England · Somerset
Minehead Beach
Caution. Sewage discharge 8.3km away 14 hours ago.
Water quality only This says nothing about tides, rip currents, cold water shock or lifeguard cover. Cold water and currents are dangerous even when the water is clean. Read the local signs before you go in. What we cannot tell you.
Checked UK time
Why this verdict
- Discharge nearby
- 8.3km 14 hours ago (negative factor)
- Annual classification
- Sufficient (neutral factor)
- Pollution risk forecast
- Normal (positive factor)
- Rainfall (24h)
- 0mm (positive factor)
- Latest E. coli
- 140 cfu/100ml (positive factor)
- Latest intestinal enterococci
- 45 cfu/100ml (positive factor)
Recent sewage discharges nearby
Storm overflows operated by Wessex Water Services Limited within ten kilometres in the last 48 hours.
- Ended 14 hours agoWXW00513 · into RIVER AVILL8.3km from the bathing water
Latest bacteria reading
Latest sample · 19 August 2026 · 13 days ago
- E. coli
- 140cfu/100ml
- Intestinal enterococci
- 45cfu/100ml
The regulator samples weekly during the bathing season. E. coli and intestinal enterococci are the indicator organisms used in the official classification.
Sewage spills, 2022 to 2025
The Environment Agency links 4 storm overflows to Minehead Beach. In 2025 they discharged 44 times.
Up 38% since 2022, from 32 spills to 44.
Counting every monitored overflow within ten kilometres instead, whether or not it drains here, gives 399 spills across 18 overflows in 2025.
Common questions
- Can you swim at Minehead Beach?
- Caution. Sewage discharge 8.3km away 14 hours ago. Minehead Beach is a designated bathing water, so it is sampled and rated every season. This answer covers water quality only, not tides, currents or lifeguard cover.
- What is the water quality like at Minehead Beach?
- Minehead Beach is rated Sufficient in the regulator's latest annual classification, a percentile taken over readings from up to four bathing seasons. The most recent sample, taken 19 August 2026, showed 140 cfu/100ml of E. coli and 45 cfu/100ml of intestinal enterococci.
- Has there been sewage at Minehead Beach recently?
- Yes. 1 storm overflow within ten kilometres of Minehead Beach: 1 in the last 48 hours.
Where this data comes from
- Contains Environment Agency information © Environment Agency and database right
- Contains water-company storm overflow data, licensed under OGL v3
- Spill counts from the Environment Agency EDM Storm Overflow Annual Returns, 2021 to 2025, published annually.
- View the regulator's full profile
Other beaches nearby
Cleanest beaches in Somerset →
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Gareth Clubb