This in from the Isle of Wight Council, in their own words, Ed
The Isle of Wight is once again top in the country for the amount of award winning Blue Flag and Seaside Award beaches.
The Island has retained the same four Blue Flags and 13 Seaside Awards it received in 2013, giving a total of 17 awards.
The prestigious Blue Flag scheme and Seaside Awards – which were previously known as Quality Coast Awards – are run by the Keep Britain Tidy Group. On the Blue Flag website, it describes itself as a prestigious, international award scheme which acts as a guarantee to tourists that a beach or marina they are visiting is one of the best in the world.
Sandown, Ventnor, Yaverland and Colwell beaches have all retained their Blue Flags as well as being given Seaside Awards. Other beaches to be given Seaside Awards are Cowes, East Cowes, Springvale, Seagrove, Gurnard, Ryde East, St Helens, Totland and Shanklin.
Councillor Shirley Smart, Executive member for tourism said;
“Yet again the Isle of Wight comes out top in the prestigious Blue Flags and Seaside Awards scheme which is excellent news.
“With the increase in tourists we have seen over the last year, this can only further enhance the Island’s reputation as a top holiday destination.”
David Thornton, the chief executive officer of Visit Isle of Wight said:
“It is great to see that the Island’s beaches have once again achieved these seaside awards.
“Tourists pay special attention to Blue Flag beaches and Seaside Awards and this sends out a clear message that we’ve got some of the UK’s best beaches and is a great start to the summer season.”
Image: © With kind permission of Rusty Marvin
