Category: What’s On

What’s happening in Stirchley Baths

What should the Stirchley Baths community hub be called?

As you’re hopefully aware by now, the vision for Stirchley Baths is to transform the building into a community hub with meeting rooms, community spaces, hall, cinema and more (you can have a look at the plans – which were granted planning permission last week – HERE).

The term ‘community hub’, however, is only a working title and doesn’t say anything about the building’s heritage or history.

So what should it be called when – if the Heritage Lottery Fund bid is successful – the new facility opens in October/November 2014?

We posed this very question on Twitter and Facebook recently and got these ideas:

Stirchley Baths Centre (@edsmyth76 on Twitter)

Community Life Centre (@Clueless_Morgan)

Stirchley Community Centre (@Stirchleyonline)

The Plug (!) – from Graeme Rose on Facebook

Someone on Twitter suggested – in the spirit of positivity and with a nod to the building’s aquatic heritage – The Half Full!

What do you think the community hub should be called? 

Send an email to stirchleybaths@gmail.com, pop it on our Facebook page here or tell us on Twitter using @stirchleybaths or #stirchleybaths. Or you can leave a comment on the website too.

Jean Wyatt: Dancing at Stirchley Baths in the 1950s

Jean Wyatt

Jean Wyatt went dancing at Stirchley Baths in the 1950s when the swimming pool was covered with boards – a great example of the building’s multiple uses in its history.

“You couldn’t believe you were dancing on top of all that water,” she says.

listen to ‘Jean Wyatt on dancing at Stirchley Baths’ on audioBoom

Ken Seeney: Memories of Stirchley Baths

Ken Seeney

We met so many people at the Splash Back In Time event at Stirchley Community Centre yesterday and we have so many stories to share.

Thanks to everyone who came along to talk about Stirchley Baths and their experiences of using it – for swimming, having a bath, dancing, having a massage and more.

We’ll share all of the interviews on the site over the next week or so, starting with Ken Seeney (pictured above) who used to go dancing at Stirchley Baths with his girlfriend. He also caught the bus from his workplace in his lunchtimes to have a dip and cool off!

listen to ‘Ken Seeney talks about cooling off at Stirchley Baths’ on audioBoom

More photos of Stirchley Baths – thanks to Brenda Thomas

You can see the stained glass diamond windows
You can see the stained glass diamond windows

Thanks to Brenda Thomas for these great pictures of Stirchley Baths. Brenda is in charge of the photographic archive of Stirchley Community Group and is uncovering some wonderful snapshots of the building’s history. We hope to share more with you soon.

If any of these pictures trigger stories or memories, please get in touch! Email stirchleybaths@gmail.com – use our Facebook page here or tell us about them on Twitter using @stirchleybaths or #stirchleybaths

The deep end and the palm tree mural
The deep end and the palm tree mural

boiler Co. Stirchley Baths groupDen Jones Band Co. Stirchley Community Group

During the winter months in the 1940s, the swimming pool at Stirchley Baths was boarded over to create a dance floor and bands used to play. More photographs HERE.

Do you know what this building was used for? Brenda believes it was to store the wooden dance floor boards
Do you know what this building was used for? Brenda believes it was to store the wooden dance floor boards