The Sky Pool London: 7 Shocking Secrets Of The World's First 'Floating' Swimming Pool

The Sky Pool at Embassy Gardens in London has captured global attention since its unveiling, not just as a marvel of modern engineering but as a stark symbol of urban inequality. This completely transparent, 25-meter-long pool, suspended 115 feet (35 meters) in the air, bridges two luxury residential buildings in the Nine Elms district of Battersea. While images of residents swimming between skyscrapers have gone viral, the story behind this architectural feat—including its controversial social context and the immense technical challenges of its construction—is often overlooked. As of December 2025, the pool remains an exclusive amenity, and the debate surrounding its existence is as vibrant as ever. The pool is the centerpiece of the Embassy Gardens development, a project by the Ballymore Group, which forms a key part of the massive Nine Elms regeneration zone. It offers an unparalleled, almost surreal swimming experience with unobstructed views of the London skyline, including the Houses of Parliament and the London Eye. However, its exclusivity and the social issues it highlights are what truly give the structure its unique and, at times, polarizing reputation in the global architectural landscape.

The Sky Pool London: Key Facts and Engineering Milestones

The Sky Pool is not merely a novelty; it is a world-first in structural engineering and acrylic design, representing a significant leap in what is possible in residential architecture. The following details establish its status as a landmark structure in the city.

• Official Name: The Sky Pool at Embassy Gardens.
• Location: Embassy Gardens, Nine Elms, Battersea, London, SW11.
• Developer: Ballymore Group.
• Architects: HAL Architects.
• Structural Engineers: Eckersley O'Callaghan and Arup Associates.
• Height Above Ground: 115 feet (35 meters), suspended between the 10th floors.
• Dimensions: 25 meters (82 feet) long, 5 meters (16 feet) wide, and 3.2 meters (10.5 feet) deep.
• Span: Bridges a 14-meter (46-foot) gap between the two buildings.
• Material: The structure is a single, self-supporting, 200mm-thick (8-inch) transparent acrylic tank.
• Weight: The total weight of the pool, including the water, is approximately 375 tonnes.
• Opening Date: May 19, 2021.
• Access: Strictly exclusive to full-price residents of the Embassy Gardens development.

The Unprecedented Engineering Challenge of a Floating Tank

The concept of a fully transparent, structure-free swimming pool suspended between two buildings presented significant, never-before-seen engineering hurdles. The design required the pool to be completely self-supporting, relying on the strength of the acrylic itself rather than a steel frame. The pool was designed by HAL Architects and structurally engineered by the renowned firms Eckersley O'Callaghan and Arup Associates. Their primary challenge was accounting for the movement of the two residential towers. Wind sway, temperature fluctuations, and settlement over time mean the buildings move independently of each other. The pool structure had to be flexible enough to accommodate this movement without cracking the acrylic or the seals. The solution involved creating a massive, single acrylic tank—the largest of its kind in the world—fabricated in Colorado, USA, and then shipped across the Atlantic. This 50-tonne acrylic structure was then carefully lifted by one of the largest cranes in the world and installed into its final position, a feat of precision that took several hours. The ends of the pool are connected to the buildings via steel frames that act like giant hinges, allowing the pool to shift and move by up to 30cm in different directions without compromising the watertight seal. This innovative approach ensured the pool's integrity while offering swimmers an uninterrupted, "swimming in the sky" experience.

The Sky Pool Controversy: Penthouses and 'Poor Doors'

While the Sky Pool is celebrated by some as an architectural spectacle, it has become a lightning rod for social criticism, particularly concerning housing inequality in London. This debate centres on the concept of "poor doors" and the two-tiered system of access within the same development.

The 'Poor Doors' Scandal

The Embassy Gardens development, like many large-scale 'regeneration' projects in London, was required to include a certain percentage of affordable housing, often managed through shared-ownership schemes. The controversy arises because the residents of these affordable housing blocks are often physically segregated from the private residents, entering their homes through separate, often less visually appealing entrances—the so-called "poor doors." Furthermore, the residents in the shared-ownership blocks are explicitly denied access to the development's luxury amenities, including the gym, the residents' lounge, and most famously, the Sky Pool.

A Symbol of Segregation

The irony is not lost on critics: some residents of the affordable blocks live in flats that are directly overlooked by the transparent Sky Pool, giving them a "front-row seat" to a luxury they can never access. A review as recent as November 2024 highlighted this ongoing issue, noting that some shared-ownership blocks still lack access to the pools despite paying significant service charges. This stark visual and physical segregation has made the Sky Pool a potent symbol for the wider housing scandal in the UK, where luxury developments are built with social housing components that deliberately create a class divide. The pool, therefore, represents a tangible barrier between the "haves" and the "have-nots" in one of the world's most expensive cities. The debate continues to rage over whether such architectural wonders justify the social exclusion they simultaneously enforce.

Who Can Actually Swim in the Sky Pool?

The most frequent question about the Sky Pool is about public access. The answer is simple and definitive: the Sky Pool is strictly private. Access is exclusively reserved for residents who own or rent the full-price, private apartments within the Embassy Gardens development. This means the general public, tourists, and even residents of the adjacent affordable/shared-ownership blocks are unable to take a dip. The development offers various high-end amenities that are part of the luxury lifestyle package, and the Sky Pool is the crown jewel of this exclusivity. For those desperate to experience the unique feeling of swimming 10 stories above the ground, the only true path is to become a resident of the private residential towers. This exclusivity has only amplified the pool's allure, turning it into a highly sought-after, if controversial, status symbol in the Nine Elms area.

The Sky Pool's Enduring Legacy and Topical Authority

Beyond the controversy, the Sky Pool has cemented its place in architectural history. It is a testament to the capabilities of modern construction, pushing the boundaries of what developers can promise and engineers can deliver. The use of a thick, load-bearing acrylic structure is a blueprint for future suspended or 'floating' amenities worldwide. The pool's design has inspired similar projects and has become a major entity in discussions about urban planning, luxury real estate, and the ethics of mixed-tenure housing. It is a physical manifestation of London's ongoing transformation, a city of contrasts where world-class innovation and stark social divisions coexist, all visible through the crystal-clear water of a pool suspended in the sky. Entities like the Ballymore Group, Eckersley O'Callaghan, and the entire Nine Elms regeneration project are now inextricably linked to this unique structure, ensuring the Sky Pool remains a key topical authority in discussions about 21st-century London architecture.