Scarborough: How Yorkshire resort is marking 400th anniversary of becoming the UK’s first spa town

The story of Scarborough as a spa town began in 1626 with Thomasin Farrer "discovering" the medicinal potential of the iron-rich, acidic spring water, bubbling out from the base of South Cliff.

She shared her find with friends, and the town quickly became Britain's first seaside health resort, attracting visitors for its waters decades before it became known for sea bathing. A formal spa house was built in the early 1700s, with the famous Victorian complex developing much later.

North Yorkshire Council's head of culture and archives Danielle Daglan said there had been a fantastic response to a competition to design a £95,000 statue, which will stand outside the spa, with the winner to be revealed in the New Year.

Councillor Rich Maw said work by two shortlisted finalists had been presented to Heritage England for their sign off, and either “has the potential to be loved as much as the Freddie (Gilroy) statue (in North Bay)”.

It's been 60 years since anyone drank the spa water, but one of the themes of 2026 will be to emphasise the plentiful opportunities modern-day Scarborough represents for wellness – be it sea swimming, exercising on the Cinder Track, the 21.7 mile walk and cycle route from Scarborough to Whitby, or in the developing "extreme sports" scene.

The idea for a celebration was raised in 2023 by a stamp collector Michael Woolstenholmes, who was hoping to get Royal Mail to design a series of stamps featuring UK spa towns, with Scarborough appearing on a First Class stamp.

There wasn't enough lead-in time, but it led to a group of enthusiasts setting up the Scarborough 400 working group.

Ms Daglan said there's been a groundswell of support from grassroots organisations, from the Old Parcels Office community arts venue to the community archaeology project Scarborough Big Dig.

In mid-July the annual Seafest weekend will be held at the spa rather than West Pier.

Local arts organisation Animated Objects, which specialises in performances using giant artworks and puppets, will be working with the community to put on a parade, focussing on key Scarborians like Mrs Farrer.

Meanwhile the Rotunda, one of the world's first purpose-built museums, will be putting on a special exhibition about the history of "taking the waters" and Scarborough Sea Life will be offering 400 free tickets.

Another of the town’s landmarks, Scarborough Castle, will be offering free days for residents and is working on an events programme with arts body Invisible Dust.

Scarborough Fair will be theming its events round the anniversary.

In October, the town council ringfenced £5,000 for people to apply to put on an anniversary event.

Ms Daglan said the original pump room, which sits under the roundabout outside the spa, floods regularly and had to be pumped out to enable 3D scans to be made, which will be used as part of a permanent display at the spa.

"It regularly fills (with seawater and water coming down the cliffs) and had to be drained to be scanned.

"It's not something that can be easily reinstated."

Councillor Rich Maw said he hoped lessons would be learned from staging the event.

He said preparations had been hampered by the abolition of Scarborough Borough Council, and take over by North Yorkshire Council.

He said: “It’s been like trying to nail jelly to a wall.

"My frustration is that this was brought to my attention in 2023 (by a stamp collector in London) and I couldn’t get officer support until 2025. Had we not been going through local government restructuring we could make a much bigger success of 2026.

"It’s circumstances.”

However he praised Ms Daglan for doing a “remarkable” job of coordinating events being put on by individual groups.

Coun Maw recalls drinking spa water, for free, from a tap half way down the stairs to the beach from outside the spa, where there used to be a cup and chain attached to the wall.

But he said he wouldn’t recommend it to his own grandkids now.

“My dad said it would put hairs on my chest, I remember it tasting foul.”