We’re here with a little interview with the newest Director of Yorkshire Swim Works Russell Bowman and let’s start with a short introduction:

Russell lives in Shipley and is excited to take on the role of Director of Swim Works.  He brings over 20 years experience appraising sites and investigating ground conditions to support the design of public and private developments. Russell loves the outdoors and maps and it was this combination that led him to discover, and propose the new site for Yorkshire Swim Works.

We asked, Russell responded:

Everyone wants to know, how on earth did you know about the Kettlewell Reservoir?

I’ve been shocked by how many people didn’t know about it! I suppose it shows just how hidden away it is on the estate. I’ve explored almost every inch of the Estate for cycling, walking, climbing and it was through cycling that it first appeared on my horizon. There is an amazing photo somewhere of somebody cycling around it like a velodrome and if anybody can track that down we’d love to have access to it.

What excited you about the project that you have agreed to become a Director?

I love the outdoors, exploring, being in nature and the vision to repurpose a redundant reservoir and turn it into an enormous asset so close to my home just feeds into so many things I believe in. Access to nature, the community feeling, the energy of the other volunteers and the willingness to get things done whilst others talk were all big motivations. 

What impact do you believe Yorkshire Swim Works can have to Bingley and the wider area?

It’s huge isn’t it. Ambitious is the word that I’ve heard a lot!

The benefits of swimming and in particular outdoor swimming are now well proven. The boost it gives to mental and physical health and its ability to create social cohesion are documented and building something of this scale that sits so naturally in the environment is a project that deserves support.

With a young family myself, seeing investment in the area, new opportunities for them and the potential economic boost of tourists coming to the area fills me with excitement.

I believe that YSW can be (we’re all using this word sorry!) a catalyst for the next stage in Bingley’s evolution and an incredible boost to the St Ives Estate that has struggled in recent times.

Your skills have already been put to good use in the project…

Yes. On meeting with the founders of YSW I offered to conduct a preliminary geological survey on the site to understand a bit more about the feasibility of the project. I’ve also been lucky enough to build a local network over the last 20 years of specialists who we have persuaded  to offer free advice and those people deserve enormous credit and thanks for the work they have provided at no cost to the organisation. I’m hopeful I can continue to contribute in meaningful ways.

Any parting words?

I’d just ask everyone to listen and judge the people behind this for yourselves. I’ve been blown away by the energy, enthusiasm and skillset of those involved so far and their focus is purely on how to make their own community better. 

But most of all I’d say “it’s ok to be excited!”

Thank you Russell and welcome to the team.

 

We’re delighted to share some superb news with you

Yorkshire Swim Works have been awarded a £10,000 grant to help us to become social-investment ready!

This has been made possible through the incredible Local Access Programme for the Bradford District run by Impact Hub Bradford and administered by Leeds Community Foundation.

We feel a huge step closer to achieving the dream of building an incredible outdoor swimming experience and future cultural asset for our wonderful region.

The grant will support our core working group to deliver the following over the next 6 months

• site search & light touch analysis
• light touch community and stakeholder engagement
• early stage concept designs
• development of a flexible business plan

Project update

Since our ‘mission to find a site’ started last Autumn, we have identified a few options through our engagement with Bradford and Calderdale Councils. Yorkshire Swim Works supporters have also come forward with some great ideas too.

Several amazing volunteers have offered their skills with specialisms across geotechnicals, civil engineering, water infrastructure, travel planning and environmental sustainability. We are very fortunate, and can’t thank these wonderful people enough!

We’re also very grateful to Participate Projects @ParticipateProjects who are continuing to support our project. They’re helping us to unlock further grant funding, and searching for pro-bono Planning & Heritage consultants and Quantity Surveyors to boost our core working group.

As some of you may know, Yorkshire Swim Works was seeded in 2020. The ambition is to create a community hub of outdoor activity with the central focus of an open air natural swimming pool. Eco-lodges will provide financial sustainability, and there will be learning and wellness facilities for everyone.

The original site (the former Thornton Moor Water Treatment Works) was sadly sold at Auction in the summer of 2023, and we’re now looking for an even better location.

We’ve looked at some sites already, and are beginning to develop the brief: 

Essentials

• Scope to become a community focused hub of outdoor swimming and outdoor activity, learning and wellness
• Scope for an eco-lodge retreat (this will be the financial thrust behind the facility) 
• Approx size 5-7 acres
• Located in Calderdale or Bradford District
• Accessible by car, construction vehicle
• Attractive to tourists – a lovely view for example, or has an existing usual feature
• Not on a flood plain

Considerations

• On an existing public transport route, or scope to create one
• On existing confluence of cycling & walking routes
• Existing body of water (not essential)
• Has industrial heritage – former quarry, mill site
• Will promote biodiversity
• Can be owned by the community
• Budget – we were prepared to purchase the former Water Treatment Works for £160k, the financial modelling worked at this level.
• Greenbelt?
• Heritage status?
• Negotiable access if across third party land

Council support is crucial

We are meeting with Bradford Council and Calderdale Council in October 2023 to explore:

• their stance on sustainable development on greenbelt (we think some of the best potential sites will have this status)
• continued support to make Yorkshire Swim Works happen for the benefit our combined communities
• suitable Council owned assets that we could secure as a community

Please get involved

We’d love nothing more than to involve our wonderful community in helping to find a new site.

You all know your local area far better than we do, so please don yer thinking caps. Have you seen any opportunities? Would you like Yorkshire Swim Works located near you? Please continue to forward ideas.

If you think you bring practical and useful support during this stage of site identification and analysis, and would like to join our working group of two, or simply undertake some directed work, please contact us. 

P.S. Thanks as ever to the wonderful PlanIT Design Practise for their involvement and collation of these images

Thanks and a quick look back

As founder of Yorkshire Swim Works, I’m writing to say a huge thanks to every single person who has supported and been involved in the journey so far. I’ve been so inspired by the desire for this ambitious project to happen, and have met so many fabulous folk, and now I fully intend to start a new chapter and bring this project to life to serve and inspire the communities of our region.

3 years ago, I stood in one of four large basins of the abandoned water treatment works, built in the Victorian times to filter water from Thornton Moor reservoir. I couldn’t stop thinking about how incredible it would be to re-purpose them into a unique outdoor swimming experience, where the water was clear, and filtered naturally (rather than with damaging chemicals).

Exploring and galvanising support

I took the project to Bradford Council who were excited at the prospect of supporting this aspirational but all-inclusive public amenity – it chimes with the strategic plan of Bradford Council, and they think it will be a brilliant addition to Ilkley Lido, offering more safe spaces for people to benefit from swimming outdoors.

They funded a piece of research that enabled us to explore the project in greater depth and galvanise support. Over 6 months, an intense body of work culminated in detailed findings that highlighted how Yorkshire Swim Works would have positive impact for peoples health & wellbeing, the rural economy, education, culture and more.

Although Bradford sadly are not currently in a financial position to build Yorkshire Swim Works, we wholeheartedly believe any funding for Yorkshire Swim Works that comes from Central Government via Bradford would be incredibly well spent. We also think the protection of the correct site as a community asset is critical.

Just when we were ready to buy, the site sold at Auction

Yorkshire Swim Works became a Community Interest Company in January, and Nick Stuart joined the journey bringing a commercial and fundraising focus to the project. He wants somewhere amazing for his daughter to be able to use when she grows up. With his time and expertise (all on a voluntary basis too) we devised a funding strategy involving a community share raise to purchase the site from Yorkshire Water.

Sadly, due to a classic case of community and commercial misalignment, and despite our monumental effort during a 10 day emergency crowdfund, the site was sold at Auction on 12 July 2023. The private buyer intends to build a couple of large houses for his family on the site.

Although unbelievably disappointed (I think I cried for 2 days), we’ve rallied over the Summer, and actually count ourselves lucky. We have a delightfully engaged community of potential users, an incredibly strong network of specialists who have helped to steer and guide the project (including the wonderful Future Lidos), a very good idea of how to strategically fund the project, some interested investors, buckets of determination, and a willingness to find a new site.

The search continues

We’re still talking with Bradford Council, and we’d love nothing more than to involve our wonderful community in helping to find a new site. We’re now on a mission to raise £10,000 to facilitate this new and exciting chapter. Over a period of a few months, this money will enable us to

• carry out new site research
• produce light touch design concepts
• continue to engage and build our community and wider stakeholders
• create a stronger working group with those who have offered their help so far
• develop a flexible business plan & funding strategy

We’re looking at various funding options and grant pots, and would also like to ask you, our wonderful community, to support this essential stage of research, please. 

Watch this space!