PEELING off her T-shirt, jeans and undies, Mel Shelton lies down naked for a spot of all-over sunbathing.
But she isn’t on a nudist beach or in a secluded private garden – she’s on the balcony of her third-floor flat in Warrington, Cheshire, in full view of dozens of neighbours.
“I’ve been sunbathing naked for 10 years, and I have no intention of stopping,” said Mel, 29. “As well as giving me a big dose of vitamin D – which is good for my physical and mental health – it also ensures I’m tan-line-free for summer.
“My neighbours might think ‘cover up’, but I just ignore them.
“I’m not doing it to shock anyone, and a naked body is nothing to be ashamed of.”
Mel isn’t the only one who thinks so. According to one survey by IPSOS, 14% – or a staggering 6.75 million people – in Britain consider themselves to be naturists, admitting to being naked in their gardens or other outside areas.
Skinny-dipping is high on the list with 21% admitting swimming naked, while one in five confessed they’d been partially nude around other people, including on Zoom calls and video conferences.
Mel, a hairdresser, first started naked sunbathing when she left home at 19 and credits it with helping boost her low self-confidence.
“When I was a teen I hated my body,” she said. “I never felt like I fitted in.
“I had acne and found it hard to lose weight.
“When I left home, I vowed to beat my lack of body confidence and challenged myself to sunbathe naked in the garden – which was very private and not overlooked by any other houses – when my flatmates were out.
“I thought it would be a one-off, but instead it was the most liberating thing I had ever done.”
From then on, Mel sunbathed naked at home regularly, and even started doing it at friends’ houses.
“I’d always ask if they minded,” she said. “None of them did.”
When Mel moved into her two-bed flat in February 2020 its sun-trap balcony was a major draw. “I have clear glass balcony railings,” she said. “I sometimes drape a towel over the glass surrounds to limit eagle eyed neighbours.
“If people look down from above or either side they might get a glimpse of me sunbathing.
“It does depend on the angle and how far they ‘dangle’ over their balcony guard rail.
“I have bought some extra pot plants to create a bit of privacy.
“I found my neighbours really only use their balconies for hanging out washing. But as soon as summer rolled round, she was reclining there in the buff.
“There have been a few times when I opened my eyes to gawking blokes, the odd wolf whistle or a thumbs-up,” she said..
“Window cleaners and repair men are often working on the outside of the apartment block.
“The first time it happened, I scarpered inside. Now I just wave hello and cover myself with a newspaper or move my sunbed.
While some neighbours in her four-storey, 50-flat block studiously look the other way, others have made their disapproval crystal clear.
“One woman who was visiting her friend knocked on my door to tell me I was a bad influence and should think of the kids in the block.
“I think she had a valid point but on my side there are only couples and single people. The flats are not really family flats due to the stairs.
“Some people have tut-tutted at me in the lift, but no one has made official complaints .
“We are constantly told to love our bodies, and I’ve grown to love mine, curves and all. We shouldn’t be made to feel that our bodies are something shameful that need to be hidden away.”
Being naked in the comfort of your own home or sunbathing topless in the garden might not seem like a huge problem.
But it could get you in trouble.
Under the law, it’s technically legal to be naked anywhere in the UK, unless the nudity is to cause shock, outrage or upset.
For it to become illegal, it needs to be proven that the stripping off was done deliberately.
This means it is legal for you to be naked in your own back garden, as long as you’re not doing so to upset your neighbours.
So if you’re thinking of sunbathing in the nude, make sure your neighbours can’t overlook or wouldn’t mind.
According to the Crown Prosecution Service “a balance needs to be struck between the naturist’s right to freedom of expression and the right of the wider public to be protected from harassment, alarm and distress”.
Now, Mel doesn’t just sunbathe naked. She explained: “I cook in the nude. I clean in the nude and I do yoga and low impact aerobics in the buff as well – I find it so relaxing. It’s an expression of self-love and self-expression.
“Although it has been awkward occasionally, when my mum lets herself in to find me starkers doing a complicated yoga move! She was initially horrified and begged me to cover myself with a towel or put on my bathers. Now, she just rolls her eyes or looks away.”
As for holidays, unsurprisingly Mel is a regular at nudist beaches in England and Greece.
“It’s not about flashing my flesh. For me it’s an act of liberation and a chance to show other women it’s ok to break nudity taboos,” she said.
“It’s great to see all shapes and sizes enjoying the sunshine.
“I have no intention of covering up, either on the beach or on my balcony. If people are offended, then don’t look. I don’t spy on anyone else when they’re hanging up their knickers, or having an argument over who’s turn it is to take out the rubbish.
“I live and let live – and so should they.”
