Putney's 33-metre pool will not be split. It stays, with a new gym, Pilates studio and soft play due by summer 2027 and the centre open throughout.

Putney Leisure Centre will keep its 33-metre swimming pool. Wandsworth Council confirmed it on Monday 5 October, four months after swimmers petitioned against a plan to divide the pool in two.

“Through engagement with residents and users we heard loud and clear that the 33-metre pool should remain at the centre,” the council said. (Wandsworth Council, 5 October 2026)

The rest of the refurbishment goes ahead, in phases, with the centre open throughout. The council expects the work to be finished by the end of summer 2027.

How the pool was saved

Places Leisure, which runs the centre for the council, had proposed splitting the main pool into a 25-metre pool and a separate teaching pool. The pool was due to close for the work on 1 July.

A petition to keep the full length opened on 2 June. It passed 1,000 signatures two days later. (38 Degrees petition)

Places and the council then paused the closure. Places’ FAQ page still says the pool proposal is “being carefully reviewed” and that no changes to the pool will take place this year. It has not yet been updated to reflect Monday’s decision. (Places Leisure, Putney FAQs)

We reported the pause in September, when Putney was the one big job in the borough’s leisure programme with no timetable. See Wandsworth leisure centre upgrades.

What is being built

The council’s announcement lists:

  • a larger, fully refurbished gym with more equipment
  • a new health suite, replacing the existing spa
  • a new Reformer Pilates studio
  • a larger group cycling studio
  • a redesigned teaching pool, aimed at water confidence, play and young swimmers
  • new soft play
  • a new café and reception

The changing rooms are being refurbished now.

Places’ own page for the project adds more detail. It promises a changing village with almost double the cubicles, private showers, a Changing Places facility and 11 family changing rooms, plus an indoor splash pad for children. (Places Leisure, Putney Leisure Centre developments)

Who is paying

The two sources do not agree. The council’s 5 October announcement says the cost is “being fully funded by our partners at Places Leisure”. Places’ project page says “Wandsworth Council and Places Leisure are investing more than £9.5m” in the centre.

Neither gives a split. Under the leisure contract signed in 2025, the council committed £18.3m and Places £5.7m across the borough’s eight centres. (Wandsworth Council, June 2025)

What has not been said

  • No phase dates. Neither the council nor Places has published which parts of the centre close when.
  • The sauna and steam room. Swimmers objected in June to plans to move them upstairs, away from the pool. The new health suite replaces the spa, but neither source says where it will be.
  • Lane swimming. Places’ FAQ promises no reduction in lane swimming sessions. Monday’s announcement does not mention lane swimming either way.

What it means for you

  • If you swim at Putney, the 33-metre pool stays. Swimming carries on as normal.
  • If a part of the centre you use closes during the works, Places says you can freeze your membership for that period at no charge. Swimming lesson memberships are frozen automatically during any pool closure.
  • For questions, Places asks members to speak to the team at the centre, email enquiriesputney@pfpleisure.org or call 020 8785 0388. (Places Leisure, Putney FAQs)
  • Parking stays available as usual, with any short closures advertised in the centre.

For more to do across the borough, see things to do in Wandsworth.

Sources