Stand Road Open Air Swimming Pool aka Chesterfield Open Air Swimming Bath

This petite pool built at one side of the Stand Road Recreation ground was to increase the capacity for swimmers in the area after their vociferous appeals to the local council. It opened in May 1936 with the usual display of swimming and diving plus a life saving demonstration by the Chesterfield Borough Police Force life-saving team.

Diving was catered for with the provision of three fixed boards and a maximum depth of 8ft.

During the opening ceremony, Mayor, Councillor H P Short hinted that there was potential for three further open-air pools in and around Chesterfield in addition to a central bath.

Councillor Short sounds a bundle of laughs. During his speech, he took the opportunity, during the joyous opening ceremony, to remind parents to stop their children throwing stones and rubbish over the walls into the new pool or “…the authorities would know what action to take.” Time and place, Mr Mayor, time and place.

The pool was closed in 1988 and it, along with the adjacent playground were levelled. An attractive slab of concrete stands in their place.

Sheffield Independent Monday 11^th May 1936

HOPE FOR THREE MORE OPEN- AIR BATHS HINT BY MAYOR OF CHESTERFIELD £5,000 POOL OPENS

An indication that Chesterfield Corporation hopes to proceed with the building of three other open- air swimming baths in the suburbs of Chesterfield was given on Saturday. It was the official opening of Chesterfield’s Stand Road Open Air Swimming Pool, attended by most of the members of the Corporation. officials, swimmers and members of the public. The pool which cost just under £5,000 is 75ft. by 25ft, 3′ deep at children’s end and 8′ deep at the diving end.

Filtration plant

The water is reconditioned every four hours by passing into a filtration plant and there are shower baths, foot baths and cubicles for 100 people to undress or dress at once.

The baths hold 65,000 gallons of water and will be a welcome addition to Chesterfield’s swimming facilities.

Alderman T D Sims, calling on the Mayor, Councillor H P Short, to declare the baths open, said the swimmers of Chesterfield had certainly made an impression on Chesterfield Council with their demands for swimming facilities.

The Corporation catered for a wide programme of sport, and they were out to encourage sport of every description.

If Chesterfield public wanted further swimming benefits the would have to prove by their patronage of that bath their desire for further swimming facilities.

The mayor paid tribute to those who had been responsible both for the scheme and for carrying it out and mentioned the name of Councillor R A McCrea as the first to insist upon the Council taking up the question of providing baths in different parts of the borough.

Hope for three baths

They were hoping to get three other baths of a similar nature in different parts of the town and perhaps the central baths in the centre of town.

The mayor referred to the practice of children throwing stones and rubbish over the walls into the pool. He appealed to patents to see that this practice ceased, otherwise the authorities would know what action to take.

Mr H Turner of Chesterfield Swimming Club has been appointed attendant at the baths. Already five clubs have applied and have been granted permission to use the pool.

After the opening, swimming and diving exhibitions were given by PC Trippett, backstroke champion of England (PC Trippett belongs to Sheffield City Police Force), by Mr J Lofty, Midland Counties champion and by Chesterfield Borough Police Force life-saving team.

Baths and Bath Engineering, July 1936

Chesterfield Open Air Swimming Bath

In 1934 the Chesterfield Corporation decided to construct an open-air swimming bath in the Whittington area. The construction was commenced in August 1935 and completed in April 1936. It has been erected in Stand-road Recreation Ground, Whittington Moor.

The site of the bath is on tipped ground, the maximum depth of filling being 5 it. approximately. The area covered by the bath and surround is 125 ft. by 75 ft. and the size of the bath is 75ft. by 25ft. with a capacity of 65,000 gallons. In order to make special provision for children using the bath, the depth at the shallow end is 3 ft. and two sets of steps are arranged at this end to facilitate the children entering the bath. The maximum depth of water is 8ft. with a depth of 6ft. 6 in. adjoining the outlet channel. Four inlets to the bath are arranged at the shallow end and the outlet at the bottom of the bath is placed at a distance of 9ft. from the outlet channel at the deep end. An outlet channel running the full width of the bath at the deep end enables the surface water to be drawn off in conjunction with the water from the outlet at the bottom; independent control is provided.

Situated at the deep end of the bath is a large valve chamber from which a branch is connected to the filter house. Previous, however to this branch there is another branch connected to the scum trough overflow chamber. Thus, at all times the overflow from the scum trough can be carried away into the delivery line to the filter plant.

Purification Plant

The plant comprises one “Unifilter” quick opening strainer box with improved easy- clean strainer grid through which the water passes to a split casing, ball-bearing high  efficiency centrifugal pump, driven by a 6 b.h.p. Crompton Parkinson motor, the suction  and delivery branches of the pump being integral with the lower half of the casing, thus  allowing for examination of the pump without breaking pipe joints. The pumping unit has a substantial margin of reserve so that the plant is capable of delivering its full capacity even after the filters have reached their normal state of dirtiness and require cleansing. Thus, should it be inconvenient to cleanse the filters at that time, the plant is still able to deliver its full capacity until more convenient time for cleansing arrives. Small doses of sulphate of alumina and soda are administered to the water by means of a “Unifilter” shunt type chemical gear indicating the rate of injection of chemical, earthenware chemical containers being used. The water then passes through two 7 ft. diameter “Unifilter” air-cleansed vertical pressure filters fitted with automatic air cleansing device. These filters are of sufficient capacity to deal with the whole capacity of the bath once in four hours.

After leaving the filters, the water passes through a vertical thermostatically controlled “Vesta” gas-fired boiler with a capacity of 500,000 B.th.u.’s and is capable of maintaining the bath at 72 deg. Fahr. It then travels through one self-induction type aerator, giving a final aeration to the water and producing a sparkling appearance on its return to the bath.

A small dose of chlorine is administered to the water previous to the return by means of a pulser type chlorinator. Prior to chlorination a small dose of ammonia is administered to the water in order to promote chloramine treatment.

One improved feature has been added to this plant in connection with the switchgear in that there is fitted on top a Neon light which gives clear indication outside the filter house if the pumping unit is in operation.

General

There are 74 dressing boxes arranged on two sides of the bath and independent showers for both sexes. together with the necessary conveniences. Two footbaths are provided on opposite sides of the bath and the railings surrounding the bath are so arranged as to prevent persons entering the bath without passing through the footbaths.

The diving stage has three fixed diving boards arranged at heights of 6ft. 6in., 9ft. 9in. and 14ft. The bath surround is laid with 2in. concrete flags and a strip 2ft. wide of non- slip tiling adjoining the bath. The borough engineer’s department designed and supervised the construction of the scheme, which cost under £5,000. The borough engineer and surveyor is Mr. W. S. Wilson, M.Inst.M. and Cy.E., M.R.San.I.

Contractors

The general contractors for the construction of the bath were Messrs. G. F. Kirk. Ltd., Chesterfield.

Among the sub-contractors were:

• Filtration plant, United Filters and Engineering, Ltd., London.
• Chlorinator and ammoniator, Wallace and Tiernan, Ltd., London.
• Vesta gas-fired boiler, Autocontrol Boilers, Ltd., London.
• Centrifugal pumping unit, Worthington Simpson, Ltd., Newark-on-Trent.