Pells Pool

The Pells outdoor swimming baths in Lewes is the oldest documented fresh or spring water public pool in the United Kingdom that is still running. The baths were established by public subscription in 1860 and built in 1861, and originally had two pools alongside each other—a subscription bath, and a public bath that was free. The current pool is set within the brick-lined subscription bath, with the lawn alongside it where the free baths were. The land on which they were constructed, the Town Brook, was originally gifted to the townspeople of Lewes in May 1603 by John Rowe, a local lawyer. The original document (with the James I of England wax seal) is in the vaults of the local Town Hall.…

The pool is fed by spring water drawn from the chalk aquifer beneath the baths and is 50 yards long by 25 yards wide (approx 45.7 x 22.9 metres). Facilities include disabled access and toilets, changing rooms, a sun terrace, a large lawn alongside the pool, cold and warm outdoor showers, a small paddling pool and a kiosk selling refreshments. It is open every day in season, which typically runs from early May to late October, and with an autumn season (since 2017). Its 160th consecutive season ran from Saturday 25 July to Sunday 1 November 2020, with COVID-19 restrictions in place, and its 2021 season opened on Saturday 8 May.