We have started a formal consultation process with our staff, which is ongoing. 

We will be pausing the majority of our volunteering when the building closes – our team will be in contact with all of our volunteers over the summer. We are enormously grateful to all of our staff and volunteers for their vital contribution in ensuring the Baths remain open up until 2 October 2023 for swimming and other activities.

We are very grateful to the Government’s Levelling Up Fund (£15.5m) and Birmingham City Council (£3m), whose support has enabled this next phase of work to fully restore and and protect Moseley Road Baths and Balsall Heath Library, now and for future generations. 

We’re getting there! Thanks to community campaigning over more than a decade – initiated by the Friends of Moseley Road baths – combined with the collective action of our ‘coalition’ (Moseley Road Baths CIO, Birmingham City Council, the Friends of Moseley Road Baths, Historic England, World Monuments Fund, led by the National Trust), a significant amount of progress has been made. We are in the process of securing funding for the final stage of work, which will see the building fully restored, including the return of swimming to the Gala Pool. 

If you would like to donate in support of the project, please email divingin@moseleyroadbaths.org.uk 

YES! As part of the building works, our unreliable steam boilers will be replaced with an air source heat pump that will heat both the swimming pool and the building. Air source heat pumps are a form of green renewable energy that have been proven to work well in a number of other historic pool sites. Along with the introduction of the air source heat pump, we will also improve building insulation to retain heat where needed.

Due to the complexity of works and current funding constraints, we have broken the project into two distinct phases of building construction work. 

Phase One (now until Spring 2025)

• Major roof repairs
• Remodelling of the library; introducing a mezzanine floor which will double the space for library users
• Install of new renewable air source heat pump that will replace the steam boilers that heat the pools and both the baths and library buildings
• Introduction of a Café in the second class slipper baths which will be remodelled
• Reinforcement works to the basement
• Install of level access ramps to the front of both buildings

Phase Two (dates tbc)

• Restore swimming to the Gala Pool
• Convert Pool 2 to a permanent dedicated event space with a catering finishing kitchen 
• Introduce a Wellbeing Hub in the Women’s Slipper Baths
• Introduce a Gym in the Laundry Room which will be opened to the public for the first time (outside of tours)
• Creation of a community garden landscape at the rear of the baths

Please note these Phase Two works are subject to us securing further funding which we are currently working hard to achieve. 

Yes – it’s really important that we create a fully accessible building, both physically, and in terms of the activities that we are able to offer in the future. The restored Baths will include:

• New permanent level access ramps to the front of the Baths and Library 
• Introduction of three lifts; two in the baths and one to the new mezzanine level in the library to enable full access to all levels of the buildings
• Resurfacing/level access at the rear of the baths
• Introduction of increased accessible toilet provision, along with two dedicated Changing Places facilities
• Dedicated pool pod equipment to allow for safe access into the water for swimmers 

Yes – very much so. The project includes measures to improve the energy usage and environmental credentials of the baths and library where we can appropriately accommodate this in a Grade II* Listed building. Some of the key interventions we are planning to make include:

• Replacing the gas powered steam boilers with an air source heat pump that will reliably heat the building and the pools
• Introduction of a mechanically ventilated heat recovery system that recirculates air through the building, retaining heat where appropriate
• Secondary glazing on some windows where appropriate
• Improving insulation to roofs and renewal of roof finishes to reduce heat loss
• Using low energy lighting throughout the buildings

The total project (phases 1 and 2 combined) is expected to cost £32.7million. This includes full restoration of Moseley Road Baths, and improvements to Balsall Heath Library. 

This figure reflects the complex nature of the works, the amount of historic building fabric that needs to be carefully conserved or restored, and a desire to make all parts of the building fit for modern usage, in order to create a sustainable operation into the future. 

Funding for the project has so far been received from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund, Birmingham City Council, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Historic England, the World Monuments Fund and the National Trust.

Together, the Baths and Library are a vital part of Balsall Heath life, serving a brilliant local community, and bringing people together in safe, welcoming spaces that offer activities that benefit health and wellbeing. Their Grade II* listing means that they are among the most important historic buildings in Birmingham, with international significance. We want them to be spaces that local people and the whole city can be proud of. 

The design team, responsible for drawing up building plans, is led by Donald Insall architects. The project team also includes Mace Ltd (Project Management services); Max Fordham (Mechanical and Electrical Engineers); Artelia (Quantity Surveyor); Mann Williams (Structural Engineers).

Please keep an eye out on the Moseley Road Baths website for further information, as well as onsite posters and notice boards. We also regularly post on

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If you have a specific question that’s not been covered here, please feel free to write to Hilan Gully, Senior Project Coordinator at Divingin@moseleyroadbaths.org.uk