{"id":9412,"date":"2026-06-09T09:40:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T09:40:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/angesfinanciers.org\/?p=9412"},"modified":"2026-06-12T15:16:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T15:16:57","slug":"opportunity-missed-as-coventrys-post-war-swimming-pool-set-for-demolition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/angesfinanciers.org\/index.php\/2026\/06\/09\/opportunity-missed-as-coventrys-post-war-swimming-pool-set-for-demolition\/","title":{"rendered":"“Opportunity missed” as Coventry’s post-war swimming pool set for demolition"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Coventry<\/div>\n

The UK<\/a> government has officially approved the demolition of the Grade II-listed, 1960s Coventry Central Baths in Coventry<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Coventry City Council is set to demolish the Olympic-size swimming pool after Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Steve Reed granted Listed Building Consent for works to begin.<\/p>\n

Opened in 1966, the pool was designed by Coventry City Architect’s Department and is one of the most significant post-war buildings in the city.<\/p>\n

“What a tragedy”<\/strong><\/p>\n

The pool has been closed since 2020, when the council built a new Olympic-sized pool, which conservation group Twentieth Century Society<\/a> said made the building redundant.<\/p>\n

It is set to be demolished despite Historic England<\/a> describing it as “amongst the most ambitious baths built anywhere in Britain” when it was listed in 1997.<\/p>\n

The council chose to demolish the building due to reported maintenance costs of around \u00a3400,000 a year since it closed.<\/p>\n

\"Coventry
Coventry Central Baths is set to be demolished<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“What a tragedy that a building of such ambition and a major part of Coventry’s post-war heritage, located right next to the world-class cathedral and in the heart of the city centre, will now be destroyed,” said Twentieth Century Society director Catherine Croft.<\/p>\n

“The common misconception is that listed status prevents a building being demolished, but this is unfortunately not always the case,” she continued.<\/p>\n

“Here, the building-owner \u2013 the local authority \u2013 effectively made the baths redundant by building a new swimming pool without acting responsibly and securing an alternative use for the one it already had, thereby sealing its fate.”<\/p>\n

\"Coventry
The Twentieth Century Society described the demolition as a tragedy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Both the Twentieth Century Society and Coventry Society objected to the demolition, highlighting that there were no plans in place for the site. It described the decision not to reuse the structure as “an opportunity missed”.<\/p>\n

“The society would have welcomed a pragmatic approach to retain the radical W-shaped roof structure \u2013 described at its opening as ‘like a great garden-pavilion roof afloat above glass walls’ \u2013 while creating a space for bold alternative uses beneath,” said Croft.<\/p>\n