The grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund for the restoration of Moseley Road Baths Gala Pool in Birmingham, which closed a decade ago, will ensure its future as one of only a handful of Grade II-listed swimming baths operating in the UK.

The Gala Pool forms part of the second phase of the Moseley Road redevelopment in Balsall Heath, a deprived part of inner Birmingham. Other elements include a new wellbeing hub, gym and studio space.

Phase 1, which started in September 2025, is focused on the restoration of roofs and making the building watertight, as well as the restoration of Balsall Heath Library.

The award Heritage Fund award completes a £16 million funding package for Phase 2 that also saw major support from Birmingham City Council (£5.1 million).

Another £970,000 of funding for Phase 2 came from the West Midlands Combined Authority’s public sector decarbonistation fund. There was also funding of £250,000 from the Architectural Heritage Fund.

The buildings, which previously ran on gas, will be powered by air source heat pumps.

The new library will be completed in six months, while the gala pool is set to open in 2028. A second pool is being turned into a venue space, which will generate income for the site.

Matthew Vaughan, practice director, at Donald Insall Associates, said the pool has had to be relined to make it shallower and safe for people learning to swim: ‘Everyone in the area says they learnt to swim at Moseley Road Baths and the irony is it wasn’t actually safe to.

‘That will now change with the minimum depth of the pool falling from 1.8m to 0.9m in a pool that will be 23.5m long.’

He added: ‘It’s a really exciting project – a retrofit of two buildings and a complete decarbonisation.

‘It’s such a well-loved community pool. It’s very rare these things happen and it’s in one of the most deprived wards in the country, so it’s really a good news story.’

Local campaigners welcomed the news: ‘For more than two decades our community has fought to keep Moseley Road Baths open and to secure its future,’ said Joe Holyoak, chair of Friends of Moseley Road Baths.

‘We will swim in the Gala Pool again and this magnificent building will be a home for our community for generations to come.’

‘Moseley Road Baths is one of the most outstanding historic pools in the UK,’ said Liz Bates, director for England, Midlands & East at the National Lottery Heritage Fund. ‘We are pleased to bring its iconic Gala Pool back into public use and create a community health and wellbeing hub at its heart.’