Beyond Brighton
Saltdean Lido: the back story
Grade II* listed
Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © Oast House Archive · CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia CommonsAbout Saltdean Lido: the back story
Saltdean Lido, designed by the architect Richard William Herbert Jones and opened in 1938, is a Grade II* listed Streamlined Moderne lido on the coast east of Brighton. Residents set up the Save Saltdean Lido campaign in March 2010; Saltdean Lido CIC won the council’s tender for the lease in 2013 and signed it in 2020, and has restored the pool to a single tank.
Of all the buildings on this coast, few make people smile like Saltdean Lido. Its curves, long windows and crescent-shaped pool look like a liner that has come ashore.
A 1930s icon
The lido was commissioned by the entrepreneur Charles Neville and designed by the London architect Richard W. H. Jones in a Streamlined Moderne style; it opened in 1938. The crescent-shaped pool measures 140 by 66 feet, surrounded by sunbathing lawns, and the walls were built of reinforced concrete only five to six inches thick. In 2018, English Heritage named it one of the Seven Wonders of the English Seaside.
Swim, then take coffee and a book in The Reading Room.
Saved by its community
The council extended the building in 1963. In 1997 the pool was divided in two and half of it filled in. In March 2010, residents set up the Save Saltdean Lido Campaign; in 2011 the building was upgraded to Grade II*; in 2013 Saltdean Lido CIC won the tender for the lease, which was finally signed in 2020. In its first phase of restoration, the CIC reinstated the single pool. The building remains on the Heritage at Risk Register, with more to do.
Swimming today
Today the lido offers swimming, a gym, classes and a sauna, The Reading Room for food and drink, a library, and building tours. Check its site for the pool season and opening times.
Our advice: take the bus or the Undercliff Walk east from Brighton Marina to Rottingdean, then carry on along the coast to Saltdean.
Why it's on our list
- A 1930s icon
- Saved by its community
- Swimming today
Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Saltdean Lido: the back story before you go.
What’s nearby
Distances from Saltdean Lido: the back story are approximate, measured in a straight line (as the crow flies). Times are approximate too: walking at about 80 metres a minute, cycling at about 15 km/h and driving at typical city-traffic speeds. Traffic and routes vary.
Key sights
- Palace Pier4.3 miCycle 28 minCar or taxi 23 min
- Royal Pavilion4.4 miCycle 28 minCar or taxi 23 min
- Brighton Dome4.5 miCycle 29 minCar or taxi 24 min
- The Lanes4.5 miCycle 29 minCar or taxi 24 min
- The North Laine4.5 miCycle 29 minCar or taxi 24 min
- Brighton i3604.9 miCycle 32 minCar or taxi 26 min
- Hove Lawns5.6 miCycle 36 minCar or taxi 28 min
- Preston Park5.8 miCycle 37 minCar or taxi 30 min
Railway stations
- Brighton station4.7 miCycle 30 minCar or taxi 25 min
- London Road (Brighton) station4.8 miCycle 31 minCar or taxi 25 min
- Preston Park station5.8 miCycle 37 minCar or taxi 30 min
- Hove station6.1 miCycle 39 minCar or taxi 31 min