Taunton, MA Swimming Pools & Spas: Fencing & Safety Requirements (2026)

Chapter 387 of the Taunton Code applies to every artificial pool on private property that reaches a depth of 24 inches or more at any point, whether the pool existed before the ordinance or was installed afterward. The owner, lessee, tenant, mortgagee in possession or any other occupant of the property is personally responsible for enclosing the pool with a protective fence at least four feet high, or another artificial or natural barrier the Superintendent of Public Buildings has approved in its place. Approval is not automatic: the design, materials and construction of the fence or barrier must be reviewed and signed off by that office before the pool is considered compliant.

Every gate in the barrier has to be self-closing and self-latching, and the latch itself must sit at least 54 inches above the ground, high enough that a small child cannot reach it from outside. The chapter layers state requirements on top of the local ones: all fencing must also comply with the Massachusetts State Building Code, and any pool that is public or semi-public, meaning it serves more than a single household, must additionally meet the standards of the Board of Health. Because the rule reaches pools that predate the chapter, an older aboveground or inground pool without a compliant fence is not grandfathered; the owner still has to bring it up to the four-foot barrier and 54-inch latch standard.

The Superintendent of Public Buildings, part of the City's building inspection function, is the office to contact both for approval of a proposed fence and for any question about whether an existing barrier meets the design standard.