The National Trust has raised objections about plans for a stretch of the Norfolk coast becoming a "bathing beach", fearing it may be liable for any accidents there.

Brancaster Parish Council has applied to have the village's beach added to the UK's list of designated bathing waters.

If successful, the move would mean water quality would be regularly tested and the results posted online.

Councillors believe it would promote their beach as having a safe environment for swimming and other activities.

But the National Trust (NT), which owns the beach, has told them it is opposed to the plan.

Parish council chairman Tom de Winton said the trust's manager for north Norfolk Victoria Egan had "made its views known" at a meeting.

"She was concerned about people coming to swim and thought they'd be liable if something happened," he said. "It's all very baffling.

"We're sending the form in anyway. It's up to the Environment Agency to sort out, not the National Trust."

READ MORE: How safe is it to swim on Norfolk's beaches

The NT has not yet responded to our request for comment.

Anyone can apply for a beach or inland water to be designated, but a consultation must be carried out as part of the process.

The venue must have at least 100 bathers a day during what is deemed the bathing season between May 15 and September 30 and have toilet facilities nearby.

A public consultation must also be carried out during the bathing season before the EA makes its decision.

Water quality is regularly tested at designated beaches for faecal bacteria and advice given not to bathe when levels are high.

The EA will also investigate sources of pollution and recommend measures to improve water quality.

Nearby Old Hunstanton and Wells beaches are both designated, along with Heacham, where water quality has been poor since 2019, with visitors warned not to swim.