A Visit to Moseley Road Baths – Joe’s update #2

Joe Holyoak has written an update for us from the Baths and also has been leading tours of the Baths as part of Balsall Heath Community Festival #BHCFest – Initially tours were offered to neighbours, stakeholders and local charitable friends. For our our festival we had limited free bookings for members of the public, which were fully booked within 24 hours of us putting out the message.

We are very grateful to Joe, volunteers and staff at the Baths who made this possible – keep an eye on the Heathan for the next opportunity to visit – we’re hoping this will be in Heritage Week in September.

‘We are very keen that those on the doorstep get priority access.’

Simon Piaia, Project Manager

Report from Joe

As of 13th July, we are now in Week 46 of the 80 weeks of the Phase 1 contract, and all is going successfully.

Buildings Connected

You can’t see it from outside in the street, but for the first time ever, the two buildings are now connected. You can walk from one to the other through a new opening. This was one of the first things that the contractor Galliford Try did, in order to enable access to the library internally from the compound at the back. The decision to join the two buildings together was a bit controversial, but it was decided to do it because when the contractor hands over the completed buildings at the end of the contract,
they will constitute a single community resource. The library floor is a bit lower than that of the baths, so a ramp is necessary to connect the two.

Mixing Jacobean and Flemish Renaissance

Because they are built in a similar style (described as a mixture of Jacobean and Flemish Renaissance), and use the same external materials, red brick and buff terracotta, the two buildings are often mistakenly read as a single building. Historic England, which is responsible for their listing as architecturally significant buildings, contributes to this confusion by listing them together as one building. But they were designed at different times, by different architects. The library, designed by Cossins and Peacock, opened in 1896. It is therefore Victorian. The baths were designed by William Hale and Son. Because of the years spent drilling a well in order to find water, the baths did not open until 1907. They are therefore Edwardian. As I wrote in the first progress update, most of the work in Phase 1 is targeted at the library. That now has a lovely new Westmorland slate roof.

Library to open soon!

The library will reopen in 2027, with a new mezzanine floor added. This now under construction, with the steel structure in place. The connection to the baths will not then be in public use: that will have to wait until work on the baths is completed in Phase 2.

Joe Holyoak

Keep in Contact with Friends of Moseley Road Baths