England · Dorset
Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle
Caution. Sewage discharge 1.5km away yesterday.
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
- Bathing season
- Closed until 15 May (neutral factor)
- Discharge nearby
- 1.5km yesterday (negative factor)
- Annual classification
- Excellent (positive factor)
- Pollution risk forecast
- Normal (positive factor)
- Rainfall (24h)
- 0mm (positive factor)
- Latest E. coli
- 10 cfu/100ml (positive factor)
- Latest intestinal enterococci
- 10 cfu/100ml (positive factor)
Out of season
Weekly sampling and the daily pollution-risk forecast pause on 30 September and resume on 15 May. This verdict rests on the annual classification, live storm-overflow data and rainfall in the last 24 hours.
Storm overflows are driven by rain, so they spill more in autumn and winter than in summer. See every spill happening now across the UK.
Water temperature
18.2°C Mild
Sea surface, modelled by Open-Meteo.
Tide
Tide is rising
- High water Today
- Low water Today
- High water Today
- Low water Tomorrow
Modelled by Open-Meteo and approximate. Checked against tide gauges these times ran up to half an hour early, so treat them as a guide to whether the water is coming in or going out, not as a tide table. For exact times see Admiralty EasyTide.
Recent sewage discharges nearby
Storm overflows operated by Wessex Water within ten kilometres in the last 48 hours.
- Ended yesterdayWXW00267 · into WEYMOUTH HARBOUR1.5km from the bathing water
- Ended yesterdayWXW00937 · into WEYMOUTH HARBOUR VIA SWS (E)1.6km from the bathing water
- Ended 17 hours agoWXW01244 · into (C) ENGLISH CHANNEL3.2km from the bathing water
- Ended yesterdayWXW00706 · into TRIB OF WEYMOUTH BAY (VIA SWS)3.6km from the bathing water
- Ended yesterdayWXW00339 · into TRIB OF WEYMOUTH BAY (VIA SWS)3.6km from the bathing water
- Ended yesterdayWXW00938 · into RADIPOLE LAKE (S)3.7km from the bathing water
- Ended yesterdayWXW00878 · into LYME BAY (C)6.0km from the bathing water
- Ended yesterdayWXW01022 · into FRESHWATER BAY7.6km from the bathing water
- Ended yesterdayWXW00877 · into ENGLISH CHANNEL(C)9.0km from the bathing water
See Wessex Water's own storm-overflow map(opens in a new tab) →
Latest bacteria reading
Latest sample · 21 September 2026 · 10 days ago
- E. coli
- 10cfu/100ml
- Intestinal enterococci
- 10cfu/100ml
This is the most recent reading. Sampling resumes on 15 May. E. coli and intestinal enterococci are the indicator organisms used in the official classification.
Classification record, 2015 to 2025
Rated Good in 2015 and Excellent in 2025.
The regulator republishes this every November as a percentile over readings from up to four bathing seasons, so it describes the water's record rather than today. No classification was made for 2020, when the pandemic cut the bathing season short.
Sewage spills, 2021 to 2025
The Environment Agency links 5 storm overflows to Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle. In 2025 they discharged 19 times.
Up 19% since 2021, from 16 spills to 19.
Counting every monitored overflow within ten kilometres instead, whether or not it drains here, gives 373 spills across 37 overflows in 2025.
Common questions
- Can you swim at Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle?
- Caution. Sewage discharge 1.5km away yesterday. Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle 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 Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle?
- Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle is rated Excellent in the regulator's 2025 annual classification, a percentile taken over readings from up to four bathing seasons. The most recent sample, taken 21 September 2026, showed 10 cfu/100ml of E. coli and 10 cfu/100ml of intestinal enterococci.
- Has there been sewage at Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle recently?
- Yes. 9 storm overflows within ten kilometres of Portland Harbour Sandsfoot Castle: 9 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
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Gareth Clubb