SASAC – St Albans Sub-Aqua Club

A water mill is known to have existed on this site from the 1700s until 1883 when the mill pond became an open air baths. The current building and swimming pool dates to 1905 when it was knows as the “City of St Albans Swimming Baths”. See the Sopwell Memories article for their historical account.

It was replaced in 1979 as the city’s pool by the original Westminster Lodge Indoor Swimming pool in 1979 and became derelict until adopted by our club in the 1980s.

In recent years the pool was refurbished and the club expanded from being a diving and underwater hockey club to include swimming members. It now boasts a new pool surround, pool liner and a modern pool filter.

It is open for club members use during daylight hours all year round. Normal pool use is suspended on the rare occassions the ice is too thick to use it safetly. Then its been know to be used for ice diving training.  Click here to see current water temperature.

The pool operates without any lifeguards and we can only do this because every adult member who goes poolside has accepted the risk and an enhanced liabilty for their conduct and the conduct of others. This is a legal undertaking within the membership contract that requires them to know and enforce the Pool Safety Requirements (PSR). This is additionally explained in their induction where they must demonstrate a working knowledge of the Pool Safety Requirements (PSR) and how to react in emergencies. The rules are risk adverse but it means we maintain a safe operation for our pool users.

One of the ways we maintain a safe operation is to restrict the number of pool users to a safe threshold. Without lifeguards this is controlled and enforced using an online booking system. 

• Pool Configuration
• How to deploy the short rope
• Splash Zone Schedule
• Pool Booking System
• Pool Etiquette

Default Configuration

By default the whole pool is configured exclusively for swimming that permits up to 24 members to swim.
Only members with BSAC or BOA liability insurance may swim with snorkel equipment.
Fins can be used only when their is no risk of the fins coliding with other pool users.

On occassions parts or the whole pool can be allocated to scuba, snorkel, underwater hockey sessions or other events.
The whole pool is allocated to the canoe club event on Thursdays evenings during the summer.
There are occassional one hour Cygnet events held throughout the cold season.
These sessions and events are booked in advance on the booking system by Skedda Administrators.

Alternative Configuration

Between May and September a floating blue divider rope (long rope) is left in-situ that spans the length of the pool.

During times when the splash zone available to book another divider rope (short rope) can be deployed between the long rope and the the eyelet on the side of the pool.
When this short rope is deployed, the splash zone and the deep zone become active. Watch the video below to see how to do this.

The splash zone is a specific size and depth to permit this zone to be used for play without a lifeguard. It is the only area of the pool where club members and their children can play in the pool and has a capacity of 50 bathers.

Registered children (formally known as Junior Pool Guests) are not club members. The adjacent deep zone is restricted to club members only.

Saturday 23 May to Monday 31 August 2026.

^{[Revised: 22/06/2026 Authorised:BoDs link to school holidays]}.

Spring Bank Holiday (half term holiday):

Saturday 23 May – Sunday 31 May

Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00

Term-time period:

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
15:30 – 19:00	15:30 – 19:00	15:30 – 19:00	15:30 – 19:00	15:30 – 19:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00

Summer school holidays:

Saturday 25 July to Monday 31 August

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
12:00 – 19:00	12:00 – 19:00	12:00 – 19:00	12:00 – 19:00	12:00 – 19:00	12:00 – 18:00	12:00 – 18:00

The booking system is an effective and practical method to ensuring the pool usage remains within the limits the club defines as safe. Members book slots in 15 minute blocks up to a maximum of 2 hours per day and this can be split across family splash time (splash slot) and swimming (swim slot).

All swim or splash slots must be booked in advance by the member, or by a club officer when it is a scuba, snorkel, underwater hockey session or other event.

Booking is a requirement defined in the PSR and members who use the pool without booking or in contradiction to the PSR are liable to have their membership suspended or cancelled.

The club uses the Skedda service as its pool booking system. A generic guide for the SKEDDA booking system is available on the Skedda help page to show you how to create a booking. Members logon to skedda with their email address and can request a password reset on the logon screen if they forget it.

A slot number does not equate to a lane. We have no lanes. A slot is just a space in the pool and we use slots to ensure the density of bathers remains within the safe limits. You work out where your swim in the Lane Zone in co-operation with the other pool users when you arrive and you maintain lane discipline by swimming up and down the length of the pool and not across it.

Create a unique booking slot for each person who will be lane swimming. Lane slots cannot be shared. So when you are lane swimming with your child who can competently lane swim, you must book a dedicated slot for them using part of your 2 hour per day pool time allocation

• There are 12 swim slots available when family splash time is on, and 24 when it is not
• Select the day and scroll until you find an available lane slot time and click on the slot to open booking details
• On a smart phone use the magnifying icon on the left hand top corner of the booking system to filter available slots to save you scrolling through all the slots. On a normal browser you filter using the grey dropdown box in the top right hand side
• Complete the details in the pop up box including filling in the end time of your swim and then press the confirm booking button.
• A valid booking will return you to the main menu but if your booking was invalid it will give you an error and the reason. Correct the invalid information in the booking and confirm the booking
• When you are lane swimming with your child who can competently lane swim, you must book a dedicated slot for them using part of your 2 hour per day pool time allocation

The splash zone is a shared zone and designed for playing. Book a swim slot if you intend to swim. Use of snorkel is not permitted within the splash zone.

A slot number (1-20) is just a space allocated in the splash zone area of the pool so we ensure the density of bathers remains within the safe limits. We assume on average each booking is allocated to 2.5 bathers (parent + 1.5 children).

Regardless of any booked slots, nobody is permitted to enter the splash zone if doing so exceeds the 50 bather limit

There are specific rules regarding the supervision of children described in the PSR. Parents must be familiar with and practise these rules.

To book splash time:

Create a unique booking slot for each adult member and specify the names of the children who will accompany you up to a maximum of two children. The booking duration can be from 15 minutes to 2 hours and the total time of your slots cannot exceed your pool quota of 2 hours per day

• There are 20 splash time slots available when and usage of the Splash zone must not exceeed 50 bathers.
• Select the day and scroll until you find an available lane slot time and click on the slot to open booking details
• On a smart phone use the magnifying icon on the left hand top corner of the booking system to filter available slots to save you scrolling through all the slots. On a normal browser you filter using the grey dropdown box in the top right hand side
• Complete the details in the pop up box including filling in the end time of your swim and then press the confirm booking button.
• A valid booking will return you to the main menu but if your booking was invalid it will give you an error and the reason. Correct the invalid information in the booking and confirm the booking
• Each adult member attending family splash time must book a slot, so if you and your partner are attending with your children, both adult members book a splash time slot – you do not need to book slots for your children

Only book slots for the time you intend to use the pool. When you know you cannot attend the pool for your booked slot or you leave the pool before your booked slot expires, please update your booking as this frees up slots that can be used by other members. You can cancel or change your booking up until the start time. After the booking start time has passed you can only edit the end time. You cannot retrospectively edit your booking once the booking’s end time has passed. In the case when you booked for an hour and leave the pool after 15 minutes edit the end time.

Using the short rope to activate/deactivate the splash zone. The first member to arrive to use the splash zone is required to move the short rope into position to activate the splash zone. The splash zone is deactivated when the temporary divider rope is moved back into the default position which should happen when the last member using the splash zone leaves the water or splash time ends. In the event the temporary divider rope is not moved back into the default position by the persons leaving the splash zone then the first member to arrive for lane swimming after the splash zone time has expired is required to move it.

It is expected the person who activates the splash zone by deploy the short rope is responsible to move it back into the default position when they leave or hand over the responsibility to a member remaining in the splash zone after they leave. They in turn hand over the duty to another member using splash when they leave, unless they are the last one in which case they move it back into the default position.

Swimming in Splash zone during splash time. Swimmers may swim in the splash zone during splash time only when the short rope has not been deployed and nobody is using the splash zone. As soon as the zone is activated they must leave it.

Use of the Deep Zone by children is not permitted. Courteously remind their parent to supervise their child in accordance with the PSR they agreed to follow.

Respect the space of other swimmers. The pool is a shared environment. Members book swim slots not swim lanes. Etiquette is to avoid swimming in close proximity to others unless you have agreed to do so or bather density makes it necessary.

It is usual to see people swim lengths as if the pool had lanes but when there are more than 8 in the pool you need to be much more aware of each others positions and appropiately adjust your behaviour for the bather density to avoid collisions. When there is contention for the space, choose a mutually agreeable behaviour to minimise proximity like staggering your positions.

During high bather density occassions remove any fins and swim with consideration for other pool users. Do not attempt to swim as if you have your own dedicated lane and if it is more appropiate, consider segregating into groups based on your speed and swim in loops or circuits.

Politely raise your concerns to persons involved in the unlikley event they are not swimming appropiately for the conditions and risking collisions and swimmer safety. If an amicable arrangement cannot be achieved and you think it is necessary, log details of the incident on https://help.sasac.co.uk so the issue can be recorded and investigated.

Three pool length black lines have been marked lengthways on on the pool bottom

These 3 lines appear in the style of lines used in swimming competions and have the termination lines for tumble turns. Those lines are positioned in the centre of the lane for the swimmer to follow. But these lines are positions to mark boundaries of lanes 1-3 in pools that use lanes that would normally be deliminated by float lines.

Members can choose to ignore the lines or at their discretion use them when occupation levels are low enough to do so without any contention with other swimmers.