About Court Farm Lakes
A lake, a sauna, and the people around them.
A four-acre natural site outside Lydney: a swimming lake, a wood-fired sauna on the bank, the Fika Café, and a friendly community that swims all year.
Court Farm Lakes opened in 2023, when Jo York and Nix Barnaville turned a corner of the Lydney countryside into a place to swim. The lake sits at the heart of a four-acre natural site in Gloucestershire, with a sauna on the bank and a café that fills with laughter after the morning dip.
Open-water swimming and paddleboarding on the lake, Swim & Sauna sessions, classes in the cabin, community groups, and events through the year: full-moon swims, sound baths and suppers. Whether you are trying cold water for the first time or you swim every week, you will find a genuinely friendly, inclusive community here.
Meet the team
Jo and Nix started it. A small team keeps it running, from the counter to the sauna.
Jo York
Co-founder
Nix Barnaville
Co-founder
Nic Carter
Café manager
Shyen
Sauna & sound
Paula Lewis
Café & events
Caroline Rickards
Fitness & café
“The lake is the heart of a beautiful four-acre natural site.”
Opened
2023
by Jo and Nix
Site
4 acres
lake, bank, cabin and café
Lake
30 places
a session, never more
Sauna
12 places
wood-fired, on the bank
How it works
Every session is booked ahead
Numbers are capped, so the water never feels busy. The calendar shows real availability, and your pass or membership is applied as you book.
A pass or a membership
A pass holds sessions, to use whenever you like. A membership is book-anytime for its term, paid monthly or upfront.
New here?
Start with Test the Water, £12, once, for a tour and a swim. Afterwards we email you the passes and memberships that fit.
What swimmers say
“Just when you think the lakes can’t get any better… thank you for the wonderful space you have provided. It means so much to us.”
A member, after the lakeside sound bath
“We absolutely loved listening to Shyen today. It made our swim even more special.”
A swimmer, sound bath by the water
“As I was walking towards the water I suddenly started welling up unexpectedly. It really was something so special.”
A guest at the sound bath
Practicalities
Getting here
A car park next to the café, and a few spaces nearer the jetty if you have access needs or a paddleboard.
Five miles an hour on the track: we are on a working farm.
Changing and kit
An undercover changing area and a toilet next to the café. No private changing rooms, so bring a robe.
Tow floats are a must in the water; borrow one for a donation. Wetsuit hire £10.
Dogs
Welcome on a lead around the café, and off it around the lakes if their recall is good.
Please pick up after them; poo bags in the café.
The café
The Fika Café is open before and after your session, for swimmers and their guests.
Life at the lake
Every photo here is one of ours.
Come and see
Book Test the Water, £12, and meet us at the café.
Your first swim needs no pass. Bring a tow float, or borrow one when you arrive.
Open Wednesday to Sunday. The café opens with the lakes, and its hours are on the café page.