Fistral South
Fistral is considered to be the UK’s leading surfing beach. Commonly split into two halves, North Fistral and South Fistral. The beach is long, straight and sandy backed by steep sand dunes and overlooked by the iconic Headland Hotel.
The Cribbar, a reef at the northern end, is widely considered to be Cornwall’s top big wave spot with rideable waves reaching forty feet.
Overflow locations
The map below shows the locations of the storm overflows that have the potential to impact water quality at this bathing water.
The map shows whether or not a storm overflow is currently active, the time and duration of the last spill at that location, and our investment commitments that are specific to that overflow.
Fistral South storm overflow map
Water quality sample results
The graphs below show the significant reduction in harmful bacteria in the Environment Agency’s (EA) water samples since the 1990s. E. coli and Intestinal Enterococci exist in all open water - they are found in human and animal poo, and get into the water via sewage spills, road drainage, agricultural livestock, or wildlife and birds. The EA uses the levels of these bacteria to decide whether to award this beach bathing water status.
Working together to keep our network flowing
We’re on a mission to stop sewer misuse. So, we’re working with councils and community groups to raise awareness and protect our beautiful rivers and beaches. Watch our short film about what we did in Newquay. If you want us to do something similar in your area, please get in touch.
2025-2030 investment programme
The 2025-2030 investment programme is currently being scoped out. If you’re a community group or part of a local network and would like to have your say see ‘Your Beach, Your Say, Our Investment’.
4 year overflow spill information
The data shown in the table below is the reported annual total spill number for each overflow which has been identified by the EA for this bathing water.
The assignment of an overflow to the bathing water does not always mean an impact will occur, it can be dependent on a number of factors such as tidal state and weather conditions. Sometimes it has been allocated just for investigation purposes and has no impact at all.
All data collected goes through vigorous quality assurance processes before being included in the counts. Sometimes debris can trigger false spills to be recorded, resulting in potentially higher than actual spill numbers.
Number of spills
| 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Towan Head pumping station overflow, Newquay | 30 | 25 | 33 | 23 |
| Yellow Sands pumping station overflow, Newquay | 32 | 23 | 31 | 24 |
The beach profiles were created in line with information provided by our partners, Environment Agency, RNLI, Keep Britain Tidy, MCS - Beach Guide and British Beaches.