Some good Lido news. Greenwich Council's refurb of Charlton Lido is going well and the pool should open again next year.

The best bit is that they seem to have borrowed the template for the wildly successful London Fields Lido (the two were built at around the same time and have many similarities) in that the 50 metre pool will now be heated and will hopefully be open way beyond just the summer.

The budget for the refurb is around 2.5 million quid - which if it is anywhere near as popular as London Field is money well spent.

Yep, Levenshulme pool, which was refurbished in 2010, is a victim of the ConDem cuts, as is a pool at Miles Platting and three other leisure centres.

Manchester will also be waving goodbye to five libraries and lots of facilities for the young.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/news/2011/02/08/manchester-to-lose-leis...

So in an age with obesity hitting new levels, a council closes public pools.

Hopefully this is a bit of posturing by the city's Labour Council to highlight how deep the cuts it has to make to hit the Con/Dem govt's new funding levels are.

Sadly though I think it is the tip of a very big iceberg. During the 80s and 90s councils, under pressure from Tory govts more concerned with tax cuts for the wealthy, closed hundreds of pools - many of which were architecturally very significant. The end result was large urban areas with not enough pools and rising levels of obesity and fewer kids able to swim.

This is so utterly depressing

http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/ipswich_three_companies_interested_in_re_opening_b...

Apparently three companies are up for running it. I wonder if it will be a deal like Uxbridge lido.

I guess this type of story is going to become all to familiar over the coming months as communities battle to stop councils from saving a few thousand quid by closing Lidos.

For me Lidos like Aldershot have huge architectural significance (as well as being fantastic places to hang out) and closing them is a horrific type of cultural vandalism.

It's no surprise that the last serious Lido cull was in the 80s and early 90s - wonder who was in power then?

Anyhow here are few words from the local paper - the full story is here http://www.gethampshire.co.uk/news/s/2086196_lido_could_be_axed_as_part_of_co...

ALDERSHOT’S historic lido could be closed as part of council plans to cut £1million of public services next year.

The outdoor swimming complex is thought to be one of the services to the public that might face the axe in Aldershot and Farnborough as Rushmoor Borough Council struggles to cut £2.4m from its budget in April.

The proposal is understood to be one of those being considered behind closed doors by councillors.

The threat to the lido is not the first it has faced in its 80-year history. The pool, which was used as one of the venues for the 1948 Olympic Games, has consistently run at a loss, costing taxpayers almost a quarter of a million pounds last year after the dismal summer weather in 2009 meant visitor numbers were down.

Although it costs less than a third of both the Aldershot indoor pools and Farnborough leisure centre, it is thought that the cost is considered high for a facility that is only open for a few months each year, despite being enjoyed by up to 50,000 visitors.

I have started a Facebook group for all UK Lido users, basically because I couldn't find one. It is a place to share updates on lidos, campaign for reopening of pools and generally witter on about the joys of outdoor swimming.

Please check it out http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=104294749627897&v=wall#!/group.php?gid=104294749627897&v=wall

To get you in the mood here's a pic of the recently reopened Uxbridge Lido. Wonderful Art Deco buildings - rubbish grey sky