Until now Jubilee Pool has opened for the summer season from May-September. That has impacted on our ability to raise money all-year round, and has meant the pool struggles to be truly sustainable.
To change that, a 1.8 kilometre-deep well is being drilled next to the Pool which will geothermally heat water to 35 degrees and enable us to provide warm water swimming in part of the pool. That will enable us to open all year and make the Pool more attractive to visitors, local people and tourists alike.
This will cost us £1.8m in total to connect the well to the pool, as well as double the size of the cafe and creating community space.
To fund this, we've applied for various grants, but need at least £350,000 in this community share issue.
Jubilee Pool is widely considered to be the best example of a pre-war Lido in the world. It’s a remarkable facility providing safe seawater bathing for all ages; a unique modernist building of international architectural importance; a tourist attraction in its own right; and now, it’s set to provide a catalyst for the future economic regeneration of Penzance.
As a listed building in a seaside location, Jubilee Pool will always require ongoing investment. But we believe the Pool is capable of becoming less reliant on public funding. With over 40,000 visitors last summer, it’s already a successful visitor attraction with or without geothermal. However, once it becomes an all-year-round attraction, it will pay for itself.
But we can’t deliver this project without your help. So please consider investing in our project. Whether it’s a single share or 1000 shares, together we can all share in the Pool’s exciting future.
- The minimum investment is 20 £1 shares for Cornwall residents and 50 £1 shares for everyone else.
- You can invest an amount of your choice above the minimum investment by clicking to add more on the Crowdfunder payment page and selecting the option 'Other'.
- Shares are being sold in £10 blocks. So, if you wanted to invest more than £50, but less than the next reward at £150, you could invest any sum between £60 and £140 - £60, £70, £80 etc.
- Everyone investing gets 30% tax relief on their investment (if they're a UK taxpayer) as well as a say in the future direction and strategy of the pool and the chance to stand for the Board.
- The main benefit is that the Pool will become sustainable, earning money 12 months of the year and breaking the reliance on the weather. With warm water, not only will it become more useful to the people who live nearby outside the summer months, but will also be much less vulnerable to the impact of cloudy or chilly days in the summer season too.
- The greater revenues we’ll gain from having facilities which are not seasonally dependent mean we will support more full time permanent and part-time jobs in the local area.
- We’ll also be offering a discount of 20% off the entry price to people living in Penzance itself, and special free-to-use sessions targeted at young people, the elderly, disabled, disadvantaged and people living in Penzance’s most deprived areas.
- By demonstrating the power of geothermal energy, we’ll be showcasing just how useful this source of energy is, and given Cornwall is uniquely placed to exploit geothermal due to the county’s geology, we’d hope that other organisations would follow suit and start drilling for renewable heat too.
- And we’ll also create spill-over benefits to the wider economy. With a 35% increase in visitor numbers projected by the end of 2021, many of those people will stay locally and support other local businesses.
Jubilee Pool Penzance is a charitable Community Benefit Society and has grown out of the Friends of Jubilee Pool, created to become the organisation that owns and operates the Pool on a 99 year lease from Cornwall Council.
We took over the operation of the pool in 2017, and oversaw a very successful summer season which saw 40,000 visitors to Jubilee Pool. In June 2017, we also fully refurbished and took over the Café at the Pool. We have run this profitably and with fantastic feedback and reviews over the last year.
We have a Board of directors appoint the staff who run the Pool on a day-to-day basis and have oversight of their work. Details about them and about your democratic rights as an owner are in the Share Offer Document.
What the community facility will look like after the upgrade
Community shares are withdrawable shares that cannot be sold, traded or transferred between Members, unlike shares in a typical company. All Members are entitled to one vote – regardless of how many shares they hold.
Members can be paid interest on their shares if the Board believe it would be sensible to do so, and can also withdraw their shareholding (in effect, have it bought back by the society), along with any interest accrued if they have invested over £7,500, subject to the approval of the board.
Investors can also claim tax relief on their shares, provided they are eligible UK income taxpayers.
The rights and responsibilities of members are detailed in the Share Offer Document and the Rules of the Society, which you are advised to read before committing to invest. You can also read the society's business plan for the geothermally-heated pool below.
The Community Shares Standard Mark is awarded by the Community Shares Unit to offers that meet national standards of good practice. For more information about community shares, the Community Shares Standard Mark and the Community Shares Unit go to www.communityshares.org.uk
