Wondering what is happening with Moseley Road Baths’ future? There was a flurry of activity last Autumn when we raised a whopping great £26,000 towards the running costs of Moseley Road Baths when it is handed over to a community organisation to manage. Since then a lot of work has been happening behind the scenes. Hopefully this explains a bit more about what to expect this year!
Moseley Road Baths were scheduled to close in Summer 2017. The Moseley Road Baths Action Group (‘MRBAG’ – a wider group that included the Friends of Moseley Road Baths) came together to look into other ideas for keeping the Baths open. This Action Group came up with a plan to run the Baths as a community venture, and after lots of discussions, the City Council agreed to let the Action Group have a go !
so . . .
from 1st April 2018, Moseley Road Baths will be run as a Community run Baths.
The organisation in charge will be the ‘Moseley Rd Baths CIO’
What is a CIO?
CIO stands for ‘Charitable Incorporated Organisation’
During 2016 and 2017 the Action Group worked hard in order to form themselves into an organisation that could take over the day-to-day running of the Baths, on a business-like but ‘not-for-profit’ basis. Then they applied for charity status, which was granted in December 2017.
Caring for the building
An important part of the Action Group’s work has been to develop an Alliance with other important organisations – Birmingham City Council, the National Trust, World Monuments Fund, Historic England and others – who have specialist knowledge of caring for Heritage buildings & conserving them for a useful future.
The role of the Friends of Moseley Road Baths (FoMRB)
The Action Group formed as a temporary grouping to secure a better future for the baths. The Friends group is part of this group. The Action Group has now formed Moseley Road Baths CIO which will operate MRB from April 2018. The Friends group will also continue to exist, focusing as we always have on involving the public, by holding events and activities such as Open Days, Heritage tours of the Baths and arts events. We will work closely with the CIO – we have many members in common.
New FoMRB members welcome!
Meetings are held every two months in the Tea Room at the Baths. The next meeting is Thursday 12th April at 7pm.
How you can help run the Baths:
- Keep on swimming – use it or lose it. We need your custom to keep the Baths open
- Remind your friends that the Baths are staying open and encourage them to swim here. You can help spread the word through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or our newsletter.
- Train as a lifeguard
- Train as a Receptionist
- Volunteer for other jobs, including cleaning, maintenance and publicity
- Become a Trustee
If interested in any of these roles please contact Karen Leach on keepswimming@moseleyroadbaths.org.uk or phone 0121 449 8348 and leave a message or ask to speak to Karen.