The lido was opened in 1909 in a spectacular spot on the Clyde. It started life as a tidal pool with a sandy bottom. In 1935, significant works were undertaken to build an Art Deco style modern lido. Baths and Bath Engineering reported in January 1935…
“The burgh council has agreed to proceed with an extensive reconstruction scheme at the open air swimming pool, which is estimated to cost between £14,000 and £15,000.”
In 1950, plans were made to improve the Gourock outdoor pool to improve safety and cleanliness by measures including installation of a purification plant, to an estimated renovation cost of £18,000. 12 years later, Gillespie, Kidd and Coia are contracted by civil engineers F. A. MacDonalds & Partners to act as consulting architects on the task. The updated price was £26,000, for purification and plumbing, and the project was completed around 1963/4.
The pool was closed at the end of the 2010 summer season for a major improvement project, which was completed before the end of 2011. The existing changing accommodation was replaced with a more modern leisure centre, incorporating an enlarged gymnasium and lift access from the street level down to the new changing accommodation and the upgraded pool.
Some of the older maps and aerial images show the pool as much larger. The image above from 1929 shows the pool as being the full width of the frontage so I am guessing that the tank was made smaller during the 1960’s work as historic images from 2009 show the pool as its current size prior to the 2012 refurbishment. There is very little information about this pool so difficult to confirm. If anyone has knowledge of the tank size changes, please post a comment.
| Name | Gourock Outdoor Pool Albert Rd, Gourock PA19 1NQ, Scotland |
| Coordinates | 55°57’40.2″N 4°49’20.0″W |
| Built / opened | 1909 |
| Cost | 1935 refurbishment – circa £14,000 |
| Dimensions | 109′ x 49′ |
| Capacity | |
| Water type | Sea water |
| Depth(s) | Max 11′ |
| Diving boards | |
| Changing facilities | |
| Second pool | Very small childrens pool, approx 2′ deep |
| Spectator seating | |
| Designer | |
| Date closed | N/A |
| Status | Open |
| On site now | The pool |
| Last updated | 9th February 2026 |
1914
