Blue Flag awards are only presented to beaches that pass strict European Laws for clean water and sand and have the finest facilities and lifesaving equipment. When Britain joined the charity-run scheme in 1987, only 12 beaches received awards. It was announced yesterday though that Britain had won 122 awards this year, marking increased improvements of over 600% in the past decade – the second most improved coastline in Europe. The scheme presents a total of 2,310 flags to be raised above Europe’s cleanest beaches. With this year’s impressive haul, Britain is now placed eighth in the European rankings. With another scorching summer looking set to arrive, let’s keep up the good work!