Can you swim at Perranporth right now?

Perranporth is currently marked "Good to go". No current pollution alerts — always assess conditions yourself. This reflects the latest data published by the Environment Agency (England). Conditions change quickly — always assess the water yourself before entering.

What is the water quality like at Perranporth?

the Environment Agency (England) classified Perranporth as Good in 2025. Classifications are a rolling assessment of bacterial samples taken over four bathing seasons, measured against E. coli and intestinal enterococci limits set by the EU Bathing Water Directive.

Is there a swimming ban or warning at Perranporth?

There are no active bathing restrictions published by the Environment Agency (England) for Perranporth. That is not a guarantee of safety — assess conditions yourself.

What facilities are there at Perranporth?

Perranporth has toilets, parking. Facility information comes from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Perranporth

Good to go

No current pollution alerts — always assess conditions yourself.

Checked 12 days ago against the Environment Agency (England) · data last changed 2 months ago.

Sea conditions

Water temperature

16.0°C

Cool — comfortable for a shorter swim

Wave height

1.1 m

Significant wave height offshore; inshore conditions vary.

Tide

Going out

Low water around 23:00 UTC
High water around 05:00 UTC

Modelled values, not measurements — coastal water often differs from the open-sea model, and tide times are approximate to within about half an hour. Use official tide tables for anything that depends on precise timing.

This spot’s record

Perranporth is in Cornwall, about 9 km from Newquay. Perranporth was rated Good in 2025 by the Environment Agency (England). Its previous classifications were Excellent in 2024, Excellent in 2023 and Excellent in 2022, so the rating here has moved rather than held. Across the 12 most recent samples published by the Environment Agency (England), E. coli counts ranged from 10 to 55 per 100 ml. The highest was taken on 11 September 2026. A classification is calculated from percentiles across four seasons, so no single reading decides how this water is rated.

Recent sample results

The last 12 bacterial samples published by the Environment Agency (England), most recent on the right. Counts are per 100 ml of water.

Dashed line: 500 E. coli per 100 ml, the Bathing Water Directive guide value for coastal / transitional waters.

Recent bacterial sample results for this bathing water
Date	E. coli	Enterococci	Assessment
14 Sept	10	10	—
11 Sept	55	64	—
1 Sept	10	10	—
25 Aug	18	10	—
21 Aug	10	10	—
11 Aug	10	10	—

A bathing water's official classification is calculated from percentiles across four bathing seasons, not from any single sample — so one high reading doesn't mean a spot is unsafe, and one low reading doesn't mean it's clean today.

Quality over the last 4 years

Excellent2022
Excellent2023
Excellent2024
Good2025

This water has declined, from Excellent in 2022 to Good in 2025.

Facilities & access

Parking: YesCar park about 350 m away (OpenStreetMap)
Toilets: YesPublic toilets about 400 m away (OpenStreetMap)

Storm overflows nearby

None of the storm overflows within 5 km with an up-to-date reading are discharging. Heavy rain makes combined sewers overflow into rivers and the sea by design, so this changes with the weather.

Not dischargingabout 0.7 km awayDischarges into BOLINGEY STREAMLast discharge ended 22 July 2025Reported by South West Water
Not dischargingabout 2.7 km awayDischarges into TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAMLast discharge ended 30 September 2026Reported by South West Water
Not dischargingabout 2.7 km awayDischarges into TRIB OF THE BOLINGEY STREAMLast discharge ended 30 September 2026Reported by South West Water
Not dischargingabout 3.9 km awayDischarges into STREAM (S)Last discharge ended 29 September 2026Reported by South West Water
Not dischargingabout 4.7 km awayDischarges into TREVAUNANCE STREAM(S)Last discharge ended 6 October 2026Reported by South West Water

These are the water company’s own reports of when an overflow is operating, not a measurement of the water at this spot. A discharge into a river some distance away may never reach here; a quiet list does not mean the water is clean. The swim status above comes from the bathing-water monitoring body and does not use this data.

Official water quality

Classified Good in 2025.

Official bathing-water profile

What Excellent, Good, Sufficient and Poor actually mean

Common questions

Can you swim at Perranporth right now?: Perranporth is currently marked "Good to go". No current pollution alerts — always assess conditions yourself. This reflects the latest data published by the Environment Agency (England). Conditions change quickly — always assess the water yourself before entering.
What is the water quality like at Perranporth?: the Environment Agency (England) classified Perranporth as Good in 2025. Classifications are a rolling assessment of bacterial samples taken over four bathing seasons, measured against E. coli and intestinal enterococci limits set by the EU Bathing Water Directive.
Is there a swimming ban or warning at Perranporth?: There are no active bathing restrictions published by the Environment Agency (England) for Perranporth. That is not a guarantee of safety — assess conditions yourself.
What facilities are there at Perranporth?: Perranporth has toilets, parking. Facility information comes from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Get told when this changes

We’ll email you when the swim status at Perranporth moves — a pollution alert opening, or one lifting. Not a newsletter: only this spot, only when it changes, at most once every 12 hours.

Your address is used for these alerts and nothing else, is never shared, and is deleted the moment you unsubscribe — a link is in every email.

Nearby swimming spots

See all swimming spots near Newquay — about 9 km away.