Naturist group 'saddened and bewildered' after swimming sessions cancelled
Staffing issues have been blamed for bringing a 40-year swimming tradition to a halt
A naturist group that has held monthly naked swimming sessions in Northampton for more than 40 years says it is “saddened and bewildered” after the events were cancelled.
The Sun Group has been using the Mounts Baths centre for monthly swims, providing members with access to a pool, sauna and steam room in a private setting away from the public.
Everyone Active, which began operating the venue in April, said the monthly swims had been cancelled because the necessary staffing arrangements could not be secured.
Chair Maggie Morton said members were shocked by the decision and concerned about where they would now be able to meet.
“We're all quite bewildered as to the reason,” she said.
“When you're a naturist group, obviously you need to hire good premises to hold private sessions where we can all get together and enjoy swimming. There aren't that many places available.
“Obviously, some people don't care for naturism, and that's fine. We don't want to upset anybody.”
Morton said the group had been given two reasons for the cancellation: difficulties securing lifeguards and a swimwear policy.
“One is that there's the lack of lifeguards to man the session,” she said.
“The second reason has been that we don't comply with their swimwear policy. If you'd like to have a chuckle, because when you're a naturist, you don't wear swimwear.”
She said the decision was particularly surprising given the group's long history at the venue.
“There hasn't been a problem with that for the past 40-odd years as we've been using the Mounts swimming pool, so it's quite a surprise that suddenly there aren't the lifeguards available.”
The Sun Group caters for adults of all ages, with members ranging from around 20 to 80 years old. Morton said the sessions offered much more than swimming.
“There aren't any hang-ups. There's no, ‘Look at that person in designer wear, I feel a bit bad about it.’ There's none of that because we're all back to how nature intended.”
The group is now exploring alternative venues but has so far struggled to find a suitable replacement.
“It's a case of maybe trying to find another premises that will allow us to host these sessions,” Morton said. “Currently, we're not finding anybody.”
She added that many members attend primarily for the social aspect and feared the loss of an important community space.
“There's a general sadness. Quite a few people turn up to our sessions who enjoy it purely for the social side of it. They meet people they don't meet elsewhere,” she said.
Morton also spoke about public perceptions of naturism, insisting there was “nothing sexual” about the sessions.
“If people use the term nudity, they tend to think down the sexual route, which is completely banned in our sessions,” she said.
“You have to have respectful behaviour. There's nothing sexual about it. If anybody shows poor behaviour, they're shown the door and won't be allowed back.”
She said the group hoped Everyone Active, which operates the facility, might reconsider its decision.
“We hope they will change their minds and allow us to use the Mounts Centre again because it's a superb place,” she said.
In a statement, Simon Fearn, regional contract manager for Everyone Active, said: “We're currently unable to offer naturist swimming sessions at Mounts Baths because we have been unable to secure the staffing agreements needed to operate them.
“We understand this is a change from what's been offered before and may be disappointing to those who took part. If circumstances change in the future, we'll review the position and update customers accordingly.”