It appears to be getting near to crunch time for Coventry’s iconic Swimming Baths and Sports Centre. The Council has admitted that it is not capable of finding an alternative use for the building and wants to talk to Historic England about its future.
Wartime bombing destroyed four of Coventry’s five swimming baths. By 1956 the city decided that its needs would best be met by a very large central complex. Coventry was one of only two such complexes of the period to be constructed with three pools.
Coventry Baths, with its attached sun terraces, was designed in in 1956 and built between 1962 and 1966 by Coventry City Architect’s Department, under Arthur Ling and Terence Gregory. The buildings were granted Grade II listed status in 1997.
The 1970s dry sports centre to the east, the glazed link bridge and the linking external stairs are excluded from the listing and Historic England declined an application by the Coventry Society to have these buildings listed as well.
The Baths is listed for architectural, historical and innovation reasons. It is described, in the listing, as having “a striking winged design that utilises an unusual longitudinal plan and an impressive full height glazed south wall”.
“It is amongst the most ambitious baths built anywhere in Britain in the short period between 1960-66 when large swimming complexes were encouraged.”
It is also one of the few buildings in the rebuilt Coventry centre to be a pure modern design: “Coventry has been provided with one of the finest swimming pools in the world. It has probably no equal in Europe, and local pride has reason to be satisfied. … The site for the Swimming Baths was constricted and the requirements complicated. Yet the result is undoubtedly an architectural success. The enormous bird-like form has an imaginative and dramatic elegance which outclasses any of the other recently erected buildings in central Coventry.” (Coventry New Architecture).
The Baths closed in 2020. The BBC has recently reported that it is costing £400,000 per year to keep the baths watertight and secure. However, Community Action for Neighbourhoods has suggested that this figure might include the value of lost business rates.
At the time when the future of the baths was being considered many local people wanted to see the existing building upgraded. Instead, the Council chose the cheaper option of building new facilities. It appears that they assumed that the existing site could be easily re-used and did not include the cost of looking after a deteriorating building in its decision making.
In 2020, before the building closed, the council entered into an exclusivity agreement with Rainier Developments Ltd, meaning the firm had to bring forward a delivery strategy for an ‘acceptable development.’
However, a quick scan of Ranier’s website suggests that it may not have extensive experience of complex or difficult developments or heritage projects and it appears to have come up with no suitable future for the building.
In September 2023, the city council cabinet member for jobs, regeneration and climate change, Cllr Jim O’Boyle, told the Coventry Observer that plans were still being developed by Rainier but he hoped an announcement could be made within weeks.
In November, Cllr O’Boyle said “It’s costing us to keep it [the Baths] up to spec, in order to protect the listing identified by Historic England,” he explained. “That is not sustainable by a local authority.”
He added: “We’ve tried to market it, we’ve tried to find a user, and I’m afraid [despite] all of that work we haven’t been able to find one.”
However, the Coventry Society has been approached twice over the past six months with suggestions for how the baths could be used.
Palminder Bal, the Founder of Architectural design practice, The Drawing Desk, based at Coventry University Technology Park has published an outline scheme for a retirement village on the site. Palminder says
“My second job as a lifeguard and cleaner at 18 years of age was in the now defunct Coventry Sports and leisure centre. I have fond memories of this building; winning an intercity school swimming competition in 1996 which led to me appearing on the front page of the Telegraph and also whilst working occasionally chasing around the naughty kids that happily spilt milkshake over the top of the stairs! The good old days!
“The building has been sitting empty for the past 5 years and in a poor state, with no vision for its future. I have the idea that it could be repurposed into a 80-unit retirement complex with 12 affordable townhouses, whilst retaining the listed features such as the Bird roof and Olympic pool hall with its vast expanse of curtain wall glazing. The new 8-storey addition would be made in CLT, with green walls and roofs, solar pv and Mural artwork done by local artists, all wrapped up in a flowing parametric design inspired by water.
“I feel the city has the skills and knowledge to deliver such a scheme and hope my ideation serves as inspiration for the decision makers. Because I love my city!”
More recently, John Brandler, the owner of a collection of street art has put forward a scheme to create a Street Art Gallery in the building. “I wanted to contact you about creating a Street Art Museum in the Swimming pool building that would bring in excess of 400,000 paying tourists to the museum and therefore into your shops, restaurants and City”. Mr. Brandler owns 5 Banksy Walls, as well as canvases, prints etc.
The 20th Century Society has expressed its views about the Council’s lack of ambition on Twitter:
“Coventry Council: Finding a use for the Grade II listed baths “almost impossible”.
“Everyone: Try harder.
“Why was a perfectly good city centre pool closed in the first place? Why not explore temporary / pop-up uses in the space to test market interest?
“Coventry deserves better.”
Coventry has a fine portfolio of wonderful post-war buildings that are regarded by architecture experts as amongst the best in the world. We wouldn’t countenance the demolition of the new Cathedral, the Upper Precinct or the Belgrade Theatre. The Coventry Baths is amongst that wonderful heritage.
The Council’s has shown in recenty years that it doesn’t place as much value on its postwar heritage as we do. The Council has failed to find a future for the Baths over the past four years. Its time for a re-think.
Its time to open up the issue for wider public engagement. The Coventry Society calls upon the Council to set up a public meeting for Coventry residents and entrepreneurs to scrutinise the Council’s efforts and have their say on the future of the buildings.