What is the law on naked sunbathing in your garden this summer?

There’s a new garden trend on the rise this summer - but is it legal?

Temperatures are expected to soar to 23C this week and sun-worshippers are likely to be trying to top up their tans. It is expected that thousands might even wear their 'birthday suits' and sunbathe naked in their own garden to avoid tan lines.

During the July 2021 heatwave, when the Met Office announced the UK’s first-ever extreme heat warning, there was a 354% surge in ‘naked sunbathing’ related Google searches, garden retailer Primrose has said. It is unlikely that doing so will fall foul of the law, unless the nudity causes distress or alarm to others.

According to GOV.co.uk, the law states that it is not a criminal offence to sunbathe naked in public as long as it doesn’t cause distress or alarm to other people.

The website says: "In the absence of any sexual context and in relation to nudity where the person has no intention to cause alarm or distress it will normally be appropriate to take no action unless members of the public were actually caused harassment, alarm or distress (as opposed to considering the likelihood of this)."

In order for a breach to take place, a person 'needs to have used threatening or abusive words or disorderly behaviour within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress. Section 5 POA is summary only and a non-imprisonable offence.'

A person conducting their business naked in public could be seen to to be 'disorderly', the Crown Prosection Service says as it does not conform to the normal standards of society. However the CPS adds that in cases of nudity where the person has no intention to cause alarm or distress no action would normally be taken.

EvilEmily · F

there is a new ruling in germany now that women may go topless in public pools, equal rules for genders

JoeXP · 56-60, M

It is a difficult one. We used to have neighbours where the girls regularly sunbathed topless and occasionally naked. They once had a barbecue in the back garden with the women topless. Seemed a bit dangerous to me. I sometimes sunbathe and even hike nude in the countryside, but I always worry what people might say even though as you say it isn’t illegal. I wouldn’t sunbathe in the garden nude because of what the neighbours might think.

tallpowerhouseblonde · 31-35, F

I always sunbathe naked.In my garden there is no issue at all.At my previous home though the neighbor used to watch me naked sunbathing.I could see him looking at me.Whenever his wife caught him she would shout at him and then they argued.Then she worked up the courage to ask me to stop sunbathing naked.I refused,telling her to get her flat chest away from me and go work on her marriage.She started crying.