A huge outdoor swimming pool is due to open to the public in Yorkshire next summer, just over an hour away from Leeds.
After being shut for 25 years, the long-empty Albert Avenue Pools lido in Hull is set to be given a new lease of life ready for summer 2023.
A planned £4million upgrade to the site that houses the open-air swimming pool will see the addition of a new gym and fitness studio, as well as an update to the current building's infrastructure.
A grassy picnic area is also planned for the site alongside the refurbished, elevated outdoor pool, which will be surrounded by sun loungers, umbrellas and tables.
Further CGis provided by the architects behind the project also show a dedicated child's water play area with fountains shooting out from the ground.
The refurbishment follows that of another popular swimming pool in Hull, the recently-restored Edwardian Beverley Road Baths.
First opened in 1905, it was closed since June 2020 whilst work was underway. The pool then reopened in summer 2021 following a £3.75m overhaul that saw a new roof and refurbished windows installed at the Grade-II listed site.
Evidently, the council is putting a lot of money into restoring these public facilities - and, according to Councillor Daren Hale, the Leader of Hull City Council, this new project is the 'final piece' of the puzzle.
Speaking on the project Councillor Daren Hale, Leader of Hull City Council, said: “It’s fantastic to see this project get underway – the final piece in our city-wide leisure investment puzzle.
"The jewel in the crown being the new lido which I already know will attract visitors from across the region.
“Facilities like lidos are often something people think are the preserve of the middle class, this area has 60% of homes that are technically classed as being within a deprivation category.
"People in west Hull will have a fantastic international standard facility on their doorstep once the project is completed, it will be a short walk or bus ride for so many families.
“I’m really excited to see the lido completed in the summer of 203 and I’m sure it’ll be an attraction for the whole of Hull.”
General Manager, of Hull Esteem, Gavin Barley added: “Getting the green-light on such a multi-faceted project to transform Albert Avenue Pools is a huge deal for all parties involved and we’re delighted to be working with Hobson and Porter once again to improve an important leisure facility for the community.
“Forming part of Hull City Council’s £18.5 million investment into leisure facilities across the city, it will not only be a massive benefit to the local area once complete, but we’re sure it will become an attraction for those visiting our city.”
The Albert Avenue Pools is closed for refurbishment and will reopen in spring 2023 once work has been completed.
Feature image - Hodson Architects
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Sheffield’s Peddler Market to relaunch as FREE monthly mini music festival
Peddler’s 13th year marks a bold new direction for the free monthly event.
Peddler Market began its life 12 years ago as a street food night market with a sprinkling of live music and DJs.
Now that they're synonymous with bringing some of the best street food the UK has to offer to Sheffield, the organisers are now heading in a new direction.
Peddler will now offer a five-stage monthly music festival, spread across their Kelham Island footprint - maintaining its ‘free entry’ ethos for customers.
Image: Supplied
But don't worry, food will still be a key component all whilst increasing their to platform some of the best local promoters, record shops, DJs and bands across Sheffield.
But now, they're bringing five stages to Peddler, working with some of the best up and coming and well established promoters in and across the city.
“Twelve years ago, we filled a gap that Sheffield really needed,” Jordan Roberts - owner, says. “Since then, it’s nourished this huge gastronomic change within the city. Now there’s food halls and street food everywhere, which is great because people have choice – at peddler amazing street food is a given but now you can expect much more”
Image: Supplied
"I wanted to create a labyrinth of exploration like that you find at a proper festival, tread the zones, sample the delights and find your vibe. It’s like a little mini festival,” Jordan says.
“With Tramlines and We Out Here being huge inspiration for the next gen development. There’s a car park stage, the inside main stage, a courtyard stage, the factory floor and activities happening in the basement underneath too,” Jordan explains. “Bands, DJs, the whole thing.”
Image: Supplied
“We’ve always been a street food event with two music stages,” he explains. “Now we’re excited to bring five stages, working with some of the best up and coming and well established promoters in and across the city. After more than 100 Peddler Markets where we’ve always hosted a free entry gig.
"We’ll still host our street food partners, who love seeing all the Sheffield foodies. However, the changing music line up will help you ‘save the date’ making each month even more unmissable”
The first edition of the reformatted Peddler lands on the usual first Friday and Saturday of the month on 5-6 June and promises a sprawling, multi-space experience inspired as much by classic city festivals as warehouse parties and independent culture.
Plans have been revealed for ‘Sheffield’s smallest cinema’, plus record shop and gallery space
Clementine Hall
Sheffield based curator and archivist Alex Wilson is taking over a refurbished Victorian unit down the historic Chapel Walk.
The space will be transformed into a record shop, gallery space and micro cinema dubbed 'Sheffield's Smallest Cinema'.
The space will be rooted in, and be a champion of, Sheffield/Yorkshire/Northern cultural heritage; focusing specifically on sound, moving image, design and photography.
Titled 'Memory Dance', the opening exhibition, WE'LL MISS THEM WHEN THEY'RE GONE, will reboot a popular display held on The Moor, Sheffield back in 2012.
Images: Supplied
The exhibition will explore the history of record shops in the city, from Bradleys to Virgins, and includes original 78 RPM sleeves, old and new record shop bags, related ephemera from lost Sheffield vinyl retailers, alongside prints by designer Simon Robinson responding to the imagery of these old sleeves.
They're also asking the Sheffield community to come down with anything relating to the history of Sheffield record shops and if suitable, Memory Dance can scan the items on site and hand back a digital file. Or, they can hang them in the venue for the duration of the exhibition.
The ground floor will also open its racks for the first time to a curated selection of used vinyl for sale drawn from some of the best collections the city has to offer, with a real focus on Sheffield artists and labels past/present to carry the legacy forward.
At the end of June, the walls will be refreshed for the first ever exhibition telling the amazing story of 'SHEFFIELD CABLEVISION TV (1972-76)'.
With newly printed photography from surviving staff members and crew, plus archive artefacts and merchandise, the Memory Dance micro cinema space will also be launched with an exclusive, rarely seen collection of Cablevision TV Station archive video.
Memory Dance at Chapel Walk will soft launch on 05.06.26, and you can find out more here.
Georgina Pellant -
24th March 2022 
