Plans to restore a Grade II-listed lido in Reading, UK, have been approved by councillors.

Thames Lido Ltd is in charge of the £3m (US$4.5m, €3.8m) development of the Kings Meadow Baths lido and spa, having been granted a 250-year lease by the local council in July 2014.

Mark Thwaites, general manager of Lido Bristol – which Thames Lido reopened in 2008 – spoke exclusively to Spa Opportunities to reveal plans for the spa at the site in Reading.

“We are delighted to have finally been given full planning consent for the restoration of Kings Meadow Baths,” said Thwaites. “With 40 years of neglect and decay, the job ahead of us isn’t simple, but the end product will be something that the people of Reading will be really proud of and hopefully get great pleasure from.

"After refining our Lido in Bristol, we are confident that Thames Lido will be a real destination for not only regular swimming members but spa day guests from all over the country. If it all goes to plan, we hope to be opening in spring 2016.”

Marshall and Kendon is the architecture practice behind the project, which will include an eight-treatment room spa, a poolside sauna, steamroom, hot tub and plunge pool.

“The treatment menu will be the same as that at Lido Bristol – not featuring beauty treatments but it will be massage-focused – with our own Lido Spa products that are made for us by Arcania Apothecary,” added Thwaites.