New plans for town's derelict 1930s swimming pool

James Bellis says he has been on site to get a sense of the work required to bring the pool back into use

The directors of a not-for-profit sports club say they want to take on a town's 1930s swimming baths and reopen them with a range of sports facilities.

The Flag Lane Baths in Crewe, Cheshire, have been empty since 2016 when new facilities opened at Crewe Lifestyle Centre.

James Bellis and Andrew Chandler, who run The Cheshire County Sports Club in Chester, say they want to see the building reopened under a scheme they estimate would cost about £5m, and hope it could attract National Lottery heritage funding.

The group has approached the council and visited the site, with Mr Bellis saying "we just think it's awful, the fact that it's been left empty for nine years".

More recently, there have been trespassers at the site that had led to some damage, he added.

The authority had previously announced plans to demolish the building and build a school on the site, having held discussions with the Department for Education.

'Grand Art Deco building'

Prior to that, there were plans to turn the former swimming baths into a community hub – but these were dropped in 2024 because of significant cost increases and delays with the project.

The building first opened in 1937 and a Cheshire East Council report described it as being from a period when Crewe had the largest engineering works in the world.

"It's a very grand Art Deco building, it really is beautiful and is a part of Crewe's history," Mr Bellis said.

He said there was "always a chance" plans to build a school there may not progress, and that he was excited about the prospect of being able to swim there again.

James Bellis (left) and Andrew Chandler (right) say they want to see sports facilities returned to the Flag Lane site

The group's plans also include space for socialising as well as sauna, a cafe and studio space.

Outside the building, Mr Bellis said there would be room for six padel tennis courts.

"We hope we could make it into something for everyone," he said.

'Positive response'

Mr Bellis said that if funding could be secured, it would be beneficial for the council to get the building "off their books", under the scheme that has attracted a positive response on social media.

"There's been hundreds of comments on Facebook, people saying they'd love to see it saved – they've learned to swim there, their family members have learned to swim there.

"It would just be nice to see the building preserved, really, for generations to come and let's get people swimming there again."

The authority continues to have to meet costs associated with security and repairs at the site.