Woodstock's outdoor pool took 8,436 visits in June and July, against 3,039 last year and 1,570 in 2024. Heated water runs until 30 August, the season ends 27 September, adult swim £6.75.

Woodstock Open Air Pool is having what West Oxfordshire District Council calls a record summer. The council says the Shipton Road pool took 8,436 visits in June and July 2026, against 3,039 for the same two months in 2025 and 1,570 in 2024, and has passed 9,000 visits since it opened for the season in May.

That is not a rounding error or a warm fortnight. June and July this year were 2.8 times last year’s figure and more than five times 2024’s, and there are six weeks of the season still to run.

Why the numbers jumped

The council puts the rise down to two things: the weather, and a longer season. The pool is running a 14-week summer programme this year, and the operator’s own page confirms the shape of it. Better, the GLL brand that runs the pool for the council, lists cool-water swimming from 23 May to 19 July, heated water from 20 July to 30 August, and a further cool-water spell from 31 August to 27 September. So the pool that used to be a school-holidays treat has become a four-month facility, and the visit count has followed.

Councillor Tim Sumner, the council’s Executive Member for Arts, Culture and Sports, said in the release: “It has been fantastic to see so many people making the most of Woodstock Open Air Pool this summer. With plenty of the season still to come, I’d encourage anyone who hasn’t visited yet to come along and enjoy this fantastic community facility.”

The council frames the result as part of a wider commitment, citing a £3.5 million investment in the district’s leisure centres over the next five years. Woodstock is the only outdoor pool among the council’s Better-run centres, alongside Witney’s Windrush Leisure Centre, Carterton Leisure Centre and Chipping Norton Leisure Centre.

What it means for you

The heated water ends on 30 August. If you want the warm version, that is the Sunday of the Bank Holiday weekend, and the last two weeks of the school holidays will be the busiest of the year. Better’s page recommends booking ahead through its website or app at busy times, though walk-in sessions are available every day.

The season does not end with the schools. Cool-water swimming carries on until 27 September, which for lane swimmers and hardier families is a month of quieter water at the same address.

Prices. Better’s published price list for the pool has an adult swim at £6.75 for non-members (£4.70 on pay-as-you-go membership), and £4.50 for juniors aged 4 to 15 and for over-60s (£3.15 on membership). Disability and inclusive sessions are £3.35 for adults and £2.25 for seniors and juniors, as timetabled.

Hours this month. The current timetable shows the pool open 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm on Saturday, and 9am to 1pm then 2pm to 5pm on Sunday, with lane swimming, Swim for All, Aqua Play, family sessions, aqua aerobics, pool parties and lessons in the mix.

Getting there. The pool is at Shipton Road, Woodstock, OX20 1LW. Better lists 26 free parking spaces on site, one of them accessible, which will not go far on a hot Saturday. West Oxfordshire’s own council car parks, including Hensington Road in Woodstock, charge nothing, so the overflow is a short walk rather than a ticket.

The facility

The pool is a four-lane, 25-metre heated outdoor pool with a diving board and a 3.5-metre dive pit, a toddler splash pool, changing rooms and a lawn with loungers, and a cafe during the school holidays. It sits a short walk from Blenheim Palace, and at £6.75 an adult it is one of the cheaper summer days out in the district; our things to do in Witney round-up has the prices for the rest.

For anyone wondering whether an outdoor pool in Oxfordshire is worth the council’s money, the June and July figure is the plainest answer the district has had in years: 8,436 people said yes.