https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn0ky3n30yko
Campaigners fear plans to breathe new life into an abandoned outdoor swimming pool will unravel if work does not get under way soon.
The Grade II listed Broomhill Lido in Ipswich first opened its doors to hardy swimmers in the 1930s but was shut in 2002.
Plans to restore it have failed to get off the ground, and last year the National Lottery Heritage Fund withdrew nearly £7m in funding for the project.
But Mark Ling, chairman of Broomhill Pool Trust, still holds out hope that the pool will reopen, and he said it would be “scandalous” if the project was shelved.
“Our concern is if works are not in progress by December 2027, the planning permission will expire and everything then unravels,” he told the BBC.
“We are not lido fundamentalists. We are here because we believe this scheme makes absolute sense – it’s good for taxpayers and it puts Ipswich on the map.”
The National Lottery Heritage Fund joined forces with Ipswich Borough Council and Fusion Lifestyle in an attempt to save the lido about eight years ago.
It pledged £3.8m to the project in 2018 and a further £3m in 2023, while the local authority vowed to inject £3.3m.
Permission for the restoration was most recently approved in December 2024 and work was scheduled to start last year, with a view to the pool reopening this year.
But last summer the council said Fusion Lifestyle had been “unable to provide assurances about their financial position”.
The authority said it raised concerns and brought “into question their ability to deliver the project”. The lottery fund then pulled out.
The move plunged the future of the pool into doubt, with the next 22 months now likely to be make-or-break, according to Ling.
“Everything is in place, so we need to move ahead to make it happen, because public money is at stake and it would be scandalous if that was lost,” he added.
“One of the finest lidos in Britain is sitting here doing nothing, so we need to make sure Ipswich does not lose out on this tremendous opportunity.”
Broomhill Lido closed in 2002 and has since been left abandoned
Council leader Neil MacDonald said the authority remained “committed to the restoration of the much-treasured lido” and to finding “a new way forward”.
“The council’s £3.3m financial contribution for the project remains ringfenced for the restoration,” he added.
“There are a number of legal and procedural matters currently being resolved with the team that was working on the project.
“Once resolved, the council can start working with funders who have previously given their commitment to the project to progress the plans for the restoration.”
Fusion Lifestyle and the National Lottery Heritage Fund were contacted for comment.
Broomhill Pool Trust 