‘No quick fix’ - Extensive work to improve Littlehaven Beach’s water quality remains ongoing
Work to improve the water quality at South Shields’ Littlehaven Beach remains ongoing.
South Tyneside Council has stated the extensive work to improve the water quality at Littlehaven Beach, in South Shields, remains ongoing - but warned that there is “no quick fix”.
It follows an article released earlier this week by travel site ‘Locals Insider’, which reveals 20 stretches of English coastline that it classes as locations “where you officially shouldn’t go in the water”.
Among them is Littlehaven Beach, with the full list based on water quality inspections that were released in November 2025.
Littlehaven Beach was given an inspection grade of ‘poor’; however, the beach was only designated as a bathing water site in May 2024 and it is common for newly-classified sites to receive low ratings.
Being designed as a bathing site means that the water quality is regularly tested, with South Tyneside Council continuing to work with the Environment Agency and Northumbrian Water to investigate the causes of the poor water quality.
‘No quick fix’
A spokesperson for South Tyneside Council said: “Littlehaven was newly designated as a bathing water in 2024 so that water quality could be properly monitored and transparently reported, giving bathers clear, reliable information.
“As is common with newly designated sites, the first classification provided a baseline for water quality, allowing partners to understand the issues and begin long‑term improvement work.
“Since designation, the Council has been working closely with the Environment Agency and Northumbrian Water to monitor water quality, investigate causes and develop an action plan for improvement.
“Extensive sampling has been carried out to identify contributing factors, and this work is ongoing.
“It is important to be clear that there is no quick fix.
“Improving bathing water quality at complex coastal and estuary locations like Littlehaven takes time and sustained partnership working, and we expect it will take several years for improvements to be reflected in official ratings.”
South Tyneside’s other two designated bathing water sites include Sandhaven Beach and Marsden Bay.
In the latest results released in November 2025, Marsden Bay was rated as ‘Excellent’ for the first time while Sandhaven Beach maintained its ‘Good’ grade.