Bathing water designation: guidance for private landowners

The Bathing Water Programme is designed to protect bathers’ health against bacterial pollution and provide information to the public to enable them to make informed decisions about where and when they bathe.

Every year, the Welsh Government receives applications for popular bathing locations across Wales to be designated as bathing waters under the Bathing Water Regulations 2013 as amended by the Bathing Water Regulations 2025 (the Regulations). Applications can be submitted by individuals, groups, businesses, local authorities, or other third parties. The Regulations set criteria for the designation of bathing waters, which must be met for an application to be considered. These criteria ensure that both public health and environmental protections are appropriately balanced.

The key criteria for designation are:

1. The expectation of a "large" number of bathers. The Welsh Government definition of a ‘large number of bathers’ is set out in bathing water application guidance. The Welsh Government considers ‘large’ to be a minimum of 100 bathers per day for coastal sites and 50 for inland sites (lakes, ponds, rivers and reservoirs). Bather numbers must be recorded by the applicant on at least 20 days over the course of the Welsh bathing season. Within this period, there must be at least 100 bathers recorded on a minimum of 5 days for coastal sites, and at least 50 bathers recorded on a minimum of 5 days for inland sites, during a 4-hour peak period.
2. Designations also consider whether the presence of a large number of bathers is likely to have a significant adverse impact on the effectiveness of any environmental protection measures in place at, or near, the surface water.
3. Consideration is given to whether there are significant risks to physical safety at the location, especially those risks that exceed the usual dangers associated with open water swimming. These risks may arise from specific features of the site.
4. Finally, if the site’s water quality is likely to be classified as poor and improving it to a sufficient standard is either not feasible or would require a disproportionately high cost, this may affect the suitability of the site for designation.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) monitors the water quality at designated bathing waters in Wales throughout the bathing season. Each bathing water is classified annually at the end of the bathing season based on their water quality as ‘excellent’, ‘good,’ ‘sufficient’, or ‘poor’.
This document provides guidance to private landowners of sites that are being proposed as, or have been, designated as bathing waters. Note - Bathing Water Regulations 2013 as amended by the Bathing Water Regulations 2025, “private operator” means a person, other than a local authority, who controls the relevant land in relation to a bathing water.

Application for a designated bathing water

Anyone may apply to designate a bathing water. We encourage landowners to work collaboratively with applicants when an application is being prepared. If you support the application and consider that the site is used by a large number of bathers and meets the relevant criteria, the applicant may request a letter of support from you.

Welsh Government also asks applicants to seek views from the landowner on whether any features of the site pose significant risks to the physical safety of bathers beyond the usual hazards associated with open‑water swimming, and whether there are any recorded bather accidents or risk assessments that reference bathing. If such information exists, it should be shared with the applicant.

When determining an application to designate a site as a bathing water, the Welsh Government will ask you to confirm that you are aware of the intention to seek designation, and provide your views on whether the information provided in the application is accurate, and, where available, to supply any supporting information you hold on whether the site meets the designation criteria.

Environmental protection is a consideration for designation. However, if your site is in a protected area such as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) or Special Area of Conservation (SAC) you will already have duties as the landowner. These do not change because of bathing water designation. Further advice is provided below. 

Notification of possible bathing water designation

The Welsh Government will notify the landowner in writing when a bathing water application for a site located within their land has been received. 

All applications will be assessed by the Welsh Government. If there appears to be a case for designation from the initial information provided the Welsh Government will run a public consultation, the results of which will be considered alongside all other evidence. Landowners can respond to this consultation. 

Following the consultation, the Welsh Government will notify the landowner in writing of the decision on whether the site will become designated as a bathing water. The decision will also be published on the Welsh Government’s website. 

Under the Regulations, NRW, sewerage undertakers and the relevant Local Authority are given a number of statutory duties that they must carry out at designated bathing waters. Therefore, if a site that is privately owned becomes designated as a bathing water, it is important that the landowner works collaboratively with these parties to ensure they can fulfil their duties. 

Under the regulations, the Local Authority controls a bathing water if the relevant land relating to that bathing water is located within its area. They are responsible for ensuring that information about the bathing water is made available to the public during the bathing season. This information must be displayed on a sign placed in a prominent and easily accessible location near the bathing water.

The statutory responsibilities for Local Authorities at designated bathing waters are set out in the Guidance to Local Authorities. 

The landowner has a legal requirement to allow authorised representatives from NRW and local authority to access the bathing water for the purpose of undertaking statutory duties i.e., installation of signage, monitoring water quality and further investigatory work when required. This access is essential for conducting regular sampling and testing to assess compliance with the standards set by the Regulations.

If pollution sources are identified that contribute to poor water quality at the designated bathing waters, under the Regulations the person who controls the site would be required to cooperate in addressing these sources if they are on land they own. This could involve implementing best management practices to reduce pollution or participating in collaborative efforts with other stakeholders to mitigate environmental impacts.

For non- compliance, refer to the Enforcement section below.

Landowners must be aware of their statutory obligations in circumstances where a bathing water is located within a designated area of environmental protection. The two key environmental designations are:

• Sites of Special Scientific Interest: designated under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
• Special Areas of Conservation: designated under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017.

Additional areas which may require protections are Ramsar sites, Special Protection Areas, and Marine Conservation Zones.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)

It is not uncommon for bathing waters to be located within SSSIs. These areas are highly protected to safeguard the range, quality and variety of habitats, species, and geological features of Wales’ natural heritage.

Each SSSI has a list of Operations Likely to Damage the features / species of Scientific Interest (OLDSI list). In most cases, OLDSI lists will include recreational activities such as swimming, bathing and dipping. The OLDSI list for every SSSI in Wales is available on NRW’s website here. Older sites may have a list of potentially damaging operations (PDO) instead of an OLDSI list.

If recreation is included on the OLDSI list, a landowner must provide NRW with a Notification of Intent (NOI) for these activities before they take place which will trigger the consenting process. This will enable NRW to assess the impact of these activities and consider whether they might adversely affect important habitats and species for which the area has been designated as a SSSI. NRW may provide the landowner with a schedule of reasonable mitigations as conditions to protect the features of the SSSI as part of granting consent. NRW will communicate this schedule directly to the landowner. This is a free process.

If recreation is not expressly permitted at a site and NRW has not provided consent for bathing, it may still be designated as a bathing water if there is sufficient evidence of a large number of bathers to meet the criteria. It is therefore the responsibility of the landowner to take reasonable measures or conditions to prevent bathing at the site e.g. temporal and/or special restrictions. 

These duties do not change because of bathing water designation. However, under the Bathing Water Regulations 2013 as amended by the Bathing Water Regulations 2025 (the Regulations), the Welsh Government will consider whether a large number of bathers is likely to have a significant adverse impact on the effectiveness of any environmental protection measures. 

Special Areas of Conservation (SAC)

All riverine SACS in Wales are also SSSI. SACs are protected areas that have been chosen to make a significant contribution to conserving habitats and wildlife species that live there. 
For those SSSIs that are also designated as a SAC, the landowner should contact NRW to see if a Habitat Regulation Assessment (HRA) is needed. The assessment may also result in proportionate mitigations to provide environmental safeguards at the site. The outcome of the HRA may lead to NRW refusing consent for the NOI.

Obtaining consent from NRW

To initiate the consenting and HRA process, the landowner is required to notify the NRW before bathing takes place. 

NRW are required to respond to a notification within 4 months of receipt. If a consent decision is not received within 4 months, consent is deemed refused.

The consent process is undertaken by NRW at no cost to the landowner. Under this process, NRW will consider the environmental impact of bathing only. NRW do not consider or provide any public permission or rights to either access the site or to swim or bathe. These rights are recognised as being those of the landowners. 

Further information on the consenting process can be found on NRW’s website.

The liability that landowners are subject to is primarily covered by two Acts of Parliament. The Occupiers Liability Act 1957 states that landowners must take reasonable care to ensure that visitors invited or permitted to use the land will be reasonably safe doing whatever they are invited or permitted to do on their land. The Occupiers Liability Act 1984 extends the duty of care to those not invited, including trespassers.

If landowners have concerns, they may wish to carry out a formal risk assessment by an accredited body at their own expense.

The Bathing Water Regulations allow for monitoring and managing the water quality at bathing locations where there are a large number of bathers to ensure they meet certain standards for public health. The Regulations do not shift, modify or transfer any pre-existing liabilities under the 1957 or 1984 Acts.

Should a landowner be unclear of their legal responsibilities for specific sites, it is advisable to seek support from a legal professional.

Under the Regulations, the Welsh Ministers are provided with powers to take enforcement action if a person who controls a bathing water impedes a local authority in the carrying out of its obligations following the designation of a bathing water. These local authority obligations require access for water quality monitoring, displaying public health information or addressing pollution risks.

Additionally, the Welsh Ministers can bring enforcement action if a local authority fails to fulfil its responsibilities. 

For more information about a particular bathing water, please visit Find a Bathing Water. This includes most recent test results and other information which is updated annually. 

For further assistance, please contact the following:

• The designation process: contact Welsh Government at water@gov.wales
• Environmental protections: contact Natural Resources Wales at: waterqualitypolicyteam@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk