Historic site in Cornwall, England
Jubilee Pool (Cornish: Poll Jubile)[2] is an Art Deco lido in Penzance, Cornwall. It is Grade II listed, being recognised as the finest surviving example of its type with the exception of Saltdean Lido.[3] With a capacity of 5 million litres and 600 swimmers and measuring 300 feet long and 160 feet wide, it is the UK's largest seawater pool.[4][5][6]
History
Construction and opening
The plan to build a pool in Penzance became something of a political issue, with local councillors seeing it as a choice between the pool or improving the town's water supply.[7] One town councillor predicted the project would be "the biggest white elephant Penzance has ever had".[8]
The lido was designed between 1931 and 1934 to be built on Battery Rocks, which was already a popular bathing spot, to designs by Captain Frank Latham, the Borough Engineer of Penzance.[9][10] Its design has been described as "Art Deco", "Art Nouveau-styled" and "cubist-inspired",[11][8][12] and is reportedly influenced by the shape of a seagull in flight.[13]
It was opened on the 31 May 1935, as part of the Silver Jubilee celebrations for King George V.[8]
Use and decline
The pool was damaged by the Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 which hit the UK on 13 March 1962, with the lido's far wall being breached.[10][14]
Visitor numbers declined after the 1970s, when the popularity of lidos waned, and the pool fell into disrepair.[12] It was closed in 1992,[15] but was restored and made a listed building after the formation of the Jubilee Pool Association (later called the Friends of Jubilee Pool).[16]
Revival
The pool had a revival in 1994 with a 'Grand Re-opening' and Penzance-born actress Jan Harvey launching the lido's new season.[17]
The lido suffered "serious structural damage" during the winter storms in February 2014, with changing rooms and terraces being demolished and the floor of the pool being destroyed.[12][18] It was repaired at a cost of £2.94m which was raised by the local community as well as with grants from the Power to Change Trust and the Coastal Communities Fund.[19] Jubilee Pool re-opened in May 2016.[12] In both 2016 and 2017, the lido had around 40,000 visitors.[20]
With the help of a £1.4m European Regional Development Fund grant,[21] Jubilee Pool became the UK's only lido heated with geothermal energy in 2019 after a 410m deep geothermal well was drilled into the rock below the pool.[22] In 2020, Parkdean Resorts named Jubilee Pool the UK's best lido.[23]
As of 2021, Jubilee Pool is owned by 1400 local shareholders and is run as a social enterprise.[24] Design writer Dominic Lutyens included Jubilee Pool in his collection of the best public swimming pools in the world in August 2022.[25]
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