Essex Police Marine Unit helps to tackle illegal shellfish harvesting in Chalkwell

September 29, 2026

The Essex Police Marine Unit has been supporting work to tackle illegal shellfish harvesting on Southend beaches. Officers attended Chalkwell beach to make checks on people reported to be harvesting mussels, clams and periwinkles.

Officers attended Chalkwell beach to make checks on people reported to be harvesting mussels, clams and periwinkles.

They were assisting the Kent & Essex Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authority (IFCA), which monitors our shellfish beds and enforces catch size limits, and Southend City Council, which is responsible for public health.

PC Craig Stocker says four people were stopped and spoken to earlier this month, with 22kgs of shellfish being seized by Southend City Council environmental health officers. More than half the clams were below the legal minimum size for harvesting.

Craig explains:

“Harvesting shellfish without a permit or a licence is illegal.

“The rules are there to protect public health because shellfish which are not properly harvested may be unsafe to eat because they can be contaminated with raw sewage and other toxins.

“It's also illegal to harvest undersized shellfish and the amount that can be harvested is also restricted to avoid any one species becoming endangered.”

Kent and Essex IFCA is responsible for the sustainable management of sea fisheries resources and marine conservation within the district, including enforcement of relevant fisheries legislation and IFCA byelaws.

Principal compliance and enforcement officer Hayden Hurst says:

"Partnership working was key to the success of this operation. The support provided by Essex Police enabled officers to verify identities, enhance officer safety and carry out effective inspections of shellfish gatherers.

“Joint working between enforcement agencies allows officers to tackle issues that no single organisation can address alone. By combining the powers and expertise of Kent & Essex IFCA, Southend City Council and Essex Police, we were able to achieve a far more effective outcome than would otherwise have been possible.

“The ability to accurately confirm individuals' identities using police fingerprint scanners was particularly valuable, allowing officers to progress enforcement action in relation to repeat offenders who had previously provided false details.

“We welcome the support provided by Essex Police and Southend Council Environmental Health teams and look forward to continuing this collaborative approach in the future."

Southend City Council’s Environmental Health department is responsible for enforcement of public health and food safety regulations.

Councillor Irene Ferguson, Cabinet Member for Housing and Preventing Homelessness, says:

“Illegal shellfish harvesting is a serious issue that puts public health at risk, damages our local seafood industry, and harms the coastal environment.

“Southend has a long-standing shellfish heritage and we are committed to protecting it. “We work closely with partners to monitor activity and will support enforcement action where needed.

“We urge anyone witnessing suspicious shellfish harvesting to report it via My Southend so it can be investigated.”