Grange Lido
Grange Lido is an open-air 50 m sea-water swimming pool, or lido, in Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria, England. It opened in 1932 and closed in 1993, but campaigners are working to see it re-opened as a swimming pool.[1] The lido is in Art Deco style, and is grade II listed.[2]
History and architecture
[edit]The lido opened in 1932. The buildings were designed by Grange-over-Sands Urban District Council's surveyor, named Bernard Smith[2] or Thomas Huddlestone.[3] The lido sits on Grange promenade on the shore of Morecambe Bay, although as of 2019[update] the changing course of the River Kent means that the sea is at some distance from the promenade, separated by salt marsh. The 165 ft × 112 ft (50 m × 34 m) [3] pool was filled with filtered sea-water at high tide, and was unheated.[2]
The buildings are in Art Deco style. Historic Pools of Britain describes the lido as "A very fine intact Art Deco mushroom shaped lido in a stunning setting on the edge of Morecambe Bay".[1]
English Heritage state the reasons for the lido's grade II listing in 2011 as:
- Completeness: as a complete example of a 1930s lido with the survival of all key ancillary buildings and structures
- Pool: for the unusually shaped pool, designed for multiple uses and which retains its original stepped diving stage.
- Historic: as an evocative reminder of the former popularity of sea-side towns such as Grange over Sands and the inter-war cult of fresh air, fitness and mass leisure[2]
Pevsner's The Buildings of England (revised ed. 2010), within its description of Grange promenade, simply says "Lido, 1933, closed 1992, and now very forlorn".[4]
The lido suffered damage from floods in 1977, when the outer wall was breached, but celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1982 with a special gala.[5]
Closure and future
[edit]The lido closed in 1993,[2] after a report suggested that necessary repairs would be too expensive to be justified.[5]
In 2011 the Save Grange Lido campaign was established, aiming to "transform it into a vibrant community owned leisure facility with a restored 50m pool at its heart."[6][7] The group has produced a detailed business plan setting out how it believes this could be achieved.[8] It is a community benefit society.[6]
In 2015 South Lakeland District Council began to consider future uses for the site which would not include a swimming facility: the pool area was to become a "landscaped open space".[9] In February 2019 the council allocated £2million for "light touch refurbishment" of the lido, to include making it structurally sound, bringing it back into public use, and providing refurbished units for community groups or entrepreneurs.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Grange Lido, Cumbria". Member Pools. Historic Pools of Britain. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ a b c d e Historic England. "Grange over Sands lido (1402086)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ a b Swimming in Grange: Timeline of the Grange-over-Sands lido, 1930-2018 (PDF). Save Grange Lido. 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ Hyde, Matthew; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2010). The Buildings of England: Cumbria (revised ed.). Yale UP. p. 373. ISBN 9780300126631.
- ^ a b "A Brief history of Grange Lido". Save Grange Lido. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ a b "About Grange Lido". Save Grange Lido. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ Glover, Mike (17 January 2019). "The campaign to reopen the iconic Grange Lido". Lancashire Life. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ Save Grange Lido Ltd (June 2019). Report and Business Plan: a sustainable vision for the future (PDF) (revised ed.). Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ Pidd, Helen (2 September 2018). "'No one wants it rotting away': fate of Grange Lido hangs in balance". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
- ^ "Grange-over-Sands Lido". South Lakeland District Council. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Grange-over-Sands Lido at Wikimedia Commons- "Lido". Grange-over-Sands: Maps, History, Images, Postcards. Contains several archive photos and video clip of 1932 opening
- Save Grange Lido
