Beachgoers have been advised not to enter the sea due to storm sewage discharge in the water.

An environmental campaign group has warned heavy rainfall has lead to spillages off beaches around Sheppey, Folkestone and Hythe.

Surfers Against Sewage runs an interactive map to keep track of reported sewage overflows that could affect water quality in bathing areas.

The group has warned that beaches in Folkestone, Sandgate, and Hythe have all been affected by the recent stormy weather.

Photos from clifftops near Sunny Sands beach in Folkestone show a visible patch of dirty water in the sea.

Folkestone Rescue, which runs the lifeguard service across Folkestone and Hythe District Beaches, also warned that the water quality on the three beaches "may be reduced to due sewage pollution from today's storm".

Additionally, the waters off Leysdown and Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey could be impacted by storm sewage discharge.

Southern Water's leak map 'Beachbouy' has labelled all five incidents as "unverified releases to bathing sites".

"A Southern Water release may be affecting water quality," it added.

This is the second time within a week that a warning has been in place for Sunny Sands following a similar incident on Friday.

However, unlike Friday's incident the Environment agency (DEFRA) has not issued any warnings for the five named beaches as of yet.

A Southern Water spokesman said: “Yesterday’s thunder storms brought heavy rain which fell onto parched ground and couldn’t absorb surface run-off, meaning that more rain than usual overwhelmed our network. This led to some overflows – which are used to protect homes, schools, businesses and hospitals from flooding. These discharges are heavily diluted and typically 95% of them are rainwater.

“We are dedicated to significantly reducing storm overflows and are running innovative pilot schemes across the region to reduce the amount of rainfall entering our combined sewers by 2030.”