Chris Romer-Lee

Saltcoats Bathing Pond

A light-touch project to reconnect bathers with the water

Mary Nicol was bathing pond mistress at Saltcoats for many years. Her daughter Irene Campbell, now MP for Arran and North Ayrshire, shares her mother’s love of the water. During the Covid lockdown she started a campaign with other swimming enthusiasts – the Splash Group – to restore the Saltcoats Bathing Pond. Having seen the work of Future Lidos, she approached Studio Octopi to develop a light-touch design that would enable swimmers, kayakers and paddleboarders to access the water without excessive cost. We also carried out a wider study of the Saltcoats Harbour area to explore how it could be reconnected with the town and citizens.

Restoration projects like the one at Saltcoats often rely on the time and tireless energy of enthusiastic locals. We were fortunate that Irene was able to give her voice to the campaign, and especially delighted when she used her maiden speech in the House of Commons in November 2024 to highlight the project. She particularly emphasised the importance of the pool to the community and wider constituency, a sentiment we returned to time and time again in our feasibility work.

You can read more about the architecture of the proposed refurbishment here: Studio Octopi | Saltcoats Bathing Pond