, safe and meet the highest environmental standards, as well as the touch international bathing water quality standards.

Councillor Mike Morey, Cabinet Member for Infrastructure, Environments and Culture, Torbay Council said: “Our beaches are one of our best natural assets, and we are delighted that so many of Torbay’s beaches proudly get to fly these award flags. Not only do they let visitors know that the beach they are visiting meets the highest possible standards of management, but they can be sure of its cleanliness and water quality.”

Carolyn Custerson, Chief Executive Officer, English Riviera BID Company Ltd said: “We are delighted to have supported the Blue Flag Awards programme this year and this is absolutely fantastic news as we head towards one of our busiest seasons. Our beaches are such a special part of what we offer.

Google searches for holidays on the English Riviera are at an all-time high as people look to book their summer staycation, and these awards will further prove that you don’t need to travel abroad to find golden stretches of sand.”

Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, Keep Britain Tidy’s Chief Executive said: “This year, more than ever, we are going to be relying on our country’s beautiful beaches to escape for a much-needed break after all the stresses and strains of the past year.

Last year, due to the pandemic, we did not have the opportunity to celebrate all the great award-winning beaches, so this year we are delighted to have even more winners. I’d like to say thank you to incredible work undertaken by teams around the country that make our beaches clean and safe for us all to enjoy.”