An Article From Deidre Brock MP

One of the many welcome aspects of the easing of lockdown restrictions in the past year or so has been the re-opening of gyms, swimming pools, fitness classes and other leisure facilities. The precise impact of their closure, while necessary at the height of the pandemic, is difficult to measure, but there’s no doubting their vital importance to many people’s mental as well as physical health and wellbeing.

So it’s been heartening to see these centres flourishing again, especially those that are publicly owned and that have served the city for generations. For example, the iconic Victorian pools – such as Glenogle here in Stockbridge - have been in use for well over a century and we want to see them continue to thrive.

Initially these municipal baths were used as much as a place to wash as for recreational swimming, as town planners tried to get to grips with the population’s poor health and hygiene, caused in part by overcrowded slum conditions. They were designed by City Architect Robert Morham, who constructed most of his projects, including the baths, in red sandstone so that they could be identified as city-owned public buildings. The Dalry Baths opened in 1895, Leith’s followed in 1898 before those in Portobello and Glenogle in 1900. It speaks to the quality of Morham’s works, and the fondness still held for them today, that all remain as listed buildings and continue to be used as public pools. When Glenogle was threatened with closure in the mid 2000s after falling into disrepair, the local community ran a successful campaign to save the centre with nearly 10,000 people backing a petition to prevent it being sold off.

'Glennies’ was fully refurbished in 2010 and I was privileged to officially reopen the centre as the council’s Culture & Leisure Convener. The renovation added essential modern touches and improved accessibility, while preserving Glenogle’s distinctive Victorian style. With its mezzanine floors, 25-yard swimming pool bathed in natural light, and old-fashioned poolside changing berths in perfect symmetry, the beautiful interior wouldn’t look out of place in a still from a Wes Anderson film. No surprise then that the pools have drawn the eye of photographers Soo Burnell and Teresa Sumerfield and Edinburgh Leisure has been working with them to organise exhibitions.

The aesthetic charm of the buildings is worth preserving and celebrating but their main purpose as community hubs for health and wellbeing shouldn’t be overlooked. Ensuring they are accessible, fully equipped, well-staffed and enjoyable places is the main objective, and that needs sustained backing.

A 2021 Swim England report found that 200 swimming pools closed during the pandemic, many permanently, with the sector already struggling prior to Covid-19. In the last few weeks several MPs have raised in the Commons the threat of these local swimming pool closures in England, excluded from Treasury support for energy bills and affected by cuts to local authority budgets from central government funding. The almost unbroken austerity agenda has put strains on the public purse at every level, and the recent cost of living crisis has only added to the pressure.

Demand for programmes like Edinburgh Leisure’s Active Communities, however, has increased compared to pre-pandemic levels, supporting around 10,000 people. As well as helping vulnerable folk to improve their levels of activity, there’s a clear preventative benefit in reducing the impact on health and social care services.

Edinburgh’s public pools, with their rich social history, remain crucial to boosting the health and wellbeing of this city - long may that continue.

Granton

Granton Parish Church

55 Boswall Parkway

Edinburgh, EH5 2DA

Thursdays 7.00pm

Tel: Anne 07821 273666

Leith

Granton

Granton Parish Church

55 Boswall Parkway

Edinburgh, EH5 2DA

Fridays 9.30am

Tel: Anne 07821 273666

United Reformed Church

108A Duke Street

Edinburgh, EH6 8HL

Thursdays 4.00pm & 5.30pm

Tel: Lee 07525 093604

Inverleith

Ferranti Bowling Club

7 Arboretum Place

Edinburgh, EH3 5NY

Tuesdays 9.00am and 5.30pm

Tel: Andrew 07849 109641

Leith

United Reformed Church

108A Duke Street

Edinburgh, EH6 8HL

Saturdays 8.30am & 10.00am

Tel Sarah 07470 131148