THREE Dorset beaches have been listed in the top 10 for cleanest water in the UK following a recent study.

SaveOnEnergy investigated levels of faecal indicators (E. Coli (EC) and Intestinal Enterococci (IE)) in the water to find where best to go for a dip and where to avoid.

They analysed data from 546 beaches around England, Scotland and Wales, giving them a ranking from 0 (dirtiest) to 100 (cleanest).

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Shore Road beach in Poole had a rating of 98.3, putting it in fourth place, with Shell Bay North in seventh place with 97.8 and Sandbanks peninsula in ninth with 97.5.

The top-rated beaches were Sharrow and Gyllngvase in Cornwall with perfect scores of 100 each.

The dirtiest beaches were Southwold The Denes in East Suffolk and Combe Martin in Devon.