London Fields Lido: ‘Substandard finish’ means pool remains closed

London Fields Lido. Photograph: Peter Smith (Wikicommons)

An “incredibly frustrated” Hackney Council has announced that London Fields Lido will remain closed until contractors have finished the refurbishment to an “acceptable standard”.

The Town Hall said that while the pool may appear to be ready for swimming, the entire facility “needs to be completely safe”.

Contractors have completed the “substantive work” of replacing the screed, render and tiles within the pool itself.

But the council says the poolside area finish is “substandard”, and that the Lido will not open until this is fixed – which means “clean, smooth and level surfaces”.

Community chief Cllr Jon Burke said: “We are incredibly frustrated and very disappointed by this latest delay and will provide another update when we are confident that the work will be completed to the required standard.

“The contractor is working through a series of defects to agreed deadlines – we need to be 100 per cent certain that these will be met before announcing an opening date.”