Efforts are being made to change the behaviour of beach-goers after the quality of Irvine’s sea water was ranked among the poorest in Scotland.

Launched in mid-July while easing out of lockdown, Keep Scotland Beautiful’s My Beach, Your Beach campaign aimed to help improve water quality through to change attitudes and behaviour so people could do their bit to help avoid polluting the sea.

This comes after the Times previously reported that water quality at Irvine’s popular beach front was given a poor rating from the Scottish Government’s environmental watchdog, joining Ayr South Beach and Heads of Ayr among the worst ranked in the West of Scotland.

Irvine’s bathing water ranking dropped from its previous ‘sufficient’ rating the same day the town’s tidy beach front secured its Keep Scotland Beautiful award thanks to hard work of Irvine Clean-up Crew on May 31, 2019.

Paul Wallace, Campaigns and Innovation Manager at Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “We’re grateful to both council staff and members of Irvine Clean Up Crew for working tirelessly to keep the beach clean for everyone to enjoy.

“Cleaner sands can lead to cleaner seas – a win-win for our beach environments and communities.”

Keep Scotland Beautful said the beach has “faced challenges” in improving the quality of the bathing water as measured by SEPA, and research confirms a significant link between behaviour on the land and the cleanliness of the seawater.

The campaign, funded by the Scottish Government and supported by SEPA, was led by Keep Scotland Beautiful alongside its Beach Awards with campaign messaging appeared on bins and lamppost signs encouraging people to dispose of waste responsibly.