A BEACH in Fareham is the worst in the country for sewage related health concerns, according to a report by an environmental charity.

The annual water quality report by Surfers Against Sewage’s (SAS) has found that water companies are increasing the discharge of harmful amounts of sewage into seas and rivers in Hampshire.

The charity's report included the number of sewer overflow discharge notifications issued between October 1 2020 to September 30 2021, and during this time, 286 water users reported being ill after entering the water.

Compared to 2019 -2020, this figure is an increase of 124 reports.

SAS' report revealed that nearly 30 per cent of these health reports came from Southern Water’s operating area, including Hill Head beach in Fareham which has been named as the top location with the most health reports submitted.

Although the Environment Agency has classified the beach as 'good', SAS has described water users becoming ill as "very serious."

The report reads: "Health reports submitted this year highlight that we are still getting sick after enjoying the water, and in some cases, the impacts can be very serious.

"With one in three reported instances of illness correlating with warnings of the potential for reduced water quality, the links between water quality and sickness are clear.

"Sicknesses have been reported across all Bathing Water quality classifications during the Bathing Season, and are not limited to those ranked as 'sufficient' or 'poor'."

In response to the report, Southern Water stated that it treats 748 million litres of wastewater a day at its 367 wastewater treatment works, and the company's 39500km network has more than 3000 pumping stations to "serve customers and protect the environment".

Dr Toby Willison, director of environment and corporate affairs at Southern Water, said: "We share the passion and commitment of Surfers Against Sewage’s to protect our precious coastal water and the 700 miles of coastline in our region.

"We know our performance has to improve and we are driving a step change in investment spending £2 billion to cut pollution incidents by 80 per cent by 2025.

"Our new task force aims to cut storm overflows by 80 per cent by 2030. Our target is ambitious but all 83 of our bathing waters meet strict European standards and 78 are excellent or good, a challenge which 20 years ago seemed impossible.

"We also lead the industry in our openness and transparency. Every storm release is announced on our Beachbuoy app in near real time 365 days a year. All of our environmental data is published annually."

Southern Water is currently working with SAS so its Beachbuoy data will automatically update their app.