Perranporth Penhale Sands water quality

AMBER

designated bathing water · · South West Water

Perranporth Penhale Sands is a designated bathing water in Cornwall, currently rated AMBER for swimming — A storm overflow discharged within 5 km in the last 48 hours. Falling tide may draw discharge along the shore. Its latest Environment Agency classification is excellent (2025), and 207 storm-overflow spills were recorded nearby in 2025. Below: live risk, recent spills, official samples, rainfall, tides and nearby reports.

Safe to swim right now?
Take care
A storm overflow discharged within 5 km in the last 48 hours. Falling tide may draw discharge along the shore.
Do not rely solely on this website for health decisions. Check official alerts and use your own judgement. Seek medical advice if you are unwell.

Current status

Risk: AMBER A storm overflow discharged within 5 km in the last 48 hours. Falling tide may draw discharge along the shore.

  • Active overflows nearby: 0
  • Recent overflows (48h): 8
  • Rainfall (48h): 16.2 mm

Official EA classification

excellent (2025)

Latest official sample

2026-08-21 — E.coli 10, enterococci 10 cfu/100ml

Latest independent sample

None published

Pollution & environment data

16.2 mm
Rainfall 48h
22.3 mm
Rainfall 7d
5
Outfalls within 5 km
207
Spills (2025, official)
20
Spills 2026 so far (live)
12
Spills last 30d
falling 1.58m
Tide now

Recent storm overflows nearby (30 days)

In the news nearby

No recent local news matched.

Storm-overflow spills near here, by year (EDM)

Recent spills near here (precise, SWW)

Full spill history near Perranporth Penhale Sands

Download CSV

Every storm-overflow discharge Glanmor has recorded within 5 km of Perranporth Penhale Sands, newest first.

21 discharge events
StartEndOutfallDistance
2026-08-27 04:002026-08-27 04:30TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-08-27 03:242026-08-27 04:00TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-08-27 02:302026-08-27 03:45TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-08-27 02:252026-08-27 03:15TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-08-27 00:152026-08-27 07:00TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-08-27 00:002026-08-27 01:15TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-08-26 23:502026-08-27 06:45TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-08-26 23:312026-08-26 23:32STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-08-25 10:452026-08-25 11:15STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-08-25 10:272026-08-25 10:47STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-08-25 07:302026-08-25 07:45STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-08-25 07:122026-08-25 07:19STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-06-30 20:262026-06-30 20:43STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-06-30 20:002026-06-30 21:30STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-06-30 19:062026-06-30 21:15STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-06-30 17:152026-06-30 18:00STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-06-24 11:442026-06-24 11:48STREAM (S)~3.0 km
2026-06-18 02:262026-06-18 04:19TRIB OF PORTH JOKE~4.1 km
2026-06-10 10:382026-06-10 12:46TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2026-06-10 09:392026-06-10 10:38TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAM~3.3 km
2025-07-22 14:242025-07-22 14:40BOLINGEY STREAM~1.6 km
23 precise spill records (duration & volume)
WhenDetailDistance
2026-08-27 14:08spill, 2 min~3.0 km
2026-08-27 03:24spill, 36 min~3.3 km
2026-08-27 02:25spill, 19 min~3.3 km
2026-08-26 23:50spill, 401 min~3.3 km
2026-08-26 23:31spill, 1 min~3.0 km
2026-08-26 23:13spill, 103 min~3.3 km
2026-08-25 10:27spill, 20 min~3.0 km
2026-08-25 07:12spill, 6 min~3.0 km
2026-06-30 20:26spill, 17 min~3.0 km
2026-06-30 19:06spill, 53 min~3.0 km
2026-06-30 18:50spill, 1 min~3.0 km
2026-06-24 11:44spill, 3 min~3.0 km
2026-06-24 11:44spill, 3 min~3.0 km
2026-06-18 02:26spill, 113 min~4.1 km
2026-06-18 02:26spill, 113 min~4.1 km
2026-06-10 10:38spill, 128 min~3.3 km
2026-06-10 10:38spill, 128 min~3.3 km
2026-06-10 09:39spill, 60 min~3.3 km
2026-06-10 09:39spill, 60 min~3.3 km
2026-03-07 05:37spill, 90 min~3.1 km
2026-03-07 05:37spill, 90 min~3.1 km
2025-07-22 14:24spill, 15 min~1.6 km
2025-07-22 14:24spill, 15 min~1.6 km
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Water quality — 7-year trend

Water quality in 2026 was broadly level with 2025.

YearEA classificationSamplesE. coli (geo-mean)Enterococci (geo-mean)High readings
2019—310 cfu/100ml10 cfu/100ml0
2020—312 cfu/100ml10 cfu/100ml0
2021—510 cfu/100ml10 cfu/100ml0
2022—1010 cfu/100ml11 cfu/100ml0
2023—1111 cfu/100ml10 cfu/100ml0
2024—1010 cfu/100ml10 cfu/100ml0
2025excellent2011 cfu/100ml11 cfu/100ml0
2026—810 cfu/100ml12 cfu/100ml0

Geometric mean of Environment Agency samples per calendar year (the standard bathing-water statistic). "High readings" are samples at or above 500 E. coli or 200 enterococci cfu/100ml.

Perranporth Penhale Sands — frequently asked questions

Is it safe to swim at Perranporth Penhale Sands today?

Perranporth Penhale Sands is currently rated AMBER: A storm overflow discharged within 5 km in the last 48 hours. Falling tide may draw discharge along the shore. This is guidance only — also check official alerts and use your judgement.

Has there been a sewage spill near Perranporth Penhale Sands?

207 storm-overflow spills were recorded near Perranporth Penhale Sands in 2025 (EA Event Duration Monitoring), and 20 spill events have been logged nearby so far this year.

What is Perranporth Penhale Sands's bathing water classification?

Perranporth Penhale Sands is classified excellent for 2025 by the Environment Agency.

Data & provenance

Last updated
8 min ago (2026-08-27 18:45 UTC)
Sources
Environment Agency (samples & classification), South West Water (overflows), EA EDM (annual spills), Open-Meteo (rainfall & tide). Full list on about.
Confidence
High — official classification, 5 outfalls monitored within 5 km.
Risk model
v0.4
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Sample timeline (JSON) · All beaches (CSV)
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