Arundel Lido aka The Fitzalan Pool

The Arundel Lido started life as the Fitzalan Pool. The pool was named after the family of the Duke of Norfolk who donated the land to celebrate the 21^st birthday of his eldest daughter, Lady Anne Fitzalan-Howard on 12^th June 1960.

A report published in the Sunday Express on 18 October 1959 described the duke’s gift to the town:

To mark the 21st birthday of his eldest daughter, Lady Anne Fitzalan-Howard, the Duke of Norfolk presented his hometown of Arundel with a piece of land known locally as the Daisy Field. His only condition was that it should be used as the site for a swimming pool for the town.

Local council officials at the time described the donation as extremely generous. The proposed pool was expected to cost around £10,000 to construct, and discussions considered naming it “The Lady Anne Pool” in honour of the duke’s daughter. The official was asked whether the duke would contribute towards this? Says the official: “I hardly think so. His Grace has surely done enough by providing the land. We could hardly expect him to provide money as well, could we? “

Like many outdoor pools across the UK, Arundel Lido has faced financial challenges over the years. In September 1999, the local council announced plans to close the pool in an effort to save £50,000, although maintaining the unused site would still have cost around £24,000.

The following year, in September 2000, the pool was transferred from Arun District Council back to Arundel Town Council. The move was made with the hope that a community trust could be established to operate and preserve the facility for future generations.

The Arundel and Downland Community Leisure Trust took up management of the pool. After some initial refurbishment the small pool was re-opened in 2002 with the larger pool having its grand re-opening on 26^th June 2004. At some point before 2001, the aerator in the small pool was removed.

In order to reduce the length of the main pool to a standard 25m, a bulkhead was built to not quite the full width at the northern end to separate a section where steps down into the pool were constructed.