An outdoor swimming facility in Oxfordshire will continue operating through September despite severe weather warnings, following a summer of fully-booked sessions.

The venue in Shipton Road, operated by Better, announced visitors can still enjoy the water into the autumn months, with special cold-water swimming programmes lined up.

This decision comes after weeks of record-breaking heat and minimal rainfall across the county created unprecedented interest in outdoor aquatic facilities.

The Woodstock attraction recorded more than 9,000 attendees since May, marking one of its most active periods in recent memory.

However, the prolonged dry and sunny spell is expected to break this week, as the national weather service put out two separate alerts for storms, hail and potential flooding covering Wednesday, August 26 and Thursday, August 27.

A wave of heavy rain and electrical storms is predicted to travel northward from southern parts of the county to areas beyond Manchester across both days, bringing what forecasters described as possibly torrential downpours, localised surface flooding, sizeable hailstones and repeated lightning strikes.

Nevertheless, with more settled conditions anticipated to return, the venue will stay operational from August 31 through September 27.

A company representative stated that after a remarkable season of sunshine and completely filled sessions, the facility is prolonging its timetable into September. From the end of August until late September, the venue will resume its popular cold-water swimming offerings, providing swimmers additional chances to use the much-loved outdoor amenity. Should conditions remain favourable, there could be potential to stretch the season further. Visitors should check the Better website for varying opening hours and are encouraged to reserve places in advance where applicable.