History
Tunsall swimming pool was opened in 1889 as part of a group of public buildings including a library and institute. The buildings were designed by the architect Absalom Reade Wood, with a red brick and terracotta exterior which were erected to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887.
In August 2008, the pool was visited by Dr Ian Dungavell, the then director of the Victorian Society. He was in the process of visiting each of England's 14 listed Victorian and Edwardian pools which were open at that time and swim a length for each year in which they had been open, at Tunstall he swam 119 lengths. He described the venue as ‘a shining example of the role that historic pools can play in the 21st century. Stoke-on-Trent City Council must be congratulated for keeping Tunstall Pool in use. ‘
Sadly, the decision was taken to shut the pool in February 2011 as part of the council’s cost-saving measures with the building closing to the public on 31st March 2011, despite a campaign to keep the building open.
I haven't found much information on the pool since closure but on the Tunstall Swimming Pool Facebook page there are photos of an art exhibitions and music video which took place in 2017.
The Explore
Visited with prettyvacant71, who bought it to my attention shortly before we had a week’s road-trip up north. While heading back on the last night of the trip we stopped off in Stoke to check it out. I found a way in without too much bother and quickly found my way into the pool area which was pitched black. In the attempt to find some lights, I ventured down to the foyer with caution, where there were still some lights on, but midway down the stairs I set off a rather loud alarm and made a hasty escape. We decided to head over to Dudson‘s Pottery, but with a dog unit parked outside the main gate we couldn't really be bothered with it and decided to make the most of our opportunity and wait till the morning before having another go with the pool. We quickly made it back inside are were able to explore the whole pool area. Unfortunately, exploring the building in the day makes very little difference to the amount of light inside the pool, with the original skylights probably removed when they replaced the roof. However, it was still possible to get a decent set of pictures, despite forgetting my remote shutter release using the minimal depth of field and a high iso. Unless you can turn the lights on a tripod is essential. We didn't get to see any of the industrial side to the building, but with a police station next door it was probably best to be on the side of caution.
This window in this room was the only source of natural light for the pool, through the doorway can be seen the balcony surrounding the pool. There was also a light on in the changing room at the other end of the pool
There were several rather dated rooms on the first floor
I really like these art deco tiled fireplaces
Finally a phone pic using night mode showing a more accurate representation of the light conditions
Thanks for looking
Tunsall swimming pool was opened in 1889 as part of a group of public buildings including a library and institute. The buildings were designed by the architect Absalom Reade Wood, with a red brick and terracotta exterior which were erected to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887.
In August 2008, the pool was visited by Dr Ian Dungavell, the then director of the Victorian Society. He was in the process of visiting each of England's 14 listed Victorian and Edwardian pools which were open at that time and swim a length for each year in which they had been open, at Tunstall he swam 119 lengths. He described the venue as ‘a shining example of the role that historic pools can play in the 21st century. Stoke-on-Trent City Council must be congratulated for keeping Tunstall Pool in use. ‘
Sadly, the decision was taken to shut the pool in February 2011 as part of the council’s cost-saving measures with the building closing to the public on 31st March 2011, despite a campaign to keep the building open.
I haven't found much information on the pool since closure but on the Tunstall Swimming Pool Facebook page there are photos of an art exhibitions and music video which took place in 2017.
The Explore
Visited with prettyvacant71, who bought it to my attention shortly before we had a week’s road-trip up north. While heading back on the last night of the trip we stopped off in Stoke to check it out. I found a way in without too much bother and quickly found my way into the pool area which was pitched black. In the attempt to find some lights, I ventured down to the foyer with caution, where there were still some lights on, but midway down the stairs I set off a rather loud alarm and made a hasty escape. We decided to head over to Dudson‘s Pottery, but with a dog unit parked outside the main gate we couldn't really be bothered with it and decided to make the most of our opportunity and wait till the morning before having another go with the pool. We quickly made it back inside are were able to explore the whole pool area. Unfortunately, exploring the building in the day makes very little difference to the amount of light inside the pool, with the original skylights probably removed when they replaced the roof. However, it was still possible to get a decent set of pictures, despite forgetting my remote shutter release using the minimal depth of field and a high iso. Unless you can turn the lights on a tripod is essential. We didn't get to see any of the industrial side to the building, but with a police station next door it was probably best to be on the side of caution.
This window in this room was the only source of natural light for the pool, through the doorway can be seen the balcony surrounding the pool. There was also a light on in the changing room at the other end of the pool
There were several rather dated rooms on the first floor
I really like these art deco tiled fireplaces
Finally a phone pic using night mode showing a more accurate representation of the light conditions
Thanks for looking
