Cornwall scoops five Keep Britain Tidy Blue Flag awards

Porthminster was one of five Cornish beaches to pass strict cleanliness and water quality tests

Cornwall has five of the cleanest beaches in England, according to Keep Britain Tidy.

It has awarded its prestigious Blue Flag awards to Porthmeor, Porthminster, Polzeath, Porthtowan and Gyllyngvase.

However, two beaches - at Sennen Cove and Carbis Bay - were stripped of their flags.

Nationally, 70 beaches passed the water quality and cleanliness tests, with Torbay in Devon receiving more flags than anywhere else.

The Blue Flag initiative is run worldwide by the non-profit group the Foundation for Environmental Education, with and anti-litter charity Keep Britain Tidy taking responsibility for the scheme in England.

Later this month, the environmental campaign group Surfers Against Sewage is to introduce a "real time" sewage warning system at some of the South West's main beaches.

It has worked with South West Water to develop an online map that will automatically update information on combined sewer overflow spills at surfing areas.