best swimming pools

Small but perfectly formed: Mendip Farm Pool is swimming with kids, at its best

We were lucky enough to win a competition and have the opportunity to try out the lovely new Mendip Farm Pool this week, and what a pleasure it was.

Mendip Swim has just launched over there, running a variety of fun swimming sessions and crash courses. The pool itself is pretty tiny (it actually used to be a private pool but the family has decided to open it out to the public as it wasn’t getting enough use). They’ve installed a couple of showers and changing rooms and created a really lovely, relaxed environment that’s perfect for introducing little ones to the water.

What’s more, they run supervised sessions where a trained swimming teacher (a really friendly, patient and encouraging lady called Debbie) is in the water ready to help guide, play and get children moving with a nursery rhyme or a simple game. It’s also super handy if, like me, you have more than one child in tow! They also have a bunch of toys and floats on hand to encourage water play.

These supervised swimming sessions are held on Monday mornings during term time. There are three separate sessions running 9:30-10am, 10-10:30am and 10:30-11am and the price is £6 (for one adult and one child). Given the small size of the pool, spaces are limited to 5 couples (a couple being one parent and one child) so there’s no overcrowding and plenty of space for you to float around comfortably. As we were competition winners, I was allowed to bring an extra child along for the session, and this is possible generally, but you’ll need to contact Mendip Swim beforehand to ensure that they can accommodate the extra numbers (if there’s space, the cost for one adult and two children would be £9). Extra adults are allowed to come in and sit on the side but just be aware that space is very limited.

As well as sessions for children, Mendip Swim runs adult only sessions on a Monday too (9-9:30am). In an ideal world, I’d be there every week!! Give it 3 years…

Check out the Mendip Swim Facebook page for other activities, including Mermaid swimming classes! The pool can also be privately hired.

I would highly recommend booking in for a swim here. It’s as good as swimming with children gets: the water is warm, it’s nice and clean, there’s plenty of space, there’s someone on hand to offer advice and encouragement, and it’s super relaxed so you don’t leave feeling rushed and flustered! We’ll be going back, for sure.

The pool is located on the Old Down Business Park, BA3 4SA (the home of Mendip Self Storage). Head up the driveway and you’ll see a car park. Park up and next to the Mendip Self Storage building to the left, you’ll see the pool sign pointing to the right. Walk round the corner and you’ll see the pool nestled between two buildings. If in doubt, someone at Mendip Self Storage can point you in the right direction!

Summer holiday swimming spots to keep the kids cool

The summer holidays are upon us and with this balmy weather here to stay (*crosses fingers hopefully) I thought I’d do a little round up of our favourite places to swim. I’ve included some indoor and outdoor options, to suit all weathers (*faces facts and notes that said balmy weather probably isn’t here to stay).

Please note: These are all official leisure venues. Although I quite like the idea of wild swimming, if I’m honest, it’s the last thing I fancy doing with a toddler and a pre-schooler in tow (*shudders at the thought). Maybe in five year’s time I’ll do a wild swimming blog post… watch this space.

Wells Cathedral School, Wells

One of our favourite regular groups to go to is Sing and Swim at Wells Cathedral School. The drop-in class features a music and dance session (run by the school’s dance teacher) followed by a general swim in the school’s lovely pool. The pool is housed in a glass atrium and the water is usually pretty warm so on a sunny day it can feel like you’re in the South of France. Sadly, the group only runs during term-time and the public school holidays are particularly drawn-out. However, last summer I realised that the lovely people at WCS keep the pool open during the summer holidays! Result. The pool’s opening hours are sporadic (they rely on having lifeguards available and sometimes there are last minute cancellations so it’s worth checking again on the day) but all times are listed on the school’s website. At the moment timetables are up for the next fortnight, with new dates being added each week.

Cost: Adults £4, Under 18s £2 and under 5s free


Shepton Mallet Lido, Shepton Mallet

One of two lidos, or outdoor pools, within close proximity of Wells. Shepton Lido is smaller, quieter and, in my opinion, more relaxing (if you can say that when you have two kids in tow). By that I mean that everything is in one place so you can easily keep tabs on two children that will undoubtedly want to be doing different things at the same time. There’s a full-size pool and a children’s pool; a very small splash park with a few fountains; a mini play area and some picnic benches. There are some pretty basic changing facilities at the far end and there’s also a place to buy snacks. The water temperature is a little on the cool side but on a baking hot day it’s the right side of refreshing. Speaking of baking hot days, there’s very limited shade by the poolside so come prepared to make your own!

Cost: Adults £5.50, juniors £3.75, under 5s free 

Greenbank Outdoor Pool, Street

At the other end of the scale of outdoor pools is Greenbank, which is Shepton on steroids. It has a huge pool with an adjoining kids pool (that is also pretty big and has a great slide that you’ll have to fight to get the little ones off). It has an equally large splash park with another great slide (it’s fast so probably not one for the really little ones); and there’s a ton of green space around the pool so you can make yourselves comfortable and settle in for the day. The changing rooms are bigger and cleaner too. The best thing about the pool is the temperature: it’s over 30 degrees and the children’s pool, particularly, feels like you’re in a bath, bliss. Greenbank is open from May to September and during the school holidays (from July 20) the pool opens from 12-6:30pm. A word of warning – it does get very busy and you’ll probably need to queue if you want to get in there early, but the queues usually go down pretty quickly and it’s worth it, honestly. Another thing I’d say is that everything is quite spread out so if, like me, you have more than one pre-school aged child in tow, you might want to take reinforcements and go with a friend!

Cost: Adults £5.70, Child (age 2-17) £4.70, under 2s free


Cheddar Woods Resort and Spa, Cheddar

Cheddar Woods is a holiday resort on the far side of Cheddar with an indoor swimming pool that is open to the public. Being a spa destination, the changing rooms feel pretty plush and the pool is lovely and clean. There’s a full-size pool and a children’s pool, adjacent to eachother. The pool is open to the public every day but do check the website for timetables as you’ll need to go for the general swim if you’re taking the family. Once you’ve been for a swim, you could head to the cafe or give the kids a run around in the park (which you can see from the cafe’s veranda).

Cost: Around £5 for adults, under 5s free

If you’re willing to travel further afield, there are a few other outdoor options: Shaftesbury Oasis Swimming Pool (https://www.shaftesbury-oasis.com/); Tintinhull Swimming Pool (www.tintinhullparishcouncil.gov.uk/Swimming_Pool_22592.aspx); and Portishead Open Air Pool (www.portisheadopenairpool.org.uk). Just make sure you check their websites for opening times as they are pretty variable.