Paignton Sands
This long, sandy beach on the English Riviera in south-west Devon, attracts thousands of visitors every year. Its calm, shallow waters are great for paddling. You can hire a boat or a pedalo to get out into the water, or a deckchair to relax and watch the world go by.
Paignton Sands is well-adapted for people with additional mobility needs. There is wheelchair access to the pier as well as accessible toilets.
Sadly for dogs (and their owners) there is a ban on the beach between May and September. However, they are welcome on the beach at other times of year and have a dedicated area on the green.
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.
Paignton Sands 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.
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clennon Valley pumping station overflow Outlet 2, Paignton | 6 | 5 | 16 | 12 |
| Clennon Valley pumping station overflow Outlet 3, Paignton | 3 | 24 | 11 | 0 |
| Littlegate Road storm overflow, Paignton | 3 | 4 | 5 | 8 |
| Paignton Tank storm overflow, Paignton | 5 | 4 | 7 | 6 |
More about what we're doing
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.