Whether a child can swim at Brockwell Lido is decided by a thermometer, not by a calendar or an age limit.
Junior members may only use the pool when the water is 15°C or above. If it falls below 15°C, junior access is not permitted.
The pool is unheated and open all year, so that rule quietly closes the lido to children for a large part of the year, on a day-to-day basis, with no published date to plan around. For scale, the unheated water on Hampstead Heath fell below 15°C in late October and did not come back above it until May.
So a family trip in autumn or winter needs the live temperature checked first, and the answer can change between the Saturday you book and the Sunday you arrive.
It changed hands, and the old operator still links to a dead page
Brockwell Lido is now run by Active Lambeth. It was previously run by Fusion Lifestyle.
Memberships transferred across automatically, and anyone who held one with Fusion was advised to activate their Active Lambeth account by 1 July 2026 to keep their bookings working.
One honest note on finding it. Checked on 5 October 2026: fusion-lifestyle.com still carries a Brockwell Lido link on its own homepage, and that link returns a Page Not Found. If you have an old bookmark or arrive via the former operator, that is why nothing loads. The live pages are on Active Lambeth.
The prices, and the winter ticket that pays back in fifteen swims
Lido Swim: adult £9.50, child £6.00.
Winter Swim Only Seasonal Membership: £140, valid 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027.
Worth doing the arithmetic, because they do not. At £9.50 a swim, £140 pays for itself after 15 swims across six months. That is fewer than three a month. Anyone swimming weekly through the winter saves roughly £110 over the season.
And note which season it covers: the winter ticket runs through exactly the months when the water is cold enough to bar children. It is an adult cold-water product, priced as one.
The monthly memberships, and the odd one
Core: from £45 a month. Pool and gym.
Essential: from £55 a month. Everything in Core plus the full group class programme.
Concession: from £45 a month. The same pool, gym and class access as Essential, at a reduced rate for those eligible, with proof required.
Read those three together. Concession costs the same £45 as Core but includes the classes that Core does not. So a concession holder pays Core money for Essential access, and a full-price member paying the identical £45 gets less. If you are eligible, there is no reason to be on Core.
The pool hours change every week, and they are shrinking
This is the practical trap. The gym and studios keep fixed hours. The pool does not: its swim times are updated weekly and change weekly.
The three weeks published as at 13 October 2026, longer window then shorter window:
12 to 18 October, the current week: 7.30am to 6pm, and 7.30am to 3pm
19 to 25 October: 7.30am to 5.45pm, and 7.30am to 3pm
26 October to 1 November: 7.30am to 4.30pm, and 7.30am to 3pm
So the long window retreats from 6pm to 4.30pm across three weeks, while the short window holds steady at 7.30am to 3pm throughout. An evening swim that works in early October does not work by November.
Short notice changes appear on the same page: in early October the lido posted a 3pm close on two days at a day or two of warning. Short-notice changes like that are posted on the same page, so it is worth a look the morning of a swim rather than the week before.
Gym and studios: Monday to Thursday 6.30am to 9pm, Friday 6.30am to 8pm, weekends 7.30am to 6.30pm.
How it compares
Adult walk-up rates for London’s outdoor pools on 5 October 2026:
Hampstead ponds: £5.00, unheated.
Parliament Hill: £5.00 to £8.80, unheated, 60m.
London Fields: £6.40, heated to 24°C, 50m.
Brockwell: £9.50, unheated, 50m.
Charlton: £11.50, heated, 50m.
Which puts Brockwell in an awkward spot: it costs £3.10 more than London Fields and is not heated. You are paying for the building and the setting rather than the water, and a child pays £6.00 here against £3.50 to £3.75 at London Fields.
What is there
A 50-metre unheated outdoor pool, open all year round. Alongside it a gym, group cycle studios, other studios, and a steam room rather than the sauna you get at Charlton or Parliament Hill.
Classes run from spin to Zumba. There is a live pool temperature page, which given the junior rule is the most important link on the site.
The lido dates to 1937 and sits inside Brockwell Park.
Where it is
Brockwell Lido, Brockwell Park, Dulwich Road, London SE24 0PA. On 020 7926 8553, or ActiveLambeth@lambeth.gov.uk.
Herne Hill is the nearest station, with Brixton a walk away across the park.
Published accessibility is thinner than at the other London lidos: a disabled toilet, poolside assistance and a support rail. If you need a hoist or accessible changing, Tooting Bec and Charlton both publish considerably more.
How to plan it
Bringing a child in autumn or winter: check the live temperature first, because under 15°C they will not be admitted.
Swimming through the winter: buy the £140 seasonal ticket, which pays back after 15 swims.
Eligible for concession: take it over Core, same £45 and it includes the classes.
Wanting an evening swim: go in early October, not November, as closing moves from 6.15pm to 4.30pm.
Wanting warm water: London Fields instead, heated to 24°C and £3.10 cheaper.
Checking times: the morning of your swim, because the pool hours change weekly and short closures are posted the same day.
Brockwell Lido
- Address
- Brockwell Lido, Brockwell Park, Dulwich Road, London SE24 0PA
- Nearest
- Herne Hill, with Brixton a walk across the park
- Hours
- Pool swim times are updated weekly and change weekly. Mid October 7.30am to 6pm and 7.30am to 3pm, falling to 7.30am to 4.30pm by the end of the month. Gym and studios Monday to Thursday 6.30am to 9pm, Friday 6.30am to 8pm, weekends 7.30am to 6.30pm
- Booking
- Online through Active Lambeth. Former Fusion members were advised to activate their transferred account by 1 July 2026
- Price
- Lido swim adult 9.50 pounds, child 6 pounds. Winter Swim Only Seasonal Membership 140 pounds for 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027. Core and Concession memberships from 45 pounds a month, Essential from 55
- Standing
- A 50-metre unheated outdoor pool in Brockwell Park, open all year since 1937, now run by Active Lambeth
How to get in
Junior members may only swim when the water is 15 degrees or above, so children are barred on cold days with no published calendar. The 140 pound winter season ticket pays back after 15 swims. Concession costs the same 45 pounds a month as Core but includes the group classes Core excludes.
Where to go next
London Fields Lido is heated and cheaper, and Tooting Bec is the 91-metre one that shuts for the winter.
Parliament Hill Lido and the Hampstead ponds are the cheapest outdoor swimming in London, and the lidos page compares the rest.
Questions we get asked
How much is Brockwell Lido?
£9.50 for an adult swim and £6.00 for a child. A Winter Swim Only Seasonal Membership is £140 for 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027, which pays for itself after 15 swims. Monthly memberships start from £45.
Can children swim at Brockwell Lido?
Only when the water is 15°C or above. Junior members are not permitted in the pool if the temperature falls below 15°C, and the pool is unheated, so check the live temperature page before travelling in autumn or winter.
Is Brockwell Lido heated?
No, it is unheated, and it is open all year round. London Fields Lido is heated to 24°C year-round and costs £3.10 less for an adult.
Who runs Brockwell Lido?
Active Lambeth. It was previously run by Fusion Lifestyle, and memberships transferred across automatically, with former Fusion members advised to activate their account by 1 July 2026. Checked on 5 October 2026, Fusion's own homepage still links to a Brockwell page that returns Page Not Found.
What time does Brockwell Lido pool close?
It changes every week. In the week of 5 October 2026 the longer window ran to 6.15pm, falling to 6pm, then 5.45pm, then 4.30pm by the week of 26 October. A second shorter window holds at 7.30am to 3pm throughout. Check the week you plan to swim.
How long is Brockwell Lido?
50 metres, the same as London Fields and Charlton. Parliament Hill Lido is 60 metres and Tooting Bec is 91.4.
Is there a sauna at Brockwell Lido?
There is a steam room rather than a sauna. Parliament Hill Lido and Charlton Lido both have saunas.
Written by Robert J Wills, no. 270 in the guide.
Last checked 13 October 2026 against the venues' own published information. Nobody pays to appear here and we take no bookings.
