Eight Aberdeenshire beaches scoop prestigious accolade

Environmental charity Keep Scotland Beautiful has announced that eight of Aberdeenshire’s favourite beaches have been awarded the prestigious Scotland’s Beach Award.

Balmedie is one of eight Aberdeenshire winners

The 2023 award winners include Balmedie, Collieston, Stonehaven, Fraserburgh Waters of Philorth, Peterhead Lido, Cruden Bay, Fraserburgh Tigerhill and Inverboyndie.

This summer, beach goers can visit one of 52 award winning beaches spanning the Scottish coastline from Aberdeenshire to the Scottish Borders.

In total eight beaches in Aberdeenshire have been recognised with Scotland’s Beach Award - the only national benchmark for local environmental quality celebrating clean, well-managed and sustainable beaches.

Jamie Ormiston, Awards Officer at Keep Scotland Beautiful said, “Scotland's Beach Awards are the benchmark for quality, celebrating clean, well-managed and sustainable beaches. Our award-winning beaches demonstrate excellent beach management and we hope that all who visit this year play their part in keeping them beautiful. I’d like to thank all those in Aberdeenshire who do so much to protect, maintain and enhance our beaches, protecting the sand and sea for us all to enjoy.”

Cllr John Crawley, chair of Aberdeenshire Council’s Infrastructure Services Committee, said: “Once again it’s tremendous to see eight of our beautiful beaches being recognised in the Keep Scotland Beautiful Beach Awards. Our beaches and coastline are a mecca for local people and visitors alike, with Aberdeenshire relying on pristine sandy shores to help support our communities, businesses and wider tourism sector. Achieving this status is a real team effort and I would again like to take this opportunity to thank all of our council services and community volunteer groups who continue to maintain and improve our beaches to ensure these coastal attractions stay clean and safe for visitors all-year round.”

In order to achieve Scotland’s Beach Award, a range of criteria must be met, including beach safety, access and facilities, and cleanliness. Focusing on local environmental quality, the award is designed to complement the work undertaken by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency on bathing water quality. The full criteria can be accessed here and a breakdown of award winners is attached.

A map showing all the award-winning beaches with directions, facilities and images can be found at www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org/beach