Bath and North East Somerset Council are no poster child for competent management of capital projects . Have a look at Bailii for the most recent bit of litigation against Spa builders Carillion, and the previous fight against former Spa Builders Mowlem. But BANES do run a very nice restaurant at the Pump Room in Bath.
I say “they” but sensibly the Council contracted out the most speculative bit of the attraction – catering – to a private company from whom they take a commission on earnings. (Something for the team planning the Museum of Bristol to think about.)
In fact, BANES’ Heritage Services department look like they’ve got a few ideas worth copying. They bring in a regular £3 million annual income to the city of Bath (possibly even sharing some of it with the Somerset countryside), and have turned around the niche Bath Fashion Museum. But they’re still haemorrhaging money from the Assembly Rooms.
In previous years, Bath haven’t performed fantastically when compared to other public heritage organisers – see the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA) - but they claim to be improving.
I was surprised to find that the only heritage site in Bristol listed at the ALVA is St John the Baptist, the church which encompasses the North Gate on Broad Street. The membership requirements for ALVA are:
To qualify for membership, the attractions must host over a million visitors per year at their singly or centrally-managed sites and be in accord with ALVA's mission statement and quality standards.
Does the North Gate get that many people? Even the SS Great Britain only claims 170,000 visitors per year.
Spit, Spew or Swallow?
Anyhow, if you are in Bath and you do visit the Pump Room, then why not try the following entertaining game of chance, entitled “Spit, Spew or Swallow”. (Note – possibly BristleKRS already owns the trademark).
One of the highlights of a visit to the Roman Baths is an opportunity to try a glass of the stimulating and curative Spa Water for which Bath is famous.
The important point to remember is that “Spa Water” is not the same thing as “Mineral Water”. The latter is generally very pure water with a few trace elements picked up during passage through multiple layers of rock strata; the former is the product of a geothermally heated aquifer and tastes like Satan’s bathwater.
So find yourself a nice table in the Pump Room, place your bets on the tourists purchasing glasses of Spa Water, and see if you can predict whether they spit, spew or swallow. For more information about the advanced rules of the Pump Room game, which includes extra scoring opportunities for grimacing, gagging and dry heaving, please contact the author.
