Holywell Mead Pool

People have been enjoying water and swimming on the Holywell Mead Swimming Pool site on The Rye in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, since 150AD.

The Romans built a villa on The Rye which was in use for more than 200 years. The villa was a large building about 30 metres wide. It had the traditional Roman-invented under floor heating system called a hypocaust, painted frescoes on the walls and mosaic floors. It also had a huge bath house with pools and a sauna.

Remains of the Roman villa can be seen at the Holywell Mead Swimming Pool which is under threat of closure. The decorative panels either side of the pool entrance are original Roman walling recovered from the site.

The Holywell Mead Swimming Pool is situated on The Rye, a beautiful area of parkland stretching across 22 hectares and just a short walk from the town centre. The original layout of The Rye was conceived by Lancelot “Capability” Brown with later improvements by Humphry Repton.

The Holywell Mead Swimming Pool was opened on June 1 1957 and based on a 1930s design. It was the only swimming pool in High Wycombe until 1975 when the pool at the Handy Cross Sports Centre at Handy Cross, High Wycombe, was built.

However, the Holywell Mead Swimming Pool is the only pool offering outdoor swimming in the town and is also the only pool which is accessible by foot or sustainable transport from the town centre “on the flat”.