More funding for historic Grade II-listed baths

A further £1m has been announced as part of the restoration of the Grade II-listed Moseley Road Baths.

The site, in Balsall Heath, Birmingham, opened in 1907, and has been undergoing transformation work for a number of years, with the aim of reopening it to the public.

This new funding, from the West Midlands Combined Authority, will pay for the installation of air source heat pumps so that the building will be cheaper to run upon its reopening.

The baths are an iconic venue - containing original fixtures and fittings including 46 private washing rooms, original oak ticket offices and kiosks, and a three-sided spectator gallery with balconettes in the Gala pool, according to the National Trust.

Mayor Richard Parker, who chairs the WMCA, said: "Moseley Road Baths is a real Birmingham icon, and it's now closer than ever to reopening to the public because local people never gave up on it."

"I'm proud to back them with the funding needed to make the baths more sustainable and to keep energy bills down.

"This is the first of many investments I'm making to secure the long-term future of valued public buildings that provide important services to our communities. For Moseley Road Baths, that means keeping the pools warm and the doors open for many more generations of Brummies to enjoy."

The baths are currently looked after by Moseley Road Baths CIO, a charitable organisation formed in 2018.

Phase one of works, which began in September 2025, is currently underway, which the charity said was fully funded by the government's levelling up fund, Birmingham City Council, Historic England and the World Monuments Fund.

This phase is for the most urgent repairs, as well as a new cafe and gym space.

The charity also recently confirmed that phase two of the restoration was fully-funded - after receiving a grant of more than £9.2m from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

According to its website, phase two will "effectively remove Moseley Road Bath's at risk status".

The work includes a full restoration of the Gala Pool, including a restored mezzanine gallery and a new accessible ground-floor public viewing area, as well as the conversion of the site's second pool into a flexible event space.

The Women's Slipper Baths will be turned into a community health and wellbeing hub, while the Men's Second Class Slipper Baths will become a community gym.

There will also be development of the boiler room to become a flexible studio space.

New accessibility features will include poolside and dryside changing places, lift and ramp access and wheelchair-accessible changing and viewing areas.

Alongside phase two, there will be a creative programme of public engagement, according to the WMCA.

This will include hard-hat tours, activities and events, which will take place across Balsall Heath and the nearby library, which is also being transformed.

This will happen throughout construction and in the lead-up to the opening of the baths, which is hoped to be in late 2028.

WMCA said this programme would include employment and training opportunities for people living in the area.

"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 the 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.

"We're hugely grateful to everyone who has played their part in making this happen, and to the swimmers who supported us along the way."

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