Campaigners' joy as Hilsea Lido is saved following £3.5m windfall in chancellor's Budget

This massive cash windfall was announced by chancellor Rishi Sunak as part of his autumn budget, which will see £20m being invested into ‘levelling up’ Portsmouth.

The money will finally fund long-awaited upgrades for the pool, breathing new lift into the venue, which first opened in July 1935.

Helen Downing-Emms, vice chairman of the Hilsea Lido Pool for the People Trust which runs the sporting facility, was overwhelmed by the news.

She said: ‘We were expecting to hear something but we didn't know what we would hear because we have been let down so many times in the past. We didn’t get too excited.

'We have spent 14 years on a knife's edge, never knowing one day to the next whether we will survive.

'It’s been a huge commitment from a small number of volunteers to ensure its survival. But it’s survival has been a day to day matter.

'Now we can say with confidence that we have saved Hilsea Lido. When I say that it makes me feel quite emotional. It has been a huge journey and has been incredibly difficult.’.

The Lido will be refurbished to include new changing facilities, integrated children's water play, terracing and spectator areas and events space, including the ability to function as a community hub, enabling community-centred style activities in a unique natural environment.

The overhaul will form the centrepiece of Portsmouth’s new £8.75m plan to create the UK’s longest urban park, connecting the west of the city to the eastern edge, with enhanced cycling and walking facilities.

As part of the plan, a further £1.5m is expected to be given to upgrade the Blue Lagoon venue next to the Lido.

Helen added plans to upgrade the Lido were already underway but said the project was complicated.

‘The Lido has suffered underinvestment for decades,’ she added. ‘We still don’t know about the infrastructure.

‘We know that the plant room works but we don’t know for how much longer... There’s an awful lot of work that will need to go on.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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