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England · Shropshire

River Severn in Shrewsbury

No. Annual classification is Poor and bathing is advised against.

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

Annual classification
Poor (negative factor)
Pollution risk forecast
Normal (positive factor)
Rainfall (24h)
0mm (positive factor)
Latest E. coli
6000 cfu/100ml (negative factor)
Latest intestinal enterococci
10000 cfu/100ml (negative factor)

Latest bacteria reading

Latest sample · 27 August 2026 · 5 days ago

E. coli
6000cfu/100ml
Intestinal enterococci
10000cfu/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, 2024 to 2025

The Environment Agency links 8 storm overflows to River Severn in Shrewsbury. In 2025 they discharged 146 times.

Counted spills a year at the overflows feeding this bathing water.

Down 27% since 2024, from 201 spills to 146.

Counting every monitored overflow within ten kilometres instead, whether or not it drains here, gives 927 spills across 58 overflows in 2025.

Common questions

Can you swim at River Severn in Shrewsbury?
No. Annual classification is Poor and bathing is advised against. River Severn in Shrewsbury 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 River Severn in Shrewsbury?
River Severn in Shrewsbury is rated Poor in the regulator's latest annual classification, a percentile taken over readings from up to four bathing seasons. The most recent sample, taken 27 August 2026, showed 6000 cfu/100ml of E. coli and 10000 cfu/100ml of intestinal enterococci.
Has there been sewage at River Severn in Shrewsbury recently?
No. No storm overflow within ten kilometres of River Severn in Shrewsbury has discharged in the last 48 hours.

Where this data comes from

  • Contains Environment Agency information © Environment Agency and database right
  • Spill counts from the Environment Agency EDM Storm Overflow Annual Returns, 2021 to 2025, published annually.
  • View the regulator's full profile

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