Portishead Open Air Pool
| Portishead Open Air Pool | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| 51°29′38″N 2°46′18″W / 51.4940°N 2.7716°W | |
| Location | Esplanade Road, Portishead, England |
| Opened | 1962 |
| Operated by | Portishead Pool Community Trust |
| Owned by | North Somerset Council |
| Type | Lido |
| Status | Open |
| Cost | £60,000 |
| Length | 33 metres (108 ft) |
| Website | www |
The Portishead Open Air Pool is a community-managed lido overlooking the Severn Estuary and Bristol Channel on Battery Point in Portishead, England. Opened in 1962 as a heated seawater facility serving the rapidly growing town, it is today operated by the charitable Portishead Pool Community Trust, who leases the site from North Somerset Council and runs it on a not-for-profit basis, with reliance on seasonal staff and volunteers.[1] The pool currently attracts between 40,000 and 50,000 visits in a typical season[1][2] and is recognised by the local planning authority as a non-designated heritage asset because of its social and historical significance.[3]
History
[edit]Construction and early operation (1962–2007)
[edit]The pool opened in April 1962 at a cost of £60,000, one of several coastal lidos built in Southwest England during the post-war boom in seaside recreation.[4] Warm water, piped from the nearby phosphorus works operated by Albright and Wilson, enabled a reliable temperature of about 21 °C (70 °F), an unusual feature for an outdoor pool at the time in Britain.[1] Attendance exceeded 100,000 in each of its first five seasons.[4]
By the early 2000s visitor numbers had fallen sharply and North Somerset Council proposed permanent closure as part of wider budget reductions. A 2008 review panel calculated the council subsidy at £16.50 per swim and recommended closing the pool, a proposal considered by the executive that October and vigorously opposed by residents and the nascent trust.[5] The announcement prompted the community-led Save the Open-air Pool (STOP) campaign, which subsequently formed the Portishead Pool Community Trust to negotiate a long-term lease.[1]
Renovation and community takeover (2008–2010)
[edit]National publicity arrived in 2009 when the television series Ty Pennington’s Great British Adventure selected the threatened lido for a week-long makeover. More than 400 local volunteers worked with contractors to refurbish the pool, changing rooms and terrace, a project valued at about £250,000.[6] Following the broadcast the council transferred day-to-day management to the new trust, and the lido re-opened for the 2010 season.
Restoration and investment (2011–present)
[edit]Attendance continued to recover, reaching a post-reopening record of 32,800 in 2013.[2] In 2017 the trust secured £250,000 for major works including a complete pool liner, upgraded plant and new surrounds, extending the complex’s life by an estimated 30 years.[7] The work included replacing the entire perimeter pipework and scum channels, installing modern skimmers, filtration system, and fitting a new pool liner.[8]
The 2020 season was delayed after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions.[9] After being closed for more than a year, the pool reopened on 14 May 2021 with limited entry.[10]
A further £1.33 million from the UK Government’s Community Ownership Fund was awarded in 2024 to modernise facilities and improve energy efficiency.[11] The trust said the award would allow it to move from “limited, ad-hoc repairs” to a full modernisation programme, keeping the pool and Lido Café “fit for the future”.[12][13]
Facilities
[edit]The lido comprises a 33 metre main pool, a shallow learner pool, sun terraces and the Lido Café. It remains heated, now by a biomass boiler, allowing operation from spring through early autumn.[7] All sessions are booked online, and in 2024 a standard family swim cost £5 per person, with under-threes admitted free.[14]
Community events and current issues
[edit]Cold-water swimming has allowed the pool to extend its operating calendar and draw in additional revenue. Since 2016 the Portishead Popsicle gala has drawn costumed competitors each December, raising several thousand pounds annually for pool upkeep.[15]
The trust has also joined local businesses and Portishead Town Council in opposing proposals by North Somerset Council to introduce parking charges on Esplanade Road, arguing that fees would deter volunteers and visitors essential to the lido’s operation.[16][17]
See also
[edit]- Tropicana, a former lido in nearby Weston-super-Mare that has been likened to the Portishead Open Air Pool in calls for its own restoration.
- History of lidos in the United Kingdom
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Pickstock, Heather (27 March 2022). "When American TV star Ty Pennington helped save a Somerset lido". Somerset Live. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
- ^ a b "Open air pool could see record season this Summer". ITV News West Country. 29 July 2013.
- ^ Portishead Neighbourhood Plan: Locally Valued Non-Designated Heritage Assets Report, Submission Version 2022 (PDF) (Report). North Somerset Council. September 2022. p. 3. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ a b Earl, Lexi. "Book review: A summer of lidos!". The Outdoor Swimming Society. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ "Portishead pool faces closure". Leisure Opportunities. 2 October 2008. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ "Ty Pennington's Great British Adventure – the Portishead story". www.myhouseandgarden.com (Press release). UKTV. 14 September 2009. Archived from the original on 11 June 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
- ^ a b "Portishead Lido Hits Headlines". Pool & Spa Scene. 16 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ^ "Portishead Lido". DG Pool & Leisure. 10 July 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ Flanagan, Emma (20 March 2020). "Opening of Portishead Open Air Pool delayed due to coronavirus outbreak". Bristol Live. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ Pickstock, Heather (12 May 2021). "When Portishead Open Air Pool will open and how to book a swim". Bristol Live. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ "Historic open air pool in Portishead to receive £1.3 million for refurbishment". ITV News West Country. 24 December 2024. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ^ O'Reilly, Declan (24 December 2024). "Portishead Lido reacts to £1.3m government funding boost". North Somerset Times. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
- ^ Hughes, David (23 December 2024). "Historic outdoor swimming pool last to be given lifeline with special funding". Bristol Post. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ Farell Roig, Estel (1 September 2024). "I went to an outdoor pool near Bristol and it was like being back in Barcelona". Bristol Live. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ Robinson, Harriet (9 December 2023). "Swimmers in fancy dress raise funds for Portishead lido". BBC News. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ Pollard, Ross (29 April 2024). "Parking charges 'not needed', groups say". BBC News. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ^ "Portishead Town Council stands firm against parking charges in community consultation". Portishead Town Council. 10 May 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
Further reading
[edit]- Birkinshaw, John (2018). Celebrating Portishead Open Air Pool: An Illustrated History. Clevedon: Clevedon Community Press. ISBN 9780993566622.
- Hunt, Stephen E. (2024). City of Swimmers: A Radical History of Bristol's Pools, Lidos and Wild Swimming. Bristol: Bristol Radical History Group. ISBN 9781911522768.