By Clare Babbidge BBC News

The number of UK beaches failing European water quality tests has doubled.

Viking Bay in Kent was the only one in south east England to fail. How have locals reacted?

Michael Sparks swims daily in the summer

The beach may look picturesque and have inspired Charles Dickens but it is not rated by this year's Good Beach Guide.

Two hours away from London's rush hour the golden beach, overlooked by Bleak House, feels like a quaint haven with its souvenir shops and tiny cinema.

Jeanette Hemment, a volunteer in the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's shop at Broadstairs, said: "It's a lovely beach and people come to see us from all parts of the world.

"It's such a shame that this water is affected".

She added: "Lots of people are going in the water, and I still like to go in there paddling, what's wrong with that?"

As if on cue, a bare-chested man strolled past the RNLI shop, clutching a beach towel under his arm.

Fifty-nine-year-old Michael Sparks takes daily swims from either Ramsgate or Broadstairs during the summer.

"I have heard about the problems from the local press.

"It won't put me off, unless I saw anything floating around, and then I definitely wouldn't get in there."

We have a duty of care and want to ensure that we have a top quality beach that doesn't fail again Thanet District Council More beaches fail bathing tests

Fifty two beaches - up from 26 in 2003 - failed the European water quality tests and the number regarded as safe has dropped, according to a Marine Conservation Society.

It advises against swimming at these beaches as infections such as gastroenteritis are more likely.

But Mr Sparks said he had not been ill and the swimming had helped him "feel fitter".

"It is probably cleaner now than when I was younger," he said.

On the beach several hardened beach-goers sat behind windshields in true British style as a few stray paddlers got their feet wet.

The scene was only broken by two joggers stopping for a brief dip in the sea.

You wouldn't get me in there, as you can't see the bottom Cheryl Setterfield Local resident

One of them, Jack Clark, who was celebrating his 19th birthday, said he was sympathetic with campaigns by Surfers Against Sewage and was concerned about water cleanliness.

"But I don't think I would be put off going in unless there was something really bad and we were strongly advised against it," he added.

One person who will not be swimming locally is Cheryl Setterfield, who owns Nickleby's fish and chip shop.

"The sea is full of seaweed and it stinks in the summer," she said.

"You wouldn't get me in there, as you can't see the bottom, not when you compare it to Mediterranean beaches".

But she said her teenage sons loved the beach.

Viking Bay failed two water quality tests last August

Jim Gollick, who has run a cafe on the beach for 16 years, said the water quality problems had left people perplexed.

"There has been a lot of testing done down here and the other day they were digging holes in the beach," he said.

He hopes it will soon be sorted out so day-trippers and holidaymakers are not deterred.

"It is inevitable that if it isn't sorted trade will suffer," he said. "We rely on a great many people coming to the area, local trade alone is not enough to provide us with a living".

'Duty of care'

His feelings were echoed by a Thanet District Council spokeswoman who said it had been working with the Environment Agency and Southern Water since August to solve the problem.

"This is no shock to us, and not something we have tried to keep quiet," she said.

She said the beach had failed two tests last August and numerous tests had ruled out several possible causes.

"We have a duty of care and want to ensure that we have a top quality beach that doesn't fail again," she said.

Council investigations will continue this summer, including a tidal survey in August with samples checked every half hour.

The spokeswoman added the 26-mile coastline scooped nine Seaside Awards last month.