Newsletter of The Friends of Droitwich Spa Lido November 2020
We swam in 2020!
Welcome to our first ever newsletter in which we celebrate the opening of our Lido in this most difficult of years and look forward with optimism to 2021. Read on for more details about the future, but first a message from the Chair of the Friends of the Droitwich Spa Lido, Suzi Wood:
“I am full of admiration for Tim Kirkham and all at Wychavon Leisure, who opened the Lido this year, despite all the difficulties. It was like stepping into the light after a long period of gloom.
How wonderful it was, to jump in once again, to that salty, sparkling blue water - sheer ecstasy! Our hopes are high for our lido to be opened next year and if it is, please try to support it in any way that you are able. It is a lifeline to many, as it promotes health, both mental and physical and is part of our precious heritage.
That heritage stretches back to 1935, when Thomas H Mawson designed the pool. Ralph Lynn, a famous film star of that time was there at the opening ceremony.
The water of the lido contains diluted brine that was extracted from an underground source and was piped to a pumphouse off Droitwich High Street, which is still in use to this day. Droitwich Spa brine contains ten times more salt than sea water!
At that time and until the Lido closed in 2000, the pool was over 9 feet deep at the deep end and sported a high diving board, a springboard and two slides. It was immensely popular!
When the lido closed in 2000, the Droitwich people felt a palpable loss and a group called SALT (Save a Lido Today) was formed. Eventually, after a parish poll, a staggering 98% of the Droitwich people voted to restore the Lido to its former glory and it was reopened in 2007, with a safer and more family friendly design under the auspices of Wychavon Leisure.
A group called FODSL (Friends of the Droitwich Spa Lido) was started soon after, initiated and championed by Richard Morris, a Wychavon Councillor.
The group FODSL is still working hard today to keep the lido alive and thriving, raising money to support various resources that are needed at the pool. In these difficult times events have been curtailed, but we are running a postal quiz, designed by one of our committee members, that we hope will raise funds. My grateful thanks to all the FODSL committee members who work so hard to keep the Lido in the public eye.” Happy to be back in the water
We all know how important swimming is for both our physical and mental health, but even more so after a long lockdown. Here is what people thought when the Lido reopened in August:
“I was thrilled when it was announced the Lido could re-open this summer. It made such a big difference to so many people that after weeks of lockdown the pool was available again. To be swimming in the open air in the beautiful surroundings of the Lido Park was such a tonic for many in what had become very strange times since the start of the pandemic. It’s a wonderful facility.” Sheila Hampton.
“I moved to the area 18 months ago and one of the reasons for moving to Droitwich Spa was because of the lido. I have always been a keen swimmer and more recently an enthusiast for outdoor swimming. I believe the physical and mental benefits of outdoor swimming are huge, as well as the community it brings with it. I was so disappointed at the beginning of lockdown 1, when there was news the lido may not open at all. When I heard the news that it would open for a short time, me and my family were so excited and were eager to support it in whatever way we could. We were there for the opening afternoon session on the Friday and my daughter loved splashing around in the water. The lido has been a beacon of hope for so many people in these difficult times. I am thankful to everyone who made it happen. As a result, I have recently joined FODSL, as the lido is so important for our community and our future generations.” Mary Archer
“The first weekend the lido opened it felt like summer had actually started. In the water it felt like a party, everyone was so happy and talking to each other (at an appropriate distance), excited like they had never swum before, like they were on holiday!” June Mills.
“The Droitwich Lido has always been an important part of my family since we moved to Droitwich 30 years ago. My children swam here, my husband and I have been early bird swimmers for the last five years, and this year our first grandchild experienced Droitwich Lido, and loved it. This year was especially important as a place we could come together as a community, I appreciate the funds and efforts that were applied to make this be. The Lido in Droitwich is very important to the town, let’s hope it continues for ever”! Caroline Attwood-Reusser
“The Lido is a massively important facility in Droitwich and Wychavon, it not only affords a unique inland saltwater bathing but also supports our heritage and tourism offer. The Friends of Droitwich Spa Lido are a big part of its continued success and give their time and energy to ensure its future.” Richard, Cllr Richard J Morris, Deputy Leader Wychavon DC, Portfolio - Economy & Tourism.
2020 Pool Season
The pool stayed open until mid-September with a final swim organised by FODSL, with kind permission of Rivers, who manage the Lido pool and other leisure centres in the Wychavon District. A sunny morning meant there was lots of interest and the café provided cooked breakfasts, full English or vegetarian, at requested times. Let’s hope it won’t be long before we are back in the water!
How the Lido opened
Tim Kirkham is the area manager for Wychavon Leisure in charge of the Lido. He led the effort to open it up:
“This year has been a surreal one, with Covid-19 having a real impact on swimming. The Lido would have remained closed without the support from Wychavon District Council, the Lido team and the unfaltering support of FODSL to help us get ready to open and spread the word (even if a slightly shorter season than in previous years). In addition, we had all the new government guidelines that we needed to follow including being cashless and pre booking essential. Also, a big thank you to Alex for opening the Lido café (Little Al’s Kitchen). This was an added bonus and will continue to open throughout the winter months.
We soon realised that our booking system wasn’t up to scratch – this led to the idea of raising funds (£5,000) to upgrade and improve our current booking system to make our Lido customers experience easier and better than before. A ‘Lido Go Fund Me’ page was launched on 8th September https://www.gofundme.com/f/droitwich-lido . We still have some way to go and will keep promoting throughout the rest of this year and early next year so please keep spreading the word. The amount currently stands at £185 and with a kind donation of a cheque for £500, from FODSL, brings the total to £685 (13.7%).
We are extremely grateful to the Friends of Droitwich Spa Lido who regularly support us with their programme of fundraising activities. Once again, we thank you for your continued support year on year, it really is much appreciated.”
The Lido Café – We’re here to stay ….
Alex Daw is the new owner of the Lido café and helped make the reopening of the pool such a success:
“It’s been a strange year for small business owners and many a customer at our other Worcester café have jokingly asked ‘when are the locusts coming’ after we were cut off by the floods and then closed by the first COVID lockdown less than a month later. I must admit, it took a certain amount of bravery to put myself forward to run the café at the Lido during a global pandemic, even if initially it was only for 6 weeks while the pool was open. But here we are over three months later and the support from the community has been amazing. We have gained a long-term tenancy and the café is thriving. Pop down the park any day at the moment and you’re likely to find a queue of locals nattering outside while they wait to come and grab their takeaway. During the rainy moments you will see me decorating the cafe getting everything freshened up for when we can welcome you all to sit inside again. It has been so humbling to gain such local support so quickly.
Keep an eye on our social media or our new website (www.littlealskitchen.co.uk) for information on our homemade / Fairtrade / local produce as well as our exciting plans for; evening classes / themed evenings / live music etc.
See you soon; we’re open every day ALL YEAR. Alex Daw.
Happy memories
Rivers, the leisure group that manages the Droitwich Spa Lido is a member of the organisation Historic Pools of Britain, who promote the restoration and continued use of historic pools. Swimming or bathing has a long history, over 2,000 years. In early Britain, the combination of Roman hedonism and the spread of Christianity saw bathing condemned across Europe. A succession of invaders kept the spirit of swimming alive, until attitudes changed, and the industrial revolution meant there was a need for safe swimming and bathing areas. Many of those historic pools have been lost but on Facebook many of our swimmers have been sharing their early memories of other lidos/open-air pools.
FODSL Committee member June Mills says it has been fascinating to hear about local lidos from yesteryear:
“They include The Lawns in Kempsey, The Crown at Wychbold, “Parksy Puddle” at Sansome Walk, Worcester, and a little further afield Fenn Green at Alveley, The Stewpony on the way to Wolverhampton, Bournville lido, Kalamazoo Brook and Sutton Park. For me, I was happy for someone to share their memories of Millhouses Park in Sheffield which was a part of my childhood and someone else shared their memories of Sunbury pool by the River Thames. I don’t think any of them had heating! It has certainly got me “Googling” to see what I could find out about these locations. Just so sad that so many family facilities did not survive and makes it all the more important that we maintain and build on the amazing lido we are so lucky to have in Droitwich Spa.”
If you would like to see some of the comments and photos, follow us on Facebook ‘Friends of Droitwich Spa Lido’.
It’s a great way to stay in touch with all our Lido news as it happens.
For lido lovers everywhere
FODSL treasurer Cliff Billings has a Christmas present idea for those of you who enjoy outdoor swimming. He recommends a reference book called the ‘Lido Guide’.
The book, covering over 120 lidos, gives full details of all of them in the UK and the Channel Islands, along with photographs.
The authors, Emma Pusill and Janet Wilkinson are very keen outdoor swimmers, and have put together a Guide based on visiting many of the pools.
The book is published by Unbound of London and is available in book shops, such as Waterstones, for £14.99. FODSL bought several copies of this book and have placed one each in the following: Droitwich Spa Tourist and Information Centre, Droitwich Spa library and Worcestershire County and Worcester University library, which is called ‘The Hive’. If you are on the FODSL Supporter listing, there are a further two copies, which you can loan.
We hope you have enjoyed our first newsletter. If you would like to get in touch with any stories, ideas, memories, or photos to be included in Salty Splash we would love to hear from you and the email address for contributions is:
Droitwich Spa Lido Worcester Road Droitwich Spa WR9 8 AA
In the meantime, Friends of Droitwich Lido wish you a peaceful Christmas and look forward to seeing you for lots of happy swimming in 2021.