South Bristol Voice Bedminster February 2019

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February 2019 February 2019

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No. 40

www.southbristolvoice.co.uk

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We Sell and Let Property Like Yours

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Bedminster waits for backing that could save High St Banging the drum: Members of Bristol Samba at Lantern Parade PHOTO: Simon Lewis/Barcan Kirby

Brightest ever lantern parade A RECORD crowd turned out for the Bedminster Winter Lantern Parade on January 19, rearranged after bad weather in December.

Research by Rate BS3, the community-minded market research group run by resident Matt Gibbs, has found the parade makes 85 per cent of residents feel more positive about the area.

And 60 per cent say the parade makes them more likely to trade with firms which sponsor the Continued on page 14

Art deco look for the old arcade – but will council bid for the millions that could bring real change?

THE FUTURE of Bedminster’s main shopping centre is in the balance as traders wait to hear if they will get a share of millions of pounds in government cash and development spin-off funds.

Mayor Marvin Rees has put Bedminster forward for a share of a £10 million Love Our High Street project. But he has yet to decide if he will bid for it to take a slice of a much bigger pie – the Government’s £575m Future High Streets fund.

Meanwhile hints of the upmarket transformation that developers would like to see have been unveiled – and they show that the down-to-earth look of East Street could be changed radically. The Imperial Arcade

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How Imperial Arcade could look

• WHY STREET WARDENS ARE GOOD FOR US 11 • PROTEST OVER LOSS OF BLIND CENTRE 23

... and how it looks at the moment alongside Consort House – the former Imperial Tobacco building next to Asda, now being converted into flats – is set to be revived in art deco splendour.

Currently a rather bleak corridor with two empty shops, it is to be transformed with York Continued on page 5

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• HISTORY: HOW BILLY BUTLIN GOT HIS BREAK IN BEDMINSTER 29-32

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Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

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2 Paul Breeden Editor & publisher 07811 766072 paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk Ruth Drury Sales executive 07590 527664 sales@southbristolvoice.co.uk Editorial team: Beccy Golding, Alex Morss, Martin Powell & The Wicked Witch. Deliveries: Greg Champion

Intro A NEW SOLUTION IT’S HARD to disagree with the worthies of the Bristol Civic Society when they say that a new approach is needed at Bedminster Green.

This large, under-used brownfield plot is a “once in a generation opportunity,” the society says in its contribution to the Framework for the Green.

Trouble is, the Framework has been left to the developers to draw up. Why should they be expected to put the interests of the community – both existing residents and the 2,000-odd who will live in the new homes – at the top of their priorities?

Bedminster Green should be seen like King’s Cross in

Independent Community News Network member

February 2019

HOW DO I GET IN TOUCH WITH ...

London – as too important for developers alone. Put a publicprivate consortium in charge, says the society. Hear, hear.

My councillor?

Post: (all councillors) City Hall, College Green, Bristol BS1 5TR. Celia Phipps Labour, Bedminster

By phone: 07469 413312 By email: Cllr.celia.phipps@bristol.gov.uk Mark Bradshaw Labour, Bedminster. By email: Cllr.mark. bradshaw@bristol.gov.uk By phone: 0117 353 3160 Stephen Clarke Green, Southville By email: Cllr.stephen.clarke@ bristol.gov.uk Charlie Bolton Green, Southville By phone: 07884 736111 By email: Cllr.charlie.bolton@bristol.gov.uk

IN FEAR OF VAN MAN

USEFUL NUMBERS Bristol City Council www.bristol.gov.uk 0117 922 2000 Waste, roads 0117 922 2100 Pests, dog wardens 0117 922 2500 Council tax 0117 922 2900 Housing benefit 0117 922 2300 Social services 0117 922 2900

Police Inquiries 101 Emergency 999 NEIGHBOURHOOD MEETINGS Action Greater Bedminster CIL meeting: to discuss community projects using developer money.

Monday February 11, 7.30pm, Chessel Centre, Chessel Street.

Twitter: @sbristolvoice Facebook: southbristolvoice Next deadline for editorial and advertising: February 13th

WHY has the council dithered so long in drawing up plans for a Clean Air Zone that the Government has now threatened it with legal action?

Because, it seems, there is no easy solution – pollution in Bristol city centre can’t be cut without charges for thousands of diesel vehicles – including those driven by White Van Man. The problems are plain – not enough money, no compensation to help drivers buy a new vehicle, and years of government inaction. Trouble is, the way things have played out looks like a PR own goal for the council.

My MP? Karin Smyth MP By email: karin.smyth.mp@ parliament.uk By post: Karin Smyth MP, House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA By phone: 0117 953 3575 In person: Call 0117 953 3575 for an appointment.

COMPLAINTS Despite our best efforts, we sometimes get things wrong. We always try to resolve issues informally at first but we also have a formal complaints procedure. If you have a complaint about anything in the South Bristol Voice, contact the Editor using the details below. We aspire to follow the the Code of Conduct of the NUJ (National Union of Journalists), nuj.org.uk/about/nuj-code.

Further details of the complaints process can be found on our website (below) or can be obtained by contacting the Editor by email: paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk or by post: 18 Lilymead Avenue, Bristol BS4 2BX or by phone: 07811 766072. southbristolvoice.co.uk/complaints-procedure All stories and pictures are ©South Bristol Voice (unless otherwise stated) and may not be reproduced without permission in this or any other plane of the multiverse.

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February 2019

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Mini-village for homeless is in reach of £50,000 target HELP Bristol’s Homeless is within reach of success in its plan to build a mini-village of containers for the homeless in a Bedminster back street – and is already planning Phase 2.

But first it must raise the final £50,000 to make the project a reality – and recruit volunteers to make the new site in Spring Street ready for its first occupants.

Jasper Thompson, the driving force at Help Bristol’s Homeless (HBH), is hoping a third art auction will raise at least £10,000. It already has £20,000 of the £50,000 needed.

The target was £100,000 – but HBH received so much help from corporate donors that it was able to cut the amount in half.

EDF Energy is building staircases and walkways for the new site, while housebuilder Balfour Beatty is sending in teams of apprentices. Other backers include Ecotricity, John Lewis, Origin3 Planning, and scores of Bristol companies.

Now the charity is inviting donations from Bristol’s art community for an auction on April 24, at a location to be decided. Two previous auctions raised more than £22,000.

HBH is being allowed to use the site of a council-owned derelict warehouse in Spring Street for five years. It wants to knock down the buildings, which are at a dead end next to the railway, and install 15 container homes. The containers will be

Entrance to the container “village” stacked two deep to form a courtyard, with planters so that residents can grow their own food. More containers will hold a kitchen, dining room, bathroom block and laundry. Solar panels will supply power, and two containers will be set on end to contain a 10m staircase tower with views of Windmill Hill.

A planning application made in August is still awaiting a decision from the council. It has received backing from WHaM, the Windmill Hill residents’ planning group, and from the council’s City Design Team.

A resident on York Road wrote to the council complaining people living on the road hadn’t been consulted. He raised concerns about anti-social behaviour, saying there is already street crime in and around York Road connected with drug dealing.

Police recorded 94 crimes within 200m of the site in the

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year to September 2018, of which 30 were violence and 29 anti-social behaviour. In a statement to the council, police recommended an extra access-controlled gate and other measures, but did not object to the scheme.

HBH has drawn up behaviour guidelines for the site, which will be closed to new arrivals after 9pm. No drugs or alcohol will be allowed, and residents must agree a good behaviour policy.

The charity has a handful of container homes on the former Pring & St Hill factory site in Malago Road, which it must vacate by the end of April to make way for developer A2Dominion. The Voice is unaware of any complaints that have been made about this site.

In January HBH became a charity, meaning it can claim tax relief and other benefits. helpbristolshomeless.co.uk

NEXT - PHASE 2 ONCE the container village at Spring Street is open, HBH has its eyes on a row of empty offices next door. “We would love to clear that and put in another 30 or more containers,” said Jasper Thompson. “We would love to work there with a church or another organisation.”

BBC TV’s DIY SoS has said it would work with HBH on a Phase 2. Jasper hopes this will tip the council into giving the go-ahead to extend the project.

Who are our wonderful women?

THE VOICE is seeking wonderful women! Next month – March – includes International Women’s Day and to celebrate, our history feature will be about the long struggle in the city for women to win the vote.

To bring us up to date, we want to hear about wonderful women in our community. Please nominate a woman you think is special and deserves our respect.

They might be in business, they might have coped with difficult personal circumstances, or they might be doing something that in past times women weren’t expected to do.

We can think of plenty of candidates in South Bristol – but we want to hear from you. Email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk by February 13. There will be prizes!

Wanted man Police want to speak to this man after a Christmas theft

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February 2019

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two-bedroom home, rented to a tenant.

The council visited in January 2018, when “it was evident that the building was being used and occupied as a fully self-contained separate dwelling unit”.

Officials noticed a house sign, “154A”Side on Elevation the passageway leading to the new home, between 152 and 154 Marksbury Road. This sign was not visible when the Voice visited.

Planners also advised that the home didn’t meet minimum room sizes – the bedrooms are both too small, and the home is 50 sq m in total, instead of the 70 sq m necessary for the four bed spaces provided.

Bristol city council told the Voice that the new planning application “does not have a direct bearing on the enforcement notice”,Side implying that the Elevation demolition must go ahead.

We attempted to contact Mr Fry through his agents but received no reply.

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Permitted – a 6m ‘home office’ Front Elevation

Built – a 10m, two-bedroom home

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office, 6m long, was approved.

However, what was built was quite different. Mr Fry bought part of the garden of No. 152, and constructed a 10m-long structure behind both houses. It has a gate ontoRear Marksbury Road open Elevation space, from where it is visible.

The Voice has established that the structure isn’t a games room or ancillary building – it is a 2500

demolish a home he built illegally across the back gardens of two houses in South Bristol.

John Fry has lost an appeal to a government inspector to keep the two-bedroom dwelling behind 152 and 154 Marksbury Road – meaning that he has three months to comply with an enforcement notice and knock it down.

However, after the inspector made his ruling on December 21, on January 16 a new planning application was made for a “single storey home office” behind 152 Marksbury Road – on part of the same site where the new home already sits.

Several applications and appeals relating to the site have been made since 2016 by Mr Fry, who lives in Dundry.

He first applied for a two storey “ancillary building” behind No. 154, with a home office downstairs and a games room upstairs. This was refused, but a later plan for a single storey home

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ALMOST 70 objections have been registered to a plan for an LED digital advertising screen in Bedminster.

Maxx Media wants to change a billboard in Sheen Road, opposite Lidl, to a digital screen of 6.3m by 3.1m, with images changing every 10 seconds.

Objectors say the screens are a distraction and a safety hazard to drivers, as well as an eyesore.

The Adblock campaign has been instrumental in defeating 30 advertising screens in Bristol in the last 18 months. Among them was a plan for a large LED screen on Newfoundland Way near Cabot Circus, which was refused by planners on January 23 for its safety risk and visual impact.

Adblock organisers, including Bedminster’s Nicola Round, hope to persuade the council to include a “no new billboards” policy in the city’s Local Plan, which is to be debated in the spring.

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RULE CHANGE COULD BRING MILLIONS MORE TO BEDMINSTER

Bedminster revival New businesses are showing confidence in East Street area – but is it enough?

REDEVELOPMENT OF ARGOS SITE, EAST STREET, BRISTOL DESIGN AND ACCESS STATEMENT DECEMBER 2018

support traders. Firmstone plans a cinema in its St Catherine’s Place scheme, which could be a draw for people from further afield.

Ideas from Love Our High Street include new uses for empty shops, encouraging creative and digital businesses into East Street.

Already the Southville end of North Street has acquired a New shop and flats at Argos site hipster chic with new businesses opening almost every week. in up to five storeys above the The latest include the Nordic new store and on the car park to Café, a Scandinavian daytime the rear, in Herbert Street. eatery which is expected to open Building new shops will be of in early February. It takes the no value, though, if East Street place of the Margot May can’t be revived. With Argos and tearoom, which closed in Bon Marche departing in the last January, to the dismay of many. year, there will be worries over Whether the demand exists to its remaining national chains. carry the transformation into Nearby, homeware store Wilko East Street and Bedminster has said it will pull out of Knowle’s Parade remains to be seen.

Broadwalk shopping centre in George Grace, manager of the September – though there is no Town Team which represents threat to the East Street store.

Bedminster traders, is waiting for New homes around Bedminster the council to make up its mind could U Green R B A (see N Dpages E S I G6-7) N on the Future High Streets fund. bring 3,000 or more new Scale : 1:100 @ A3 Project : 154 Marksbury Road, He also wants local people to residents to24.09.14 Date : Bristol, BS3 to 5JX the area, helping Drawing No: 14.019 - 003 g Title : Proposed Elevations back changes to CIL rules, worth millions to the area (see panel). works around East Street, “This is very important for the Bedminster Parade, Malago Road future of East Street as it could and Sheene Road. catalyse the very significant The CIL comes from developers. funds needed to make the area an Normally only 15 per cent of this attractive and viable shopping cash is spent on projects local to and leisure destination”, he said. the development. But if the “Regardless of how big Amazon council includes Bedminster Green becomes, if we can improve the on its CIL Regulation 123 List, it shopping experience and bring in could unlock 80 per cent of the a few new businesses then we can developers’ levy – worth millions. potentially make the sort of town Comments to cil@bristol.gov.uk centre south Bristolians deserve.”

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Easy way to get kids walking to school PARENTS of children at Ashton Vale primary school are being encouraged to get their children walking to school.

From February 5, parents who normally drive their children to the school gates can take part in Park and Stride – leaving their car at the Robins pub in Winterstoke Road, and walking the rest of the way.

Park and Stride is on MondayThursday only – not Friday, when the pub has a delivery.

“Children love walking to school, but I appreciate that it’s not always possible for parents.

This will enable those who live further away to park the car and walk the last 10 minutes to school,” said Kelly Theis, Bristol organiser for walking charity Living Streets.

“It’s great for the children as it benefits them socially and physically, while mentally getting them ready for a day at school. It will also reduce congestion around the school, making it safer for everyone.” livingsteets.org.uk

Picking it up MEMBERS of Ashton Vale Together will be litter picking and looking out for street issues on Thursday February 14. They meet by the bus stop on Langley Cresent at 10am. The group’s next meeting is at the community centre on Risdale Road on February 26, from 6.30-8pm.

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Continued from page 1 stone paving, hanging lights and shop signs, and an art deco backdrop.

Developer City & Country clearly has eyes on more upmarket shops, too. In place of the current mobile phone shop and a charity shop, it visualises fashionable cafés and grocery stores. Plans filed with the council show that only Section A - A Specsavers and the Post Office have leases beyond 2021.

Down the road, the former Bedminster library has been revived as a multi-million pound, A 24-hour, hi-tech gym called Luxe.

Manager of the Luxe chain is Olympian Allyn Condon, who said he hopes the gym will be an valuable asset to an up-andhome office coming community.

Another glimpse of the future comes from plans for the former Argos building, now owned by 66 East Street Ltd, a firm backed

by Francis Firmstone, one of the A would-be developers of Bedminster Green.

Ground Floor Plan Argos closed in September 2018, moving into the Sainsbury’s store in Winterstoke Road.

The Argos building itself is unlikely to be missed, but objections are expected to the complete absence of affordable housing. The plan is for 49 flats

A TWEAK to the council’s rules could divert millions of pounds to improving roads, the River Malago and public spaces around Bedminster Green. The council is asking for comments on whether it should use its Community Infrastructure Levy, or CIL, on

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n NEWS Billboard draws tide of protest A LANDLORD has been told to

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Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

February 2019

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n NEWS Invitation to library talks AN EXTRA £2 million, which could be raised by Bristol city council if it increases council tax by 3.99 per cent, could help pay for a revamp of the library service. It would mean tax on an average band D property would rise by £64.87, or £1.25 a week.

Consultation on libraries, announced in December, was criticised because it wasn’t clear if any branches were under threat.

But if councillors agree the tax rise on February 26, the extra cash will be spent on libraries, parks and education.

The council is seeking ideas on how to improve libraries, perhaps with volunteer help or more activities. Meetings will be held at The Park centre in Daventry Road, Knowle, on Tuesday February 26 and Saturday March 2, 10am-12 noon, to discuss libraries at Knowle, Wick Road, Stockwood, Filwood, Marksbury Road and Bedminster.

BEDMINSTER GREEN

How will Green developers respond to public’s views?

ANGER and frustration over the Framework which is supposed to tie together the five development sites around Bedminster Green came to the fore at a public meeting in January.

Calls were made for a consortium of developers, planners and the community to manage the development, which could provide up to 1,500 homes.

Many people feel their concerns have not been listened to for several years, heard the meeting, hosted by Action Greater Bedminster (AGB).

At the moment the four developers have signed up to a Framework document which is supposed to guide how they make their individual plans.

But consultation on the Framework ended on January 13 – five days after the public meeting

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– and it’s not clear if developers will amend their plans to take public concerns into account.

Three planning applications have already been made – for a 22-storey tower at St Catherine’s Place by Firmstone; for 599 new homes, mainly for students, by A2Dominion on Malago Road; and for 329 homes in up to 17 storeys at Little Paradise by Dandara.

Plans have yet to be revealed for a second plot to be built by Dandara on mainly council-owned land near the Green and the railway station, and for the NCP car park, owned by Deeley Freed.

The public meeting heard calls to consider the impact of the Framework – which will see Bedminster Green walled in by tall buildings on all four sides.

WHaM, the Windmill Hill residents group which has led opposition to the high-rises, said the Framework was too vague, with no defined heights or mix of housing types. The plans so far revealed are almost all for one or two bedroom homes.

The developers are breaking its guidelines already, “showing a complete lack of respect for the community,” WHaM says.

The meeting heard from Cllr Nicola Beech, the cabinet lead on city design, who has been trying to get the developers to sign up to more stringent guidelines. She

DANDARA Little Paradise

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AND between Little Paradise and Stafford Street could see a 17-storey tower and smaller buildings to contain 329 flats (pictured right). They would be mainly one bedroom – 239 – with 90 flats of two bedrooms.

There would be a ground floor gym, and a residents lounge and terrace facing Stafford Street, plus a private, shared green space next to Little Paradise. There would be 358 cycle spaces, and 84 basement car parking spaces.

Dandara’s planning application was recorded on January 2 – 11 days before the Framework consultation ended. pointed out that Bristol needs 33,500 new homes by 2036, with Bedminster earmarked for 2,500.

Southville councillor Stephen Clarke, who serves on a planning committee, did not want to pre-judge the plans. But he assured residents that planners do listen to residents’ concerns.

He said a 12-storey block proposed for Redcliffe was refused by planners in November.

AGB has sent a summary of views raised at the meeting to the council. The Nash Partnership, which drew up the Framework for the developers, is considering a response to the consultation.

A2DOMINION Malago Rd

A

2DOMINION, which calls itself “a residential property group with a social purpose”, has still not told the Voice why its proposed housing blocks are higher than allowed by the Framework it has signed up to.

The firm made a planning application in January, shortly after Framework consultation ended, though it had not been posted on the council website when the Voice went to press.

New images from A2Dominion show that it has reduced the size of its blocks – though still not to the Framework size of 6-9 storeys.

Three buildings that in the original drawings were 11 storeys are now 10 floors. A block that was 15 storeys now appears to be 12.

February 2019

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n NEWS

BEDMINSTER GREEN

‘The public interest requires new approach’: Civic Society

Have a say on community spending plans

‘Opportunity will be lost if each plot is treated separately’ BRISTOL Civic Society, one of the most respected commentators on developments in the city, has called for a new privatepublic partnership to oversee Bedminster Green.

In a measured response to the developers’ Framework for the up-to-1,500-home scheme, the society accepts many of the ideas.

But it also makes a list of major criticisms – and concludes that the public interest means a partnership between private and public sector is essential.

The society calls the plan “a massive piece of urbanisation” and “a once in a generation opportunity”.

“This opportunity will be lost if each development site is treated as a stand-alone development. The public interest requires a consortium to carry forward the work begun by the Nash Partnership to integrate the Bedminster Green development with the East Bedminster town centre. There should be a public/ private partnership as there is with Kings Cross ... in London.”

The society points out gaps in the Framework – there is no overall view of the Green, because some of the plans are not ready.

It criticises the lack of open space, and the way Bedminster

Lower: The Malago Road blocks The number of student rooms has been reduced from 573 to 550 and the number of social housing units from 64 flats to 49.

A2Dominion said it would not comment further until its planning application was online – though there was nothing preventing it from doing so.

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Somewhat larger: an image from Dandara’s planning application shows its own block, and St Catherine’s Place, set against houses in Church Lane Green itself will be surrounded by tall buildings. “The Green could offer few more advantages than a pocket park,” it says.

It asks planners to look instead at Bristol’s historic Queen Square, with much lower buildings and much more green space.

At the moment, the Framework is a document drawn up and paid for by the four private developers – Dandara, A2Dominion, Deeley Freed and Firmstone.

The council – and in particular city design chief Cllr Nicola Beech – has been trying to persuade the developers to commit to high standards of design and to work together for the good of the community.

Yet three of the developers made planning applications before public feedback to the Framework has even been considered.

The public’s chief worry – the height of the buildings – is not controlled by the Framework. It

sets no limit on the tallest parts of the buildings. And height guidelines that cover the rest of the plots have been broken.

The Civic Society says it will be for the council to decide whether A2Dominion’s “abrupt” tall buildings “harm or humanise” Malago Road. Like the Voice, it points out that the Framework says the plot should be 6-9 floors, with extra floors only where set back from streets.

But it praises the use of the site for students and social housing.

At St Catherine’s Place, it calls Firmstone’s plan for a 22-storey tower “overbearing” and “a continuous cliff of masonry”.

It also questions whether the building will be economic if new fire safety rules post-Grenfell mean it has to install an expensive double core.

The Voice was unable to speak to Cllr Beech to learn her response to the society’s views.

DO YOU want a say in how money raised from developers is spent in BS3?

Community group Action Greater Bedminster is holding a meeting to suggest ideas for worthy projects, which could include road safety ideas and improvements to parks.

The Community Infrastructure Levy, or CIL, takes money from developments according to their size – any scheme that adds 110 sq m of floorspace usually has to contribute.

Most of this money is spent centrally by the council, but 15 per cent is spent in the area near the development.

The AGB meeting will discuss local priorities with the four councillors for Southville and Bedminster.

The councillors then have to argue the case for the BS3 projects with councillors from four other South Bristol wards – but there is an unspoken agreement that each area will receive a share of the money, likely to total tens of thousands of pounds each.

The AGB meeting is at the Chessel Centre, Chessel Street, on Monday February 11 at 7.30-9pm.

• Separately, there are calls for most of the millions in CIL expected from Bedminster Green developments to be ploughed into roads and infrastructure in the area. The public can give comments (panel, page 5).

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8

n NEWS Helen’s keeping children safer THE LIFESKILLS safety education centre has presented Knowle volunteer guide Helen Brown with an award for completing over 100 sessions.

Helen, who lives near Perrett’s Park, has been a volunteer at Lifeskills for four years, helping show more than 400 children aged 10 to 11 how to stay safe.

Based in the Create Centre, Smeaton Road, Ashton, Lifeskills is an interactive village with 19 safety scenarios. Children can practise 999 calls, react to a house fire, learn first aid and see the consequences of trespassing on a railway – all made realistic with light, sound and wind effects.

Manager Andy Townsend said: “We know what we do here makes a difference; one child helped his family escape a fire, another prevented a gas explosion.”

To find out more about volunteering at Lifeskills visit lifeskills-bristol.org.uk

February 2019

February 2019

TRANSPORT

n NEWS

Ring road ‘is in wrong place’ MP calls on council to rethink its backing for route A RING road around South Bristol which has the potential to divert traffic from jammed-up roads in Knowle and Brislington will not work, agree a Knowle councillor and the area’s MP. Cllr Gary Hopkins, Lib Dem member for Knowle, says the plan is in the wrong place and will send “massively more” vehicles along residential roads.

The intention is to take traffic away from parts of Bath Road and the A4174 Airport Road, but both Cllr Hopkins and MP Karin Smyth fear this won’t happen.

The new route, proposed by Bath & North East Somerset council (BaNES), starts at Hick’s Gate roundabout near Brislington, crosses Green Belt on the fringe of Stockwood, then passes

Wed 20 February - Sat 06 April 2019

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Whitchurch Village and crosses the A37. After that, controversially, it runs along Whitchurch Lane to the roundabout at Hengrove.

Also planned are 3,500 homes at Queen Charlton and Hengrove.

MP Karin Smyth said Bristol city council’s own transport strategy says building new roads will not solve congestion.

Research shows that more road space simply attracts more cars.

She said it was “absurd” for BaNES to propose 2,500 homes near Queen Charlton without “substantial” new public transport.

It’s now down to Weca, the West of England authority led by Conservative metro mayor Tim Bowles, to pull together a regional plan for transport and housing.

Ms Smyth also wants Bristol to “vigorously oppose” any new links from the A37 to Whitchurch Lane using either Washing Pound Lane or Halfacre Lane.

Mayor Marvin Rees faced around 300 angry protesters

when he arrived at St Augustine’s church in Whitchurch on January 17 to debate the plan.

Resident after resident asked him to reject the route, citing damage to the Green Belt, the impact of homes on neighbours, and the pollution, road safety risks and traffic congestion.

Applause greeted one woman when she said: “We understand that there’s a real problem with transport and something needs to be done, but Whitchurch Lane is not the right place for it.”

Mr Rees calmed the mood somewhat by promising to look at alternative routes.

But change was coming, he warned – Bristol expects a huge jump in population by 2036, from 450,000 to 550,000.

If the city does not try to plan new homes and roads, developers will march in and make their own plans. These might not include schools, amenities or public transport, he warned.

South Bristol would get the first route, says Marvin IN DEFIANCE of the sceptics who say it will never be built, Bristol city council is seeking more backing to investigate how to build an underground network.

The next steps towards a mass transit network, which could include buses, overground or underground rail, will be debated by the West of England Combined Authority (Weca) on February 1. Weca will be asked to approve £200,000 to work on a business case, with guidance from the Department for Transport.

The first subway route would be under South Bristol, mayor Marvin Rees told a meeting in Whitchurch to discuss the ring road proposal (see opposite page).

There was laughter when Mr Rees mentioned his underground plan – but he urged residents: “Let’s not believe the newspapers, let’s look at the evidence.”

So far, studies on engineering

southbristolvoice

9

TRANSPORT

MIND THE GAP

T

HERE’S one teeny problem before Bristol can get an underground – the cost. The £350m budget Weca has for transport doesn’t come close to the £3-4bn price.

What’s the answer? Bristol is seeking private investors, and hopes that if a developer wants to build 2,000 homes at the proposed Western Harbour in Cumberland Basin, it might fund a tunnel under the harbour. But more cash will

be needed – and that could come from a congestion charge, a workplace parking levy on firms with more than 10 parking spaces, business rates or council tax.

Edging closer: Driverless, two-carriage trains of the kind which could be used on a Bristol underground network

Subway plan inches forward and on the finances have been positive, he said. Planners believe corridors in Bristol are so tightly packed, there are few other options but to go underground.

The city’s biggest transport need is a fast route to the airport, and a subway could cut under South Bristol to emerge near the A38. Experts are looking at short, driverless trains arriving every couple of minutes. No stations

have been planned yet, but a stop in Bedminster looks likely.

With two more routes, journeys from the city centre to the airport, Aztec West and Emersons Green could be cut to 20 minutes. But it could take 20 years to build a tube network.

Weca is also looking at better links to East Bristol, and to Bath.

A new Metrobus route along Bath Road looks likely, but there’s also

an idea for a light rail link from Temple Meads to the new park and ride proposed for the Hicks Gate roundabout.

West of England mayor Tim Bowles, said: “This is an ambitious plan that could dramatically improve transport for residents across our region.

It’s not something that we can deliver overnight, so it’s essential that we do the groundwork.”

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Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

February 2019

southbristolvoice

10

n NEWS

Council ordered to come up with a Clean Air plan

‘My daughter is coughing when she walks here’

A GOVERNMENT minister has threatened legal action against Bristol city council after it failed to come up with a plan for tackling air pollution by a deadline of December 31.

The Voice has been asking the council for two months why it was set to miss its deadline for planning a Clean Air Zone (CAZ).

In a statement just before Christmas, mayor Marvin Rees said modelling all the options for CAZs and their potential impacts had taken longer than expected.

He blamed a lack of support from central government and added: “It is essential that whatever option is chosen it is right for Bristol and we will ensure we have all the evidence in place to make the right decision for the city and residents.”

But the mayor did not say what he was doing about the deadline, which was made by a government directive in July 2017. Now the council has been forced to confront

the issue by environment minister Denise Coffrey.

She wrote to Mr Rees saying she is “alarmed” to hear that the council will not unveil its plans until the summer. The council is also refusing to share its data with the Government before then.

“This means you have unlawfully failed to comply with the Direction, and I am absolutely astonished at your delay in improving air quality for the people of Bristol as quickly as possible,” wrote Ms Coffrey.

She has set a new deadline of February 21 for the council to come up with a new plan.

As the Voice went to press, the mayor was preparing a letter to the minister to explain the council’s position.

Last year the council released maps of two alternative Clean Air Zones. A small zone would include the city centre, within the inner ring road. The medium zone includes Bedminster and

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PARENTS have been on TV to call for action to protect their children’s health from traffic pollution on South Bristol roads.

“We know that it has lots of damaging effects on health, including children’s health,” Alex Morss, the Voice’s environment writer, told ITV West on January 25.

“You can feel it in your lungs when you walk along,” Alex said, against a backdrop of exhaust fumes from early-morning traffic Ashton (though not Ashton Vale).

But the Voice understands that once officials started planning a CAZ, it began to to dawn that the implications were alarming.

To be effective at cutting pollution by 2021, the council might have to charge not only older buses and lorries entering the zone, but cars and vans too.

Petrol vehicles made before about 2004 and diesels made before 2015 would be affected.

This would affect many tens of thousands of Bristolians with relatively new diesel vehicles – including probably a majority of tradespeople. Until recently most vans were diesel powered.

on St John’s Lane. My daughter is asthmatic and when she walks along here she starts coughing.”

You can see the ITV West interview, including warnings from a health expert, at tinyurl.com/StJohnsLane It’s not clear how the council will square this circle. But Mr Rees has publicly called for more support from the Government, for example by funding a scrappage scheme for diesels.

Other councils are grappling with the same issue: Bath has aroused protests by announcing a £9 a day pollution charge by the end of 2020.

Many politicians hold the Government, not local councils, responsible for the delays and confusion over tackling pollution.

Air quality limits have been broken in the UK since 2008 and the EU ordered the Government to take action as far back as 2010.

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n NEWS

BS3 is getting cleaner thanks to wardens on the lookout

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Now there are 26 street wardens tackling all kinds of waste problems and obstructions THE TEAM of volunteer street wardens who keep an eye out for obstructions and other problems on roads all over BS3 is expanding steadily – and already they are beginning to see results.

Since the idea began last year, 26 streets in Greater Bedminster now have their own selfappointed warden.

They look out for flytipping, bins left on the pavement and other things that can cause danger or inconvenience. They either report issues to the council – in which case the offending item is usually removed in 48 hours – or leave a polite note asking residents to take action.

Organiser Ben Barker is delighted with the results so far.

“We reckon that most obstructions are caused because people just haven’t thought about it,” he said.

“They might not have brought their dustbin in because they have to lift it up steps, or they might not have cut their hedge which is overhanging the pavement.

“When you remind them, most people are perfectly decent,

Moving a mountain: This is how much litter is dropped in Bristol every year PHOTO: Bristol Waste

and they will take action.”

Incidents the street wardens have dealt with include some abandoned shelving on Allington Road; an abandoned fridge; and a long-overgrown hedge that blocks a pavement on Windmill Hill.

There has been less success in persuading residents in Stanley Street North to move their bins off the pavement after a waste collection. But now owner Sovereign Housing has promised to monitor the bins daily on CCTV, and get them moved if they are left on the street.

Some wardens restrict themselves to reporting issues to the city council. Others write notes to residents in a street if there is an issue that affects them all. Some chalk around any dog mess on the pavement to draw attention to it.

“There’s no confrontation,”

n SOUTH Bristol has a new folk club – the Redcatch Club, which opens with a performance by Alice Jones at Redcatch community centre, Redcatch Road, Knowle at 7.45pm on

n WINDOW Wonderland returns to Windmill Hill and Victoria Park on February 22-24, along with Bedminster, Southville and Ashton. To register and add your home to the event map, visit tinyurl.com/whillwindows2019 n SALVATORE and Robert Lopresti, father and son who run the Lopresti ice cream business in Bedminster Parade, have been bailed again on charges of modern slavery. The pair were remanded for trial at Bristol crown court on May 13. n A BEDMINSTER cyclist accused of severly injuring a woman in an incident in East Street on January 15 is to face a judge. Conor Coltman, 26, of East Street, appears at Bristol crown court on February 11 charged with causing bodily harm by wanton or furious driving, and wounding causing grievous bodily harm without intent. n A PROPOSAL to replace a car paint workshop with a block of five flats over three storeys in a Southville back street has split opinion among neighbours. KS Bodyworks is in a former coach house behind the large houses on Coronation Road. Two neighbours have backed the plans while three in Coronation Road have opposed them, saying the flats will be taller than their homes.

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n BRIEFLY n DO YOU have a secret garden to share? Thousands of pounds has been raised for local good causes by Bedminster’s Secret Gardens open days every June. Anyone interested in taking part this year can find out more at tinyurl.com/ Bedminstersecretgardens2019

said Ben. “We recognise that there are some people who are unable to cut their hedge or put their bin away, so we offer to help if we can by finding a neighbour to do it for them.”

If you would like to find out more about the street warden idea – the target is to get up to 40 wardens – email greaterbedminster@gmail.com.

The wardens’ efforts link in with a drive to improve the main walking routes through Bedminster called Let’s Walk Bedminster, and another campaign to make BS3 businesses more friendly to older people and those with dementia.

More on this in a future Voice.

Anyone can report an obstruction to the council at bristol.gov.uk/report-a-streetissue or by calling 0117 922 2100.

n BRIEFLY Windows will light up again

OR THURSDAY SPORTS MASSAGE

EVENINGS FROM 5PM T

February 9. Alice is a folk singer and multi-instrumentalist – R2 magazine called her “an exceptional talent”. Tickets £8, BYO, open mic session to start. n DEMOLITION of the sorting office next to Temple Meads station began on January 30, though the cost of knocking it down is not yet known. Bristol city council sold the site to Bristol university for a new £300 million campus – but the council must deal with risks such as clearing a historic cholera burial pit.

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southbristolvoice

12

February 2019

February 2019

southbristolvoice

n NEWS

13

THE NHS

MP slams secrecy over NHS contract Plans could be a big boost for South Bristol hospital, says Smyth – but why can’t bidders be named?

MP KARIN Smyth has called on health bosses to end the secrecy around a big overhaul of adult community health services which could have major implications for South Bristol hospital.

A shortlist is being drawn up of organisations which want to provide services such as district nurses and support for people leaving hospital.

The new deal will cover not just Bristol, but North Somerset and South Gloucestershire as well.

The CCGs or commissioning groups which run NHS services in the three areas were merged in 2017, despite protest by Ms Smyth.

She wants the CCG to open up

Job opportunities at Bristol Airport Around 4,000 people are employed at Bristol Airport, which handled over 8.7 million passengers in 2018. But, with approval to develop facilities to handle up to 10 million passengers per annum in the future, the workforce is forecast to grow.

Two Jobs Fairs will provide a ‘one stop shop’ for anyone interested in working at the Airport, with many of the different employers on site represented, including security provider ICTS, food travel experts SSP and The Restaurant Group (TRG), ground-handling specialists DHL and Swissport, and duty-free shopping operator World Duty Free.

Jobs on offer range across customer service, security, catering and retail, many of which are shift work roles on a permanent and fixed term seasonal basis.

Jobs Fairs • Tuesday 26 February, 10.00am until 1.00pm at Weston College Knightstone Campus, Knightstone Road, Weston-super-Mare BS23 2AL

about who is bidding for the NHS services. Companies competing to build Bristol arena, for example, were named in a public shortlist.

In theory, private companies could bid – such as Virgin Care, which in 2016 won a similar £700 million bid for community services in Bath & North East Somerset. Virgin has been much criticised for suing the NHS when it doesn’t win contracts.

Ms Smyth also wants to see that South Bristol’s community hospital gets more services. She says it could help serve residents of new homes in Bedminster, Hengrove and beyond.

“The intention behind the new Metrobus routes was to link in to South Bristol hospital and and to allow people from North Somerset to come to the hospital,” she said. Ms Smyth believes these extra patients would help justify new services at the hospital.

The community services are

South Bristol hospital: Could gain currently run by Bristol Community Health, a social enterprise company.

Ms Smyth wants to make sure the plans cater for the real needs of people in South Bristol.

Someone living in Knowle West being discharged from hospital may have a very low income and poor housing. They will need more help than someone with the same health needs who lives in a better home in Clevedon, she said.

Dr Kate Rush, speaking for the CCG, said the aim of the project was to ensure that “high quality care will be available

consistently, no matter where in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire you live.

“We will make the best use of current buildings and services, like South Bristol Community Hospital, which many local people rely on,” she said.

“We’re using a rigorous competitive process to choose the organisation.”

She said a panel of patients and carers will meet the bidders “to make sure they put patients’ needs at the heart of their plans”.

She added: “We need to keep the details about interested organisations private, in line with NHS national guidelines.

Following detailed evaluation of organisations’ proposals by clinicians, patients and other experts, the organisation selected will be announced in the autumn.”

Ms Smyth told the CCG the secrecy was not necessary “and is certainly not helpful in keeping any of this process transparent.”

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To advertise, contact sales@southbristolvoice.co.uk or Ruth on 07590 527664

Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

February 2019

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14

n LANTERN PARADE

PICTURE SPECIAL

Elephant on the march with Compass Point primary

PHOTO: Stephen Lewis, Barcan Kirby

southbristolvoice

15

n CELEBRATIONS – WEDDINGS & VALENTINE’S

ADVERTISING FEATURE

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Above, Private Gromit leads the contingent from Marksbury Road school

February 2019

Continued from page 1 event. Combined, these factors hopefully make it more likely the Lanterns will return in December after last year’s funding crisis, provoked by Asda’s withdrawal.

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n BRIEFLY n THE COLSTON Hall is seeking opinions after deciding to change its name to avoid links with the slave owner Edward Colston. One of a series of consultation days will be held at Knowle West Media Centre in Leinster Avenue, Knowle West, on February 5. It’s open from 9am-8pm to gather views on a vision for the new hall after a two-year, £48.8 million rebuild. colstonhall.org n VOLUNTEERS from Franc – the Friends of the Avon New Cut – meet on Saturday February 9 to

LOWERS & Co can create the perfect gift for your Valentine, from a token of love to a grand gesture of romance.

Beautifully gift-wrapped bouquets and bespoke gifts are available from as little as £5.

There’s lots for you to look at displayed in the shop, including gifts, cards and floral arrangements made to

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Make sure your special day sparkles clean up the York Road riverbank.

Meet at 9.50am by the Banana bridge. Refreshments and chips will follow at Harry’s Café in Fowlers motorcycle showroom.

Details: call 0117 954 4888. n A NEW group for disabled people is meeting monthly.

Bristol Disability Equality Forum is led by disabled residents. The next meeting is on February 22 at the Gatehouse Centre, Hareclive Road BS13 9JN from 10.30am12.30pm. Email mike.bristoldef@ gmail.com or call 0117 914 0528.

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Wine expert: Deniz Bayram hand. Whether you’re planning a big celebration or a small dinner party, let Tastevin help you choose the best wines for your special day and avoid wasting money on bad wine.

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n LOOKING BEYOND TOMORROW Planning ahead can mean many different things. It can be looking after your mobility; insuring yourself against things going wrong; and finding carers that you can trust.

Curam Care curamcare.com

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February 2019

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16

ONDERFUL care providers are deserting this vital sector leaving thousands of care recipients suffering from sub-standard care. Why? Not just low pay – care workers are rarely solely motivated by money –but by overall conditions of work. The system, as it exists, leaves care recipients poorly served and care providers poorly valued.

A new name, Curamcare.com, aims to change that. How? Choice. Curamcare’s aim is to introduce clients to care workers who have been interviewed and evaluated by their team, who have been DBS checked, have provided multiple references and

who speak excellent English.

Clients choose the carer suitable to their needs. Equally, the care worker can accept or reject an offer that may or may not suit their circumstances. This way, both parties willingly transact on the terms that suit them.

So, how much does it cost?

Well, it depends on the carer and the client’s needs – on the Curamcare platform, the carer set their rates according to their experience (currently averaging 8.5 years) and expertise.

Curamcare only asks that no one transacts at less than £12 per hour (the current platform average is £15.10 per hour).

Home care can be costly – particularly when agencies and payroll companies charge between 25 per cent and 75 per cent to cover overheads and admin costs. At 12.5 per cent, Curam Care’s commission is the lowest in the sector. Its care workers are self-employed and insured and as such, can command a greater share of the care budget without adversely affecting their clients’ finances.

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Bedminster Pharmacy

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HEN affected by illness or disability, many people worry that they will have to leave their home in order to find the care they need.

But most people are happier staying in the home they know – and nowadays there is a huge range of products and services that can help people look after themselves.

Bedminster Pharmacy offers equipment and advice, from walkers and wheelchairs to help people get around, to less obvious devices which can make a difference, such as grab rails and raised toilet seats.

The pharmacy can obtain all the devices that can be found for sale online – but with the advantage that you can look at the products before you buy.

“You can come in, have a look and if it’s not suitable for you we will send it back,” says owner

Ade Williams. Also available are devices for opening jars, grabbers to pick things up, and bath and shower stools. The pharmacy also stocks a variety of incontinence products. Like all its range, these can be delivered free.

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February 2019

southbristolvoice

n LOOKING BEYOND TOMORROW with like-minded people. You’re never too old or weak; always talk to your GP, then start slowly and give it a go!

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the inside out, by focusing on the deep muscles of the ‘core’.

A stronger body will also help to strength the joints and muscles, keeping good posture and flexibility and reducing aches and pains from restrictive muscles. Not only that, but weight-bearing exercise such as walking, strength training and Pilates can assist with conditions such as osteoporosis, while anything that raises your heart rate can help with blood pressure, keeping your heart and lungs healthy, and managing weight.

Getting into a group class is a great way of meeting other people and forming new friendships as well as having fun

RRANGING your home insurance can be a confusing time, with so many providers offering differing cover at varying prices.

While online price comparison sites can be useful in shopping around, they don’t always make it easy to compare different levels of cover, and they will make certain assumptions about you and your home that you need to read carefully and check.

The experts at traditional insurance broker Mark Richard find that many people still value the ability to talk to them by phone, or call in for a chat (they like that!) They will be able to

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Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

February 2019

southbristolvoice

18

n NEWS Gallery collects local lore for new podcast

February 2019

southbristolvoice

LETTERS and provide your postal address.

Please keep letters as short as possible,

19 Write to paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk or to 18 Lilymead Avenue, BS4 2BX

o’learygoss homes get All-affordable go-ahead at Luckwell ARCHITECTS

CARABOO, the new gallery and art space on Stafford Street, Bedminster, is collecting stories from South Bristolians to be included on a podcast.

Called Hidden Histories, the aim is to collect stories and recollections about local places and characters.

So far, the gallery admits, the contributions have tended towards the weird and whimsical.

Judge for yourself at carabooprojects.com/hiddenhistories Meanwhile the gallery’s latest exhibition, Jurassic Moon, is open throughout February.

Jurassic Moon includes film installations, painting, drawing and sculpture by five artists from around the UK: Juan delGado, Dorcas Casey, Oliver McConnie and Mary Roberts-Holmes, with a commissioned sound piece

New exhibition: Jurassic Moon at the Caraboo gallery

by Charlie Morris. Entry is free.

The artists are running several free events, including Japanese woodblock poster printing on Saturday February 9, 12-2pm.

On Thursday February 14 there’s a tea workshop with Celine and Don from the Mei Leaf Teahouse in Camden from 6-8pm.

Places are limited; please book. carabooprojects.com

STUDY A CREATIVE COURSE AT A CREATIVE COLLEGE Want to study something creative after you’ve finished school?

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This March we’re opening a new £5m campus in Bristol city centre. We have a packed schedule of events including workshops with vloggers, careers advice and taster days. Visit our website to book onto an event.

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PLANNERS have approved a Bedminster housing development with 67 homes – all Redevelopment of Land Adjacent to of them affordable.

Luckwell Road Councillors meeting on Design & Access Statement January 9 were unanimous in 2018 off backing the plan for April a plot Luckwell Road, consisting of the former Kellaway builders merchant and Winterstoke Garage.

There will be eight terraced houses and 59 flats in blocks of up to five storeys, built by Bedminster firm Crown Developments, in association with housing association United Communities.

Residents made more than 30 objections, many about parking – a concern backed by Bedminster councillor Mark Bradshaw.

The users of industrial units at the Winterstoke Centre also raised concerns about their rights

co-educational nursery pre-school to sixth form

Luckwell Road: New face for site beside Redpoint climbing centre of access via Lynwood Road.

There are fears that deliveries to the units could block access to the new homes. Councillors said this should be agreed between the centre and the developer.

The guarantee of a development being used entirely for social housing is very unusual – the council’s target is usually 30 per cent or 40 per cent, but frequently developers say this can’t be afforded.

Upfest and arts trail are off THE UPFEST street art festival is taking a year off in 2019 – while the Southbank Arts trail is also not happening.

The art trail, always popular with thousands of visitors flocking venues and homes over a weekend each May, did not attract enough volunteers to organise an event this year. Its committee is looking at how to bring the trail back in 2020.

Upfest, which is now Europe’s most popular festival of graffiti

The Garage Door Guy

and street art, is instead choosing to take a break. Festival founder Stephen Hayles said: “Having taken a fallow year in 2014, we know the benefits that taking a break brings to refreshing the festival, but also giving our incredible volunteers a rest.”

Planning and fundraising for the free festival, which in its 10th anniversary year last year attracted 50,000 visitors, takes almost a year. Upfest is looking to recruit 100 new volunteers.

n PROPERTY

10 years’ Knowle success

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To advertise, contact sales@southbristolvoice.co.uk or Ruth on 07590 527664

Prices rising PROPERTY prices jumped 10.9 per cent in the BS4 postcode in the 12 months to December. This was the second highest increase in the South West, according to Land Registry figures compiled

by Propdex.co.uk. However, this

was against a background of the number of sales falling 25.9 per cent to 414 transactions.

The average property price was £258,798.

In BS3, transactions were down much less, by 4.5 per cent to 450, with sale prices up by 3.1 per cent to an average £292,568.

Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

southbristolvoice

20

n PLANNING APPLICATIONS Bedminster ward: Awaiting decision 52 Duckmoor Road BS3 2BW First floor extension above ground floor.

96 Swiss Drive BS3 2RW Replacement single storey side and rear extension.

Kennel Lodge Road BS3 2JT Shared path for walkers and cyclists, providing missing link in the Festival Way cycle route from Nailsea to Bristol city centre.

57 Chessel Street BS3 3DN Single storey rear extension to extend beyond the rear of the house by 3.1m, of maximum height of 3.3m with eaves of 2.55m.

Bedminster, Southville, Ashton & Ashton Vale

dwelling (Use class C3) with works to shop front (part retrospective).

11 West Street Bedminster BS3 3NN Rear dormer roof extension and roof terrace.

Bedminster ward: Decided 177 Ashton Drive BS3 2PU Two storey detached rear annexe.

Refused 7 Greenhill Grove BS3 2LS Single storey rear extension to extend beyond the rear of the house by 3.1m, of maximum height 3.8m with eaves of 2.8m.

Granted

38 The Nursery BS3 3EB Continued use as two selfcontained flats.

55 Duckmoor Road BS3 2DQ Two storey side extension, single storey rear extension, rear roof extension. Vehicular access to front. Granted subject to conditions

12 West Street, Bedminster BS3 3LG Conversion of rear ground floor of retail unit (Use class A1) to one-bedroom

14 Foxcote Road BS3 2BZ Raised patio at the rear with privacy screen. Granted subject to conditions

February 2019

157 North Street, Bedminster BS3 1EZ Change of use of two shops (Use classes A1 and A2), to residential (Use class C3).

Granted 20 West Street, Bedminster BS3 3LG Convert shop to two 1-bedroom flats with rear extension. Granted subject to conditions Southvlle ward: Awaiting decision St Paul’s Church, Coronation Road BS3 1DG Cypress: Fell; Thuja: Fell.

79 East Street, Bedminster BS3 4EX Conversion of first floor from one 2-bed flat to two 1-bed flats; new windows.

Aldi, North Street, Bedminster BS3 1JA External plant and enclosure required by internal refurbishment.

44 Duckmoor Road BS3 2BW Retrospective application for front porch and bay window.

KS Bodyworks, Park Road, Southville BS3 1QA Demolition of garage and erection of five flats.

Southville ward: Decided Bedminster ward: De 3 St Peter’s Court, Bedminster Parade BS3 4AQ Change of use from offices (Use class B1a) to dwellinghouse (Use class C3), 8-11 units. Granted 18 Lime Road BS3 1LT Rear dormer roof extension. Granted 226 North Street, Bedminster BS3 1JD Details in relation to condition 2 (traffic management plan) of permission 18/04181/F: Conversion of rear ground and first floor premises to D1 nursery. Refused • NEW: Visit the Voice website for a summary of all recent planning applications in BS3.

• The status of these applications may have changed since we went to press. Check for updates at planningonline.bristol.gov.uk

February 2019

southbristolvoice

n THE MAYOR

MARVIN REES Mayor of Bristol

We’re leading other cities when it comes to recycling

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T THE start of the year I was pleased to announce that, according to data released from the Department of Environment and Rural Affairs, Bristol is the leading city for recycling. The city ranks number one out of the eight English Core Cities with an increased recycling rate of 44.9 per cent for 2016/17. This means Bristol is on track to meet our ambitious recycling rate of 50 per cent by 2020.

The stats show a further 1.6 per cent increase in recycling since 2016/17, and confirms Bristol’s environmental credentials.

Our rate is better than the other seven English core cities, where it ranges from Birmingham at only 20.7 per cent of waste recycled, with Liverpool on 26.6 per cent, while Manchester and Newcastle achieved

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38.6 per cent and 38 per cent respectively.

The new data demonstrates that Bristol is well ahead of the game in terms of recycling with rates increasing rapidly and general waste tonnages going down. The figures also show a significant drop in the amount of

waste sent to landfill, which fell eight per cent, from 27.9 per cent to 19.9 per cent.

We’re committed to reaching our target, which is why we are investing in a fleet of new vehicles and trialling new ways of collecting recycling to help people to improve the rates even further. I’m really grateful for the work by the council’s waste company, Bristol Waste, who have worked to raise awareness and help residents understand the small steps they can make to save resources, save the city money, and ultimately save the planet.

Campaigns like the award-winning food waste campaign Slim My Waste – Feed My Face meant a 16 per cent increase in the amount of food waste collected since June.

That’s more than 700 tonnes of additional food waste collected to date, equivalent to 56 double-decker buses.

When food waste composts naturally it generates CO2 which is bad for the environment. The additional waste diverted to date thanks to Slim My Waste is equal to 669 tonnes of CO2 savings, the same as the emissions of 142 cars. Plus, the additional biogas created will power an extra 180 households for a whole year.

We know there is still a journey to go on and that we cannot do it alone, but by working with residents – who have literally done tonnes to help already – we can help Bristol waste nothing.

Take the next step Improve your work and pay with free career coaching, training and support Find out more at www.futurebright.org.uk

For residents in paid work and receiving benefits or tax credits

To advertise, contact sales@southbristolvoice.co.uk or Ruth on 07590 527664

Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

southbristolvoice

22

n NEWS Homegrown play tackles deprivation and diversity in South Bristol A GRITTY new theatre production aims to get people talking about the wellbeing of South Bristol communities.

The homegrown show, Southside Stories, is being staged at the Tobacco Factory Spielman theatre, but it was born at the Zion community space in Bishopsworth Road.

Zion is well known for holding events that celebrate the diversity of the South Bristol community, and the play is the brainchild of Zion owner Jess Wright and playwright and poet Liz Mytton.

Southside is “a mystical and little known neighbourhood between Hartcliffe, Withywood and Bishopsworth”. Southside

February 2019

n COMPETITION Stories explores the challenges of Bristol’s multicultural society and gives a voice to individuals who have experienced hate crime and inequality.

The newly-formed BS13 theatre company held workshops where participants helped shape the script by sharing and reliving some of the most challenging incidents of their lives.

Lynn Hunt, one of the cast members, said: “I’m interested in being part of a production that highlights the paradox of a city divided by class and race.”

Jess Wright said: “Members of our community have in the past felt isolated and disconnected, so it is vitally important that society celebrates diversity if there is any hope of improved community cohesion and increased social wellbeing for everyone in our city.”

Performances are on February 6 and 7 and tickets are £12. The play has been funded by Bristol city council, Triodos Bank, Quartet Community Foundation and Clarks. tobaccofactorytheatres.com

Alpine LANDSCAPING

Established family firm with 25 years experience

February 2019

Fun with new Lego Movie 2, true-life comic odyssey with Stan & Ollie

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HERE’S no better way of hiding from the winter gloom than being transported to another world by a big-screen film.

Cineworld in Hengrove is South Bristol’s biggest cinema with 12 screens, showing up to 14 films a day, which means there’s a movie for every occasion.

And now tickets at Cineworld are only £5 – for every showing.

So a treat at Valentine’s – or any other time – won’t cost the earth.

Among the films you may be able to choose from (depending on the date) is Aquaman, the breathtaking underwater adventure starring Jason Momoa as the half-human, half-Atlantean Arthur Curry. For children there’s

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ADVICE FROM A PHARMACIST A 10-year NHS plan is all very well, but who can wait that long?

Win free tickets to the cinema!

southbristolvoice

also Disney’s Mary Poppins Returns, starring Emily Blunt.

For adults, choices include Clint Eastwood’s new thriller The Mule, and Stan and Ollie, the true story of Hollywood’s greatest comedy double act, Laurel and Hardy, starring Steve Coogan and John C Reilly.

WIN FREE TICKETS To celebrate, we have a pair of Cineworld tickets valid for any film to give away.

To win, just tell us: How many screens are there at Cineworld Hengrove?

Send your answer by email to paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk, or by post to SBV Cineworld competition, 18 Lilymead Avenue, Bristol BS4 2BX. Not open to employees of the Voice group or Cineworld. The first correct entry drawn at random on February 11 will win.

The editor’s decision is final.

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www.alpine-landscaping.co.uk To advertise, contact sales@southbristolvoice.co.uk or Ruth on 07590 527664

THE NHS recently launched its long term plan, setting out what it wants to do over the next 10 years and showing how NHS funding will be used.

Three things stand out for us – 1. None of our patients can wait 10 years for things to get better.

2. We must continue to champion and protect the most vulnerable in our community, just as we did by absorbing all the cost and not reducing our services when the Government cut our NHS

funding. Crucially we ensured our free home deliveries continued for the elderly and housebound. They matter a lot to us.

3. The best pharmacy ideas in the plan replicate things we are already doing here! We are locally promoting healthy living through support to give up smoking, alcohol consumption reduction, weight loss, tackling loneliness and social isolation, working to provide practical help over the winter months with free home insulation referral and help to reduce energy bills, working and supporting local partnerships to make our community healthier and more inclusive. Plus NHS flu jabs, blood pressure checks and mental health education and support.

We can now see the NHS ambitions matching ours and we are even proud that, when

examples are cited, our little independent pharmacy in Bedminster gets mentioned many times.

So we want to invite you to please continue to support us in all that we are doing, support our campaigns and take up our services. Your health and wellbeing remain our only business plan.

We see ourselves not only as a speedy dispensing service, a postal delivery service or even just a high street medicines retail outlet but as your own local NHS walk-in service, working with local GPs and care providers.

We use our knowledge and expertise to help you stay well and enjoy life. Our services are designed to be excellent and affordable; take our Travel Clinic vaccinations and meningitis B jabs, all priced to be the cheapest in the South West. We

dispense health and wellbeing with every prescription you provide us.

We are supporting the NHS Long Term Plan by making a difference everyday for our patients.

When do you stop wishing people a Happy New Year? One thing the Bedminster pharmacy team all agree on is that we want 2019 to be the healthiest year for you, your family and all your loved ones.

How? By providing the best-personalised healthcare service available through our pharmacy. Why? Because that is what you deserve.

• This article by Ade Williams of Bedminster Pharmacy aims to show how all pharmacies can help people with a variety of health conditions and ease pressure on other parts of the NHS.

Blind people protest at loss of centre ANGRY members of the blind and visually impaired community confronted charity bosses over the loss of a Bedminster centre which they say will be a loss to the whole of Bristol when it closes in May. The centre in Stillhouse Lane, Bedminster, close to Bedminster bridge, was purpose-built for the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) in 1993, at a cost of £2.7 million.

But the RNIB has been plagued by money worries for years and in April last year it sold the centre for less than £700,000. To many, this was a bafflingly small sum for a building the size of several houses, with a large car park.

Despite 14 months of discussions, the charity has not found a building to replace it. The new owner, Guide Dogs for the Blind, wants to take full use of the building by May. Now a pressure group, Bristol and District Visually Impaired (VI) Voice, has pulled out of consultation with regional RNIB managers in frustration that no site has been found.

“We have said we are not going to continue sitting down with them, because they are just talking the time away,” said Paul Sullivan, secretary of the VI Voice group.

Plans to move into the Whitefriars building in Lewins Mead in the city centre were dropped in mid-January because

the cost is too high. Now members of the VI Voice group fear they – and the 11,000 other visually impaired people in the Bristol area – will not get the single centre they believe they need.

“I think you have lost the trust of an awful lot of people,” one of about 50 visually impaired woman at the protest told RNIB officials on January 22.

Another referred to public donations which have funded improvements at Stillhouse Lane, and questioned whether people would want to contribute to the charity in future.

Colin Whitbourn, RNIB networks manager for the South of England, told the gathering “we will find places” for all the groups at Stillhouse Lane.

But the VI Voice group believes that the RNIB wants to find short-term premises in different locations. “You know that that is totally unacceptable to the blind people in Bristol,” VI Voice member Martin Sullivan told Mr Whitbourn.

The Bedminster resource centre, which supplied special equipment and training to the visually impaired, has already closed. “I spent six weeks there learning to use an iPhone and it changed my life,” said one visually impaired woman.

The RNIB said the sale price had been approved by an independent surveyor.

• More on the Voice website

RNIB accused of selling South Bristol building too cheap, with no replacement in sight

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Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

n YOUR COUNCILLORS

S

February 2019

southbristolvoice

24

O, AT the January full council meeting we were subjected to a Labour party policy motion of Charlie curious value.

Bolton Policy motions Green are the bit at the Southville end of council meetings where individual councillors can submit motions, and some get taken. They changed the rules some years ago to have a ‘golden motion’ system which rotated around the party groups. The Labour party have subsequently changed the constitution to give most of these golden motions to themselves.

They are advisory – in that the mayor can ignore them if he or she so wishes. They do, however, carry weight, because they are the view of up to 70 elected councillors.

The best motions are those which either achieve change at a local level or have ramifications far beyond. An example would be

Southville

Carla Denyer’s climate emergency motion last November, which won unanimous agreement that the city would become carbon neutral by 2030.

I remember submitting one over a decade ago asking for local communities to have control over S106 spending (money from developers).

But this one – well, what can you say? It congratulated the mayor. It described Labour’s last year’s budget (with its £30m or so of cuts) as progressive. It had a go at all the opposition parties, and slapped the Labour party on the back.

The action it asked for was to ask party group leaders to write a slightly cross letter about austerity to the Prime Minister.

It was the worst motion I can remember in nine years of being a councillor. And public money was spent on it.

I do find myself wondering if the public out there are aware of what goes on in some of these meetings, and if they think it is appropriate.

W

How to contact your councillor: p2

E ARE coming around to council budget time again and I have to decide how to vote. This Stephen is a big personal Clarke responsibility Green because, unlike all Southville the other parties, we Greens get to decide which way we vote ourselves; we are not told how to vote (or ‘whipped’).

The last few years have seen austerity budgets where our council has basically fallen into line with Tory demands to cut, cut and cut again. I have voted against these budgets as I cannot stomach this philosophy. This year’s budget might seem more balanced (partly because of about £7m in one-off income) – but many previously decided cuts have yet to be implemented, so there is a lot of pain still to be suffered.

The budget will be decided on February 26; what would I like to see in it? Well, we’re officially in a climate emergency so I would

like us to act appropriately by investing in home insulation and supporting households to reach minimum energy efficiency standards.

I would like us to generate far more renewable energy locally (perhaps by putting solar panels on more of the 27,000 council houses we own).

I would like us to have a serious up-front investment in updating our bus services and railway lines so that fewer of us have to drive into town and we can improve our air quality.

In fact, I would like to see all our decisions aligned with our new 2030 Carbon Neutral target.

There are so many opportunities for sustainable jobs in our region, which is already a world leader in parts of this sector.

Please drop me an email with anything I might be able to help you with on council-related issues, for example parking, fly-tipping or council housing.

We will be holding a surgery outside Southville Deli on the first Saturday of the month.

To advertise, contact sales@southbristolvoice.co.uk or Ruth on 07590 527664

February 2019

southbristolvoice

n YOUR COUNCILLORS Ashton Rise – new homes for Bedminster ELIA and I went along to the ground-breaking Mark event for the Bradshaw new Ashton Rise Labour development in Bedminster Ashton Vale. This will provide 133 new homes, many of which will be affordable ones, including 53 council houses.

The scheme, a joint project by the council and Wilmott Dixon, will be a mix of two, three and four-bed houses and one and two-bed flats.

The council, largely due to the work of Cllr Paul Smith, the cabinet member for housing, wants to see more council homes built and we are working with him to try to ensure Bedminster people on the waiting list get first call. After all, this is councilowned land and is the type of development Bristol needs to meet the housing crisis. We look forward to welcoming the new

C

Bedminster

residents in their new homes during 2021.

Metrobus – M1 begins at last! elivering transport schemes is tough, expensive and unpopular work, so it was great to see the M1 service finally launched (with Bristolian announcements). This provides more direct services to the key employment centres and connects to Parson Street station.

Together with the rest of the Metrobus route network, this will help to future-proof extra travel demand coming from new housing in South Bristol, at least for the initial few years. While people would always like more stops and some route changes, these can all be considered by the project team, but getting the service running is a landmark for the city and Bedminster.

Now for better bus services on the South Bristol Link road! Celia and I are working with other local councillors and Karin Smyth MP to encourage the metro mayor and bus operators to take up the opportunity.

D

I

25 How to contact your councillor: p2

AM PLEASED to say that, with the generous support of Bristol Sport, we can expect Celia the toilet block in Phipps Greville Smythe Labour Park to re-open Bedminster soon. As it has been closed for several months, there may be some remedial work to be completed, but the toilet block will be maintained by Ashton Gate stadium. As chair of Friends of Greville Smythe, I am delighted that this has been achieved, a great example of community working together.

The One City Plan, launched last month, challenges us to work together to achieve a fair, healthy and sustainable city. The document will be under constant review, with further reiterations and changes as it develops. It contains two charters in this first publication, one of which is the Bristol Equality Charter. In a city as diverse as Bristol, everyone

should feel that they not only belong, but have a voice and equal opportunities, but we know this is not the case at present.

The Thrive and Time to Change work, which highlights the stigma of mental health problems, seeks to address better understanding of the needs of all employees by asking employers to sign the Time to Change Employers Pledge. Bristol city council will sign the Charter on February 6. I will be meeting other Local Government Association Mental Health Champions in Liverpool on February 4 and looking forward to being able to share ideas. The second charter quite rightly makes children and young people a priority for decision makers in Bristol.

We are always keen to hear from you, so if you have a query about anything or a great idea, do please contact us via mobile or email. Or drop in to see us on the on the first Saturday of each month at Mezzaluna, at the new time of 11.30am-12.30pm.

Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

n TAKE A BREAK

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n HISTORY WEST COUNTRY SHOWMAN WHO REINVENTED HOLIDAYS Genial Billy Butlin founded a holiday empire – and it all began in Bedminster Born into a West Country fairground dynasty, Billy Butlin did more than carry on the family tradition – he made his name into a trademark for the holidays that working people felt they deserved

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HE HOLIDAY camp has become a bit of cliché. Too many jokes have likened the huge seaside compounds to a prison camp; too many films and TV series such as Hi-de-Hi! have made fun of the regimented rows of chalets, the bad weather and the organised fun.

Mention Butlins and you conjure up a stereotype of families crammed together in tiny, flimsy holiday homes, woken by a loudspeaker and trooping out to eat together in an austere dining hall. It’s as if a British seaside holiday was a punishment, not a pleasure.

But it wasn’t always seen this way. Half a century ago, a week in a holiday camp was the height of ambition for many families.

Even today, the dowdy image of the holiday camp isn’t

justified. Thousands of people use them every week, from Minehead to Skegness, enjoying a cheap holiday with everything laid on, from food to childcare.

Families love being able to let their children run around with little supervision. Kids love the swimming pools, the fairgrounds and the chance to make friends.

These days it’s more likely to be called a holiday park, or a village.

Almost everyone has heard of Sir Billy Butlin, the man who made holiday camps famous. But how many know that the great man’s ascent began in a tuckedaway corner of Bedminster?

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ILLIAM Heygate Edmund Colborne Butlin was born on September 29, 1899, in Cape Town, South Africa. His father,

Man of the people: Billy Butlin visits a munitions factory in 1941 as part of his role to raise morale PHOTO: IWM Collection William Colborne Butlin, was the son of a clergyman in Leonard Stanley, Gloucestershire, and something of a gentleman. So when he fell for Bertha Hill, who arrived with a travelling fair at the village, his family were not impressed.

William and Bertha shipped themselves to South Africa, where William opened a bicycle shop in a shed behind their house in Mowbray, a suburb of Cape Town. But William preferred tennis to business, and much of the work was left to Bertha.

Both the business and the marriage were rocky. By 1901, Bertha was back in England, living with her mother and sister in Rodborough, Gloucestershire.

But she reunited with her

husband and in 1904 their second son, Harry, known as Binkie, was born in South Africa.

The reconciliation did not last. By 1907 Bertha and her sons were once again with her family near Stroud. Binkie contracted polio and died in March 1907.

The next year Bertha and Billy took another ship, this time to Montreal, Canada. For the next 13 years Bertha was unable to settle, travelling back and forth across the Atlantic, though mostly staying in Canada. At any rate the records show that after sailing to Canada in July 1908, they returned. Bertha sailed off again in 1911, in 1912 and in 1914.

Her brothers, Marshall and Ernest Hill, had a travelling Continued overleaf

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n HISTORY Continued from page 29 fairground based in Bristol, and it seems she and Billy worked the fairs several times, Bertha running a gingerbread stall.

Perhaps Bertha wanted to get away but couldn’t support herself as a single mother. In his autobiography, Billy said he went to Bedminster Down school for nine months at about this time.

Their winter quarters was at Organs Yard, off Regent Road, Bedminster. This was the yard of an old sawmill on the site where Asda now stands. (Regent Road and several other streets of housing covered what is now the supermarket car park; and old maps also mark Asda’s location as the place of the medieval St Catherine’s hospital. Think of that next time you’re reaching for the washing powder!)

In April 1911, the UK census found Bertha, 12-year-old Billy and his aunt Lottie, described as the head of the household, living in Organs Yard in a caravan. Their accommodation is described as: “Living carriage. Two rooms.”

October 1911 saw Bertha and Billy’s second trip to Canada, sailing from Bristol – but they were back in Bristol the next year. In October 1912 Bertha joined the Royal George at Avonmouth, but this time Billy was boarded out somewhere in Bristol with his cousin, Jimmy Hill. For at least two years he attended Redcliffe Endowed Boys school, just the other side of Bedminster bridge.

He was good at reading, drawing and painting but not much else. “I concentrated on them and was at least able to shine in class for something,” he wrote later, noting that this was the only sustained period of schooling he ever had.

Billy later recalled that his mother emigrated to Canada without him in about 1910 but his memory seems to be faulty – the voyages given above are all listed in the passenger records.

She certainly returned to Bedminster, though, in late 1913.

She had met a gas fitter, Charlie Rowbotham, and they were married in Swindon in October. In January 1914 the newlyweds were off to Canada again, this time with Billy, stating on the passenger list that they were emigrating for good (though Bertha had said that before).

The trio lived in Toronto but Billy did not enjoy his Canadian

February 2019

WEST COUNTRY SHOWMAN WHO REINVENTED HOLIDAYS

Steam show: A traction engine used to pull the Bedminster-based Hill’s funfair. Photo probably taken on Durdham Downs in 1910, the year when this engine, Minoru, was bought PHOTO: Bristol Archives 43207/22/6/5 school, where the other children made fun of his accent. He left school as soon as he could, at 14, and found a job at Eaton’s department store.

Shop work wasn’t much fun but Eatons gave him his first holiday, to a summer camp, a dose of freedom he did not forget.

In 1915, with war raging in France, there were appeals for young men to join the army. Billy really wanted one of the “I Volunteered” badges the Canadian army was offering, in order to impress his girlfriend.

His plan was to tell the enlisting officer that he wanted to be a despatch rider – he had heard the army had too many, so he figured he would be turned away.

But in his excitement, Billy forgot to mention his desired posting, and he was signed up on the spot.

He had to go home and face his mother and stepfather, who were unaware he wanted to join up. He had also lied about his age, claiming to be 16.

His joining-up papers show his first army role was as a bugler. But it was as a stretcher bearer that he worked on the front line in France. In his autobiography he wrote: “During my two years I was at the front, I never fired a shot in anger, but I vividly recall the horrors of trench warfare.” There were times he would willingly have parted with a leg to have been out of it, he said.

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fter the war, Billy found his mother alone again.

Her husband Charlie had died in 1917. Eatons gave him a job, designing the store’s advertising. But “the idea of an open-air life, not tied to a desk or an artist’s easel” attracted him. After 18 months at Eatons, Billy decided to try to make some money at Canadian fairgrounds, and at first he had a little success with a darts stall.

He decided he should help his widowed mother and enable her to return to England. He saved his earnings and eventually gathered the equivalent of £400 (worth about £18,000 today). He planned to invest it all in a major installation at a country fair, and gave the money to a plausiblesounding showman who promised to make his stalls ready for him.

But when he arrived at the fair in question there was no sign

IN HIS OWN WORDS On visiting Minehead, aged 13, in 1912:

“I can still recall the excitement of seeing the sands for the first time, and digging with a bucket and spade and riding a donkey.

When I got home I still had some sand and a tiny crab in my bucket.”

of his stalls – or the conman.

Chastened, Bill decided to return to England, where at least he could rely on support from his family in the fairground business.

He arrived in Liverpool on February 17, 1921, with £5 in his pocket (about £220 today). He didn’t want to waste a penny, so he hitch-hiked back to Bristol – the journey took five days.

He found his uncles, the Hills, at their new winter quarters in Dorney’s Yard, off Hartcliffe Way, between a dairy and a pub, the Enterprise. (Nowadays it’s known as Locke’s Yard, home to the Matching Brick Company; the pub was demolished in 2007 to make way for flats.)

The Hills set him to work painting and repairing their fairground rides. Many were probably steam-driven.

Showmen had been quick to embrace steam-driven attractions, competing to show off the latest rides, from roundabouts to miniature tunnel railways and giant swings.

One photo survives from this pre-war period, when Bill would already have met his travelling relatives. It shows a steampowered traction engine at the head of a column of vehicles, the first one bearing the title Marshall and Ernest Hill Entertainments. The picture dates from 1910 and the original caption says it is of Organ’s Yard, the Hills’ winter home at the time

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February 2019

n HISTORY

– though it looks much more like it was taken on the Downs, where fairs also took place. Billy may even be in the picture – a small boy is visible.

However, a gleaming steam-powered ride was way beyond Billy’s pocket in 1921. He invested £4 of his savings in a hoopla stall.

The first fair he visited with it was the historic market town of Axbridge in Somerset. Here the Butlin legend began, when Billy found a way to make his stall one of the most popular at the fair.

Hoopla evolved from the ancient game of quoits – throwing a ring to land over a peg – which was so popular in medieval England it was banned at least twice because it distracted men from practising archery. The fairground game offers a reward – a toy, sweets or cash – to anyone who can throw a hoop so it lands flat around the block which holds the prize. Ever since it was invented, cunning showmen have minimised their chances of giving away too many prizes by making the rings so small that they scarcely fit around the block – perhaps even too small to fit it at all.

Famously, Butlins started his first day at Axbridge with blocks rather smaller than the rings he was giving out. His punters won more prizes than at his rivals’ stalls, and kept coming back.

He ended the day with no prizes left, but the camaraderie of the fairground meant that he was soon loaned some more. At the close of the two-day fair he was £10 in profit – a tidy £340 at today’s values.

Fairground lore has it that Billy deliberately cut off the corners of his blocks to give him an edge over other stallholders.

He claimed it was somehow an accident, but whatever the reason, he quickly realised how profitable it could be to give the punters what they wanted.

From then on he was always looking for an edge – for a new kind of prize, a better game, anything to attract attention and keep the public coming back.

Billy took his hoopla stall onwards to fairs at Hereford, Ludlow, Leominster and further afield. It has been calculated that his punters had a three in five chance of winning with each hoop, against a one in nine hope with his competitors. He was making less profit per customer,

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WEST COUNTRY SHOWMAN WHO REINVENTED HOLIDAYS

Raw recruit: Billy, 15, is more boy than soldier – he had lied about his age in order to enlist but more profit overall because he had more clients. He began stashing away the pounds and by May, his mother Bertha was on her way back across the Atlantic, her ticket paid for (it is thought) by her son.

Bertha lodged with her sister Lottie, who was then living at 25 Nelson Parade, next to Bedminster bridge.

Billy began to expand his operations, acquiring the right to a stall in Olympia, London, outside the Christmas Circus run

by Bertram Mills. He took on an assistant, and gave him a smart white uniform with a B sewn on – though he is supposed to have stitched up the pockets so no small change could be pocketed.

Seeking eye-catching prizes, he alighted on love birds, a kind of small parrot. He bought 100 birds for two shillings each (10p or £3.40 today) and called them “Lucky Little Love Birds”. Not a prize we would approve of today.

Then Billy overreached himself.

If small birds were a draw, what about something bigger and more adorable? He started giving away puppies as prizes. At first Billy was proud when he saw the attention his winners got as they paraded their new pets around Olympia. Then the puppies began to do what puppies do, and the complaints stared coming in. The great Sir Bertram Mills himself sought Billy out to remonstrate.

Suddenly, puppies were no

longer the top prize. Billy was unabashed. He continued to innovate. Perhaps his methods were not always strictly business-like. The showground community was a tough one, and Billy was alleged to have carried a cutthroat razor in his top pocket – at least so his nephew Vernon Jenkins told the Daily Mirror in 2006. He was not above forming a gang to smash up his rivals’ stalls, it was claimed.

Whatever the truth, he soon had a dozen men working for him. He left Bertha to look after the stall at Olympia while he took fairground rides on the road. In 1925 he opened his first permanent fairground at Barry Island, the seaside resort near Cardiff.

Two years later, in 1927, he leased some land in Skegness, Lincolnshire, and opened one of the first amusement parks, with hoopla, a huge slide, a haunted house and a scenic railway.

But this wasn’t his biggest break – that came in 1928, when he paid the American inventor of the dodgem car £2,000 (£90,000 at today’s values) for the UK rights. It meant any other fairground owner who wanted them had to give him a cut.

With the cash flowing in, Billy added parks in Mablethorpe in Lincolnshire, Hayling Island and Southsea in Hampshire, and Felixstowe in Suffolk.

By 1930, Skegness had a zoo with lions and zebras and an “African village”. In 1932 he opened another amusement park in Bognor Regis, on the Sussex coast, adding polar bears, kangaroos and monkeys to the mix the following year.

Billy Butlin was already a rich man by the time his mother died in Skegness in 1934. His success

IN HIS OWN WORDS On running a business:

“One business philosophy I have always practised is – after deciding general policy – to personally look after the little things. You can pay people to attend to major matters, but the little things which make all the differences can so easily be overlooked or ignored.”

was due to the fact that he was always thinking about what his customers might want, but hadn’t yet thought of.

Legend has it that Billy hit on his concept of holiday camps while staying at a bed-andbreakfast in Barry Island where the landlady turfed her guests out after breakfast, not to be re-admitted until teatime. This was a business set up to suit its proprietor more than its customers. Many B&Bs had a long list of rules of the kind caricatured by the cartoonist Giles, including the joyless injunction: “No Singing.”

Billy Butlin surmised there would be a big market for holiday accommodation that let guests come and go as they pleased.

Where they could have their own home from home, and everything they wanted for their holiday within a short walk: a funfair, an entertainment hall, sports facilities, a bar and somewhere to eat – and no need to worry about the weather.

To be fair, he was far from the first to think of the holiday camp.

Another famous brand, Warners, preceded him – and Billy was drawing on ideas he had seen in holiday resorts in Canada. But he was the first in the UK to make the camps appeal to a broad mass of people, the working and the middle classes, drawn by the guarantee that a stay at Butlins would give them all they wanted for a holiday, all in one place.

And, of course, all the profits would go to Billy.

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he first Butlins camp opened in Skegness at Easter 1936. Ever the showman, Billy spent plenty of money on grabbing the public’s attention. He hired Amy Johnson, the first woman to fly solo from Britain to Australia, to open it. He placed huge advertisements in the Daily Express at a cost of £500 (£25,000 at today’s prices). It worked: Butlins received 10,000 inquiries from that first advert.

Butlins offered “a week’s holiday for a week’s wages”.

Prices for full board varied from 35 shillings a week (£1.75 or £86 today) to £3 (£150 today); and that wasn’t far off what a working family might earn. A standard factory or farm wage was about 31 shillings a week.

But not everything went as Continued overleaf

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February 2019

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n HISTORY

WEST COUNTRY SHOWMAN WHO REINVENTED HOLIDAYS

Continued from page 31 Billy intended. He had hoped that people would take advantage of all the activities he had laid on, mingle with each other and have a good time. But he noticed that many holidaymakers, with true British reticence, were keeping to themselves and looked bored.

They needed cheering up.

Billy press-ganged Norman Bradford, who was one of the engineers helping to build the camp, to break the ice with a few jokes and some patter. It worked: people started talking and there was a real buzz to the place.

Billy resolved that night to hire a whole team of entertainers to lift the spirits of his guests and encourage them to try new activities. These were to become the famous Redcoats.

To those still living in city terraces without bathrooms, the Skegness camp was simply splendid, a combination of grand art deco styling with the promise of your own little hideaway.

“You have a wonderfully cosy Elizabethan Chalet with a wide verandah,” read the Skegness brochure in 1936. “Chalets are equipped with running water, electric light … snowy white sheets and fleecy warm blankets.

Floors are carpeted and wardrobes provided.” We shouldn’t scoff: to most people, this was luxury. No matter that the chalets were made of thin wood, had a cold tap only, and a single 40-watt bulb.

And the food: “The tariff provides for four good meals a day – cooked by experienced chefs … You are specially invited to inspect the kitchens which you will find are so clean, hygienic and modern, that the women will be quite envious.”

And here was another part of the appeal – in the 1930s, still set in traditional gender roles, the men would look forward to a drink at the bar, while for many women the biggest luxury was not having to cook or wash up.

The 1940s would have been the golden age of British holidays if war hadn’t intervened. Car ownership was growing and in 1938 the Holidays with Pay Act gave workers the right to at least a week’s paid holiday each year.

Billy had opened another camp in Clacton, Essex, in 1938.

He had plans for more camps in Ayr, Scotland, and Filey, Yorkshire, but war broke out in 1939, before they were complete.

You’ll have fun at the Holiday Camp, promised the poster for one of the most popular British films of 1947 – filmed in Butlins Filey and featuring its famous Redcoats. The picture gives a hint at the kind of fun that Billy Butlin wanted his punters to think they could find at his camps

Above: A Knobbly Knees contest in the Skegness camp, 1956 Both Clacton and Skegness were turned into military training camps, and astute Billy did a deal to buy them back at the end of the war. He also agreed to finish building Filey and Ayr, and hand them to the armed services too.

During World War II he showed more of his acute sense of what made people happy. He was called in to find out why morale was low at a camp set up to build munitions at Chorley in Lancashire. He quickly divined that the workers were depressed by the barbed wire and dank huts which made them feel as if they were in a prison camp.

He introduced film shows, whist drives and other entertainment, with such success that he was appointed the unpaid Director General of Hostels.

Come peacetime in 1945, and holiday camps were the height of

IT’S A TOUGH JOB

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eing a Butlins Redcoat means being cheerful and keeping people entertained, on and off stage, all day long, for little money. It’s a tough gig, so no surprise that among the Redcoats graduates are these TV faces: Benny Hill Stephen Mulhern Dave Allen Jimmy Tarbuck Ian H Watkins and Lisa Scott of Steps Michael Barrymore Rod Hull

the egalitarian image Britain had of itself, as the Labour government of Clement Attlee planned the NHS and tried to overturn the class-bound society of the prewar years.

A hit film, called simply Holiday Camp, summed up the whole idea. Released in 1947 and filmed at Butlins in Filey, it centred on the Huggetts, a family from London exploring their new freedoms in a postwar world. The film starred Jack Warner – later famous as TV constable Dixon of Dock Green – and a host of celebrities, from Cheerful Charlie Chester to Flora Robson.

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he poster for Holiday Camp gives away another key ingredient in Billy’s formula: sex. There was little chance of hanky-panky in the seaside boarding houses run by strict landladies. But in camps full of unsupervised chalets, who was keeping watch on who bunked with whom? That was what Billy wanted the punters to think, anyway.

As usual, Billy was drawing on his own experience. He was married three times and is supposed to have declared that a man should have four drives in life: “women, money, ambition and power”.

He stayed married to Dolly, his first wife, because she wouldn’t divorce him, but he was already living with her niece, Norah. He is also supposed to have slept with all or most of

Dolly’s nine sisters. He can’t have been easy to be married to. Both Dolly and Norah took to drink; though Sheila, his final wife, defended his reputation after his death, pointing out that he gave away millions to charities.

A rare Butlins failure was a $5m (£40m today) investment in a camp in the Bahamas in 1949.

The Americans – the target audience – didn’t take to the camp concept and Billy rapidly sold his hotel leases at a big loss.

Back home, though, the 1950s and 60s were good times. Billy kept innovating, with chairlifts, monorails and on-site hotels. He hired the biggest stars and came up with new ideas – Laurel and Hardy, for example, were judges of the Knobbly Knees contest, a harmless but wacky form of fun that was typically British.

In 1964 Billy met the film star Marlene Dietrich and was surprised to find she was a grandmother. On his return, Butlin started weekly Glamorous Granny competitions.

He kept innovating until he retired in 1969 to his palatial homes – at first in London and then to tax exile in Jersey.

Britons’ enthusiasm for regimented holidays has waned since the 1960s – though cheap air travel to sunnier climes was also a challenge.

But Butlins still has its fans in their millions. The Minehead centre – opened in 1962 at a cost of £2m (£30m today) is now referred to as a holiday park. It has lakeside chalets in pastel shades. A vast pavilion called the Skyline hosts dining, crafts and indoor climbing, while all the fun of Splash Waterworld and a vast funfair are included in the price.

A quick look at the website shows that many weeks even in winter are completely sold out.

Billy Butlin died in Jersey in 1980. His gravestone is shaped like a double bed: we can make up our own minds what to think about that, but he was without doubt a showman to the last.

Sources • The Billy Butlin Story: “A Showman to the End” Billy Butlin • The Dark Side of Billy Butlin Damien Fletcher, Daily Mirror, April 18, 2006 • Holiday camp king Eddie Holt, Irish Times, November 29, 1997 • Vaughan Collection, Bristol Archives • butlins.com/get-to-know-us

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February 2019

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n WHAT’S ON Wednesday February 6-Friday 8 n Mark Thomas: Check Up – Our NHS at 70 Comedy Box at the Tobacco Factory, North Street. If Mark Thomas makes it to 84, the NHS will be 100 – what will they both look like?

Based on interviews with NHS experts. £17/£13, 8pm. tobaccofactorytheatres.com Thursday February 7 n Laser Cut Valentine’s Day Gifts KWMC: The Factory, Unit 24 Filwood Green Business Park, off Hengrove Way BS4 1ET. Design and make laser-cut cards and gifts for Valentine’s Day, 6-8.30pm. Ages 16+. For details e-mail thefactory@kwmc.org.uk or call 0117 403 2306. kwmc.org.uk/events Your event could be highlighted like this for just £5. Email sales@southbristolvoice.co.uk n Something Spectacular Tobacco Factory bar, North Street. A carnival of curiosity with live and interactive art, performances, costumes, prints and more. In support of the third year degree show for UWE Illustration students. 7.30pm. tobaccofactory.com/whats-on Saturday February 9-Monday 11 n LiberationArts Paintworks, Bath Road. A vegan film festival and animal rights event.

Vegan films on Saturday and Monday. On Sunday there’s art, workshops, talks, performances, stalls and food. Free entry. paintworksbristol.co.uk Tuesday February 12-Weds 13 n Antony and Cleopatra Loco Klub, Temple Meads. The Scullions set Shakespeare’s

Silent puppets tell an eloquent story of war n Review Taking a Holiday Otherstory, Bedminster Library THERSTORY makes puppet shows with a conscience, telling the histories of outsiders.

Tonight’s show, to a small audience of 20 or so at Bedminster library, has an introduction from Professor Lois Bibbings of the University of Bristol, who has researched conscientious objectors – men who refused to be conscripted during World War I. A large number of men from South Bristol said no, for moral, political and religious reasons (covered in last month’s Voice history feature). And a network of people in South Bristol hid them from the authorities and helped them escape, sometimes by ship.

This beautiful puppet show tells the story of George Barker , who had a bicycle shop on Cannon Street, Bedminster, and excavated a secret chamber in his back yard to hide men who were on the run.

The show is narrated, with live music and sound effects, by Paul

O

famous tragedy in the corruption of 1920s Prohibition America, with the caverns of the Loco Club an eery backdrop. £12, 7pm. locobristol.com/shows Wednesday February 13-Sat 16 n The Jamie Wood Trilogy Spielman theatre, Tobacco Factory, North Street.

Acting the ass in a mad night of romance n A Midsummer Night’s Dream

by William Shakespeare February 20-April 6 HE SECOND season of the Tobacco Factory theatre’s own acting company begins with Shakespeare’s wildest fantasy.

Artistic director Mike Tweddle presents a new interpretation of the comedy that explores how the course of true love can run this way and that in the wild abandonment of a summer night.

Lysander loves Hermia but to

T

All a dream

PHOTO: Joe Roberts

be together they’ll have to run away. Demetrius loves Hermia too, but she hates him. Unlike Helena, who loves him like mad.

Meanwhile, it’s just days until the wedding of the century.

Bottom and pals have been picked – from thousands – to perform for

Puppets: Wordless conversations Walker – a trowel in a bucket of rocks depicts the digging of the underground tunnel.

Puppeteers Emma Byron and Trevor Houghton devised the show and made the puppets. Dressed in black, they say nothing – the story is told with the gentle eloquence of the puppets. The precision of a puppet climbing every rung of a ladder, hand over hand; the silent conversations between characters – the tilt of a head and a hand on a shoulder show support being offered, a forearm pushed against a chest depicts conflict. The scenery opens to show the cavern below the bike shop, or the boiler room in the depths of a ship.

Taking a Holiday was a euphemism for men going on the International art clown Jamie Wood in three anarchic shows: O No! on February 13 and 14 is a “wonky homage” to Yoko Ono, the woman damned for destroying The Beatles; I Am A Tree on February 15 is about learning to “face the shadows that growl inside the newlyweds. It’s the opportunity of their lives, if only Bottom would stop acting like an ass.

Vengeful fairies, warring lovers, amateur actors, mind-altering herbs and dangerous desires collide in Shakespeare’s riotous comedy of mad, bad romance.

Tickets from £12 (limited availability). Shows 7.30pm; matinées 2pm Thursday and Saturday.

• Inside A Midsummer Night’s Dream Saturday March 9, 10am-1pm. Discussions, lectures, workshops and Q&A sessions including director Mike Tweddle.

• Post-show talk Saturday March 9, after 7.30pm performance. Free. tobaccofactorytheatres.com

run from conscription. George gives one of the fugitives a bicycle to take him to his next destination.

We feel his fear of capture, as well as his sense of liberation as the puppeteer brings him out before the audience – he glides through the landscape, before an arduous chase up hill and down dale by a policeman.

This is a story of joy and solidarity, as well as a clever depiction of war, told with a range of puppetry styles – from a pale, shell-shocked young soldier puppet, to stand-up photographs of old-fashioned coppers, to a swirling silhouette wheel of marching soldiers. At one point members of the front row wave anti-war placards. At the end the audience is invited to talk to the cast and admire the puppets – there is a lot to admire.

Beccy Golding AND THERE’S MORE Otherstory is creating a Bedminster history walk with puppets, uncovering more stories of local people who resisted in World War I. Puppetry workshops February 10 and 24, March 10 and 24, 2-4pm, Windmill Hill City Farm.

Book online at otherstory.org/hiding-placesand-hidden-histories you”; Beating McEnroe, on February 16, harks back to the appeal of the 1970s tennis icon.

Tickets from £12, shows at 8pm. tobaccofactorytheatres.com Thursday February 14 n Los Clandestinos El Rincon, North Street. Valentine’s Night special from the house duo, Jon Baggott on piano with Pete Judge on trumpet, playing a loved-up selection of classic jazz standards and JB originals. Free. elrinconbar.com/music Continued overleaf

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Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

February 2019

southbristolvoice

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February 2019

southbristolvoice

n WHAT’S ON

n WHAT’S ON Punderful Tim finds use for a Herring aid* n Review Tim Vine’s Top Comedy Moments Bristol Slapstick Festival, Bristol Old Vic HERE was a bit of a furore in the lobby of the Old Vic when my son and I arrived.

The Goodies – all three of them – Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie were sitting there, having just finished their on-stage conversation with Slapstick Festival guest curator Richard Herring. Every episode of The Goodies has just been released on DVD – a chance to revisit the TV comedy must-see for some of us, a chance to understand the nonsense your parents were brought up with if you’re my son’s age (born in the 1990s).

Richard Herring was famously part of double act Lee & Herring with cult-comedian Stewart Lee (their Fist of Fun is often re-run on Radio 4Xtra), and is more recently known as the king of comedy podcasts.

These are the kind of people keen to be part of Bristol’s Slapstick Festival, created by South Bristolians (as featured in last month’s Voice). The programme this

year was tremendous. We went to see Tim Vine’s Top Comedy Moments. This guy’s a family favourite for me and my son – a laugh-a-minute, quick-witted, pun-slinging stand-up. Tim’s also well known as the co-star, with Lee Mack, of sitcom Not Going Out. Richard Herring interviews Tim Vine – they talk about his style and influences. Richard confesses one of his top comedy moments by Tim

is the Pen Behind the Ear sketch – we agree – if you haven’t seen it find it on Google.

It’s fun to watch these two comedians discussing their craft, with Tim sneaking in puns when he can. The pair clearly like and respect each other and their relaxed conversation is funny and enlightening.

Tim shares a selection of his top comedy moments – the pair discuss the stars and the context, then we watch a clip on the big screen. We see Laurel and Hardy (of course), Kenny Everett and Larry Grayson. There are clips from The Sketch Show (on from 2001 to 2004) including a wrestling skit between Lee Mack and Tim. The final clip is bittersweet – from Tim’s 2008 stand- up show, where he brings his father on stage to tell his favourite joke – poignant, because Tim’s funny dad sadly died last year.

Beccy Golding * Apologies to readers. Ed.

Continued from page 33 Thursday February 14-Sunday 17 n Alternative Wedding Showcase Arnos Vale cemetery, Bath Road. “If you feel like doing Valentines Day 2019 differently – come to Arnos Vale!”

Independent wedding suppliers take over the Speilman Centre, which will be decorated with inspiration from Tim Burton’s classic film Corpse Bride. Open 10am-2pm each day. Screenings of Corpse Bride are at 7pm on February 14 and 15, £10, bar open from 6pm. Book in advance. arnosvale.org.uk/events Friday February 15 n Davey Woodward & the Winter Orphans The Thunderbolt, Bath Road,

Totterdown. Davey Woodward fronted Bristol indie band The Brilliant Corners. His songs have been covered by Pinkie, Soda Stream and Sophie Ellis Bextor.

7.30pm, £3 on the door. thethunderbolt.net n Dorian Concept (Brainfeeder) + Jameszoo Colston Hall Presents at Fiddlers, Willway Street, Bedminster.

Austrian producer Oliver Johnson, aka Dorian Concept, brings synthesised jazz funk to Fiddlers, with fellow Brainfeeder records artist Jameszoo. £15.26, 8pm. colstonhall.org/shows n From Bessie Smith to Billie Holiday Zion, Bishopsworth Road. Celebrating Bessie Smith and Billie Holiday,

the first blues singers to become household names. A multimedia, live music and spoken word presentation, with Natalie Davis on vocals and Dave Merrick on guitar. Food to pre-order; show 8pm. Bar, over 18s, £10/£18.50. zionbristol.co.uk Saturday February 16 n Circus Cabaret Zion, Bishopsworth Road. Prepare to be dazzled by acts including Moses, an African acrobat and handstand artist, Hobbit, a hula hoop performer and clown, Robin Dale, ping pong and balancing expert, and your host Marky Jay, one of the UK’s top comedy jugglers. Doors 7.30pm, bar, over 18s only. £10. zionbristol.co.uk

Monday February 18-Sat 23 n Me and My Bee Spielman theatre, Tobacco Factory, North Street. A show for all ages from 5+. Multi award-winning theatre company ThisEgg invites you to save the world – one bee at a time. Find out how to join the Bee Party before it’s too late. £10, 11am and 2.30pm. tobaccofactorytheatres.com Tuesday February 19 n Sew a Love Monster Creative Workspace, Queens Road, Withywood. Make a felt love monster as part of the Global Kids Sewing Party, which encourages children to sew for others. 11am-3pm. £2.50 – book online. creativeworkspacebristol.co.uk

Tim Vine talks to Richard Herring at the Slapstick Festival PHOTO: David Betteridge

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n Guess how much I love you: Stomping Story Arnos Vale cemetery, Bath Road.

Outdoor storytelling with the Nut Brown Hares. £5. Sessions at 10.30am, 11.30am and 1pm. arnosvale.org.uk/events Thursday February 21 n Wild Outdoors Club Windmill Hill City Farm, Philip Street, Bedminster. Leave your computer behind and have fun living the gaming experience around the farm. 10am-12 noon, £10, 6 to 9 year olds. Also mini pizza-making, 1-3pm. £2. windmillhillcityfarm.org.uk Saturday February 23 n Film workshop Windmill Hill City Farm, Philip Street, Bedminster. Explore storytelling for the screen and work with actors and award-winning writerdirector Rachel Tillotson. For all abilities. £55, 10am-4.30pm. windmillhillcityfarm.org.uk n Stand Up For The Weekend with Carl Donnelly & Co Comedy Box at the Hen & Chicken Studio, North Street.

Carl Donnelly, a regular on TV and UK comedy clubs, takes mundane stories of everyday life and turns them into stretches of self-deprecating silliness. £12, 8.30pm. Plus guests. thecomedybox.co.uk n Join the Circus! Creative Workspace, Queens Road, Withywood. Children aged 8+ can learn from professional circus performers. 10.30am-3.30pm, £5, booking essential. creativeworkspacebristol.co.uk Tuesday February 26 n We Have Overcome Acta theatre, Gladstone Street, Bedminster. The Malcolm X Elders revive a 2012 show, retelling their stories of moving

Deadpan view reveals a lot n Review John Myers: Looking at the Overlooked Martin Parr Foundation, Paintworks ARTIN Parr is renowned internationally as one of the most significant documentary photographers of post-war Britain. His gallery and photo collection is tucked away in the newest part of the Paintworks development, off Bath Road. This minimalist modern space also hosts talks by other acclaimed photographers – like this slide show presentation by John Myers.

John Myers is the sort of chap you could walk past in the street, ordinary, unassuming, no clue to the respect he commands – other than he’ll probably be carrying his wood and brass Gandolfi camera with him. The large audience, with a strong contingent of art students and older bohemian types, shows that those in the know, know this to England in a celebration of the Windrush Generation. Also on March 4. 7pm, £3. acta-bristol.com Wednesday February 27Saturday March 9 n No Kids Spielman theatre, Tobacco Factory, North Street.

Energetic, hilarious and thoughtprovoking, this is the quandary of George and Nir, a real-life same-sex couple asking if children are for them. Awardwinning Bristol company Ad Infinitum cover every issue from adoption to surrogacy. Tickets from £12, 8pm. tobaccofactorytheatres.com

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No faces: Myers’ take on the urban scene of the 1970s

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event is worth attending.

John is here to talk about his book, Looking at the Overlooked.

The photos were taken in the 1970s, before photography became ubiquitous. You’ll not see a person in any of these images; these are landscapes without incident – flat, deadpan scenes of lifts, garages, TV sets and electricity substations, all within walking distance of Myers’ home in Stourbridge. Rather like the man himself – deadpan and straightforward until you look a little deeper and find humour, wit and deep reflections. The book is a

serious piece of art – just 1,000 copies, reproduced to the highest standard, 780 already sold, all signed and numbered, it’ll set you back £75. But an £8 ticket to this event gave us a unique glimpse into the mind of the man that created it.

In the Q&A, someone said they saw so much more once John had explained his technique, his influences, his point of view. I felt that too – it was a pleasure to be let into his thinking. The more you looked, the more these black and white photos showed their true colours.

Beccy Golding

Regular events

hear from artists, crafters, photographers, musicians, jewellers, potters who might be interested in having a stall: dawn. lockhart@bs3community.org.uk

n Iyengar yoga classes.

Beginners welcome. Qualified teacher, equipment provided. £8 (£6 concessions). Centre for Whole Health, 12 Victoria Place, Bedminster BS3 3BP. Class held Monday 7.30-8.45pm. Contact: 07984 039737. n BS3 Repair Cafe Repairs for a donation, plus cream teas and home-made cakes. 1.30-4.30pm, last Saturday of every month, United Reformed Church Hall, West Street, Bedminster.

Facebook: BS3 Repair Cafe

BS3 Community Events

For the young and older members of our community and everyone in between Art Fair to replace postponed Art Trail n As you may have heard, sadly the South Bank Bristol Arts Trail won’t take place in 2019.

However, as the largest venue, and the organisation that founded the trail, we would still like to celebrate our artistic community and are considering holding an art fair at the Southville Centre on Saturday May 11 (tbc). We would like to

Looking for a local meeting room? n We have four attractive, accessible rooms for hire at competitive rates, for small meetings or conferences of up to 100 people. Catering is available from Kate’s Kitchen who also run the café at the Southville Centre.

By hiring a room from BS3 Community you are helping us to support social and environmental projects, because we reinvest our profits back into the community.

For details call 0117 923 1039.

Social club for older people has spaces available n The Monday Club for older people is welcoming new members at the Southville Centre every Monday 10am-4pm. Guests can enjoy lunch, entertainment, craft, trips and talks. For more info visit our website bs3community.org.uk or ring Barbara or Ruth on 0117 923 1039.

What’s on at BS3 Community info@bs3community.org.uk 0117 923 1039 bs3community.org.uk

Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

February 2019

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n CHURCH NEWS

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HERE are two little words in the English language that I struggle with more than any others. Sometimes I say the one when I really ought to say the other: ‘Yes’ and ‘no’.

When I was eight, a friend invited me to come with his family to a baseball game. About three innings in, my friend’s dad asked us, “Do you want a hot dog or some popcorn? Maybe a drink?”

My friend was eager – he said yes Regular services

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Bedminster Church of Christ

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Bedminster Quaker Meeting House Wedmore Vale BS3 5HX

298 St John’s Lane BS3 5AY Minister Jason Snethen churchofchristbristol.org Sunday 10am Bible Hour for all ages; 11am worship; 5pm worship; Tuesday 7.30pm Bible study; Thursday 10am Coffee morning; Friday 3.45-5pm After-school; 7-9.30pm youth group.

Clerk Chrissie Williams 0117 923 0020 bristolquakers.org.uk Sunday Worship 10.45am; 2nd & 4th Sunday Children’s meeting; 2nd Sunday Shared lunch.

Thought for the month: Yes, and No

With Jason Snethen, Bedminster Church of Christ

to all three! But I was shy and said the first thing that popped into my mind: “No, thank you.” For the next six innings I watched my friend devour his snacks. He had me wishing I’d had the confidence to say “Yes, please!”

A life of ‘Yes’ may overfill our

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St Aldhelm’s Church

Chessel Street, Bedminster BS3 3TT hello@staldhelms.org Minister Rev Nick Hay 07534 249338 staldhelms.org Sunday 10am Morning service, informal with mix of traditional and contemporary songs. Creche, Sunday school, refreshments; House groups meet on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, 7.30pm.

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St Paul’s Church

2 Southville Road, Southville BS3 1DG stpsouthville@gmail.com Rev Nick Hay 07534 249338

Will Writing & Estate Planning

calendar and bring stress, even impossible pressures. A life of ‘No’ may leave us lonely, limited in experience and even dissatisfied.

But what is even worse is when our mouths say one and our actions another! We say “Yes, I’ll be there to help!” Then we slide in at the last second and leave at the first opportunity.

Honest people are those who say what they mean! As Jesus put it, “Let your yes be yes, and your

no, no.” Anything beyond that can make you a liar.

Sometimes we need diplomacy to stay honest and to stay friends at the same time (“Do I look good in this?”) but honesty wins.

So next time I need a yes or no, I’ll pause, take a breath, and then speak the one I can best live with. My diary will remain reasonable, my blood pressure won’t rise, and my integrity will remain intact.

saintpaulschurch.co.uk Sunday 10.30am Worship is a mix of contemporary and traditional with groups for children and young people.

Also: 1st Sunday 9am Traditional Communion Service; 2nd Sunday 7.30pm Praise and Prayer; 4th Sunday Sunday Sessions in Rope Walk pub.

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St Francis Church 279 North

Street, Ashton Gate BS3 1JP staldhelmsandstfrancis.org.uk Priest-in-charge Rev Andrew Doarks 0117 963 9121 Sunday 10am Communion or Morning Worship; 1st Saturday 10am Open church; Thursday 10am Eucharist.

Sylvia Avenue BS3 5DA Minister Rev Brendan Bassett 0117 977 2484 victoriapark.org.uk Sunday 10.30am Service includes groups for all ages, and adults; coffee 11.30am; 2nd Sunday Parade service; 3rd Sunday Communion.

Salvation Army Dean Lane BS3 1BS

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Corps officer Ben Ellis 0117 966 4952 salvationarmy.org.uk/bristolbedminster Sunday 10.30am Morning Worship; 11.30am Kids Alive!; 5pm Evening Worship.

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southbristolvoice

n THE CITY PAGE Sponsored by CLEVERLEY BUILDERS

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BRISTOL CITY ROUND-UP Supporting City and the best in building

Hey, big spender – grateful thanks for giving us the Blues!

Victoria Park Baptist Church

MATHS AND ENGLISH

A Will lets you protect your family’s inheritance and decide how your assets are shared out –

February 2019

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Chelsea can afford to spend £56m on a player they don’t need yet. Their surplus teammates are City’s gain, says MARTIN POWELL

HERE is a distinct shade of blue in the Bristol City side at the moment and few fans are likely to complain.

Chelsea midfielder Kasey Palmer arrived on loan in the transfer window, joining fellow Blues Tomas Kalas and Jay Dasilva. All three were on the field as City fought back from 1-0 down against Bolton to win 2-1, with Palmer scoring.

The Reds are forming a fascinating partnership with the Blues – let’s call them The Pensioners so as not to confuse them with any other team in that particular colour. Kalas has been a big part of City being harder to beat this season; Dasilva is keeping our own young prospect Lloyd Kelly on his toes, pushing for his place, and Palmer in his first few games looks a superb

MARTIN’S SHORTS n Bristol Bears rugby team have been asking fans to choose the match day music.

Apparently a Seventies vibe is popular. With rugby players I guess something by Mud would be good.

acquisition. City’s relationship with Chelsea was cemented in the 2016-17 season when Tammy Abraham came on a season-long loan, scoring 26 goals in 46 appearances – keeping the side in the Championship, winning Player of the Year and going back to Chelsea with his value enhanced.

Sadly he is now going backwards in his career, on loan at Aston Villa, who are below City in the league, although still knocking the goals in! A great measure of our success this season will be if City finish above Aston Villa with all its big spending and “star” players.

For those who believe City’s rightful place is in the Premier League, it is interesting to look at the Chelsea players out on loan.

Astonishingly there are 41 Chelsea players currently playing for other sides.

One of them, Christian Pulisic, they bought for £56 million in January but have allowed him to stay at Borussia Dortmund until the end of the season. Yes, they paid £56m for a player they don’t need yet! Clearly Bristol City have a long way to go before they are in that financial bracket. It is

Winner: Chelsea import Kasey Palmer at Bolton not surprising, then, that there are quality championship players to be borrowed from them, and in Kalas, Dasilva and Palmer we have three of them. Palmer, although only 22, has already experienced promotion from the Championship while at Huddersfield and played for them in the Premier League.

Dasilva won Player of the Year during a spell at Charlton, and Kalas has already helped Middlesbrough and Fulham escape from the Championship at the top end and has European football and playing against Liverpool at Anfield in the Premier League on his CV. These are not players who are coming to Bristol City to learn their trade. They are established

PHOTO: JMPUK/BCFC

top-level professionals who need games at a high level so that they are ready to perform for Chelsea in the future.

Of course all City fans will hope that a change of regime at Chelsea might mean a few of these players stay at the club – and promotion to the Premier League might persuade them to stay and get regular football outside of London.

City in turn are sending their own players out on loan, with Antoine Semenyo and Tyreeq Bakinson catching the eye for Newport by knocking recent Premier League winners Leicester City out of the FA Cup in front of TV cameras. Maybe the club is gaining something from following the Chelsea way.

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Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk

February 2019

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n YOUR MP

KARIN SMYTH Labour MP for Bristol South

We must keep on fighting this educational inequality

E

DUCATIONAL inequality in Bristol South has once again come under the spotlight, as UCAS releases its latest set of figures which show the percentage of 18-year-olds from Bristol South going to university has dropped even further.

The latest figures revealed that just over 16 per cent of school leavers in Bristol South went on to university in 2017. That figure dropped to just below 16 per cent for 2018.

Nationally, the average is 31.4 per cent. (Bristol South is no longer the worst-performing constituency in the country – that place has been taken by Barrow-in-Furness.)

Higher education is a key driver of social mobility and I believe all young people in Bristol South deserve the opportunity of a decent career. There is more than one way to

achieve this and apprenticeships – some of which lead to a degree – have a crucial role.

Conversations I’ve had with pupils and their parents reveal many barriers to higher education – including the financial cost. The scrapping of the Educational Maintenance Allowance in England, combined with rising costs of living, including transport, has impacted pupils from lower income families.

I’ve spoken to the headteachers of all South Bristol secondary schools as well as college principals and it’s clear that they are under great pressure to deliver a quality education without the resources to do so – with the

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further education sector squeezed much more than other areas of schooling. This has led to a reduced offer of subjects and qualifications, pastoral staff and careers provision.

I asked the Government whether it deemed further education funding to be adequate considering that young people must now remain in education or training until they are 18. The minister for apprenticeships and skills said they were aware of the challenges facing further education but offered little in way of a plan to address this.

Locally, I was pleased to see Bristol city council launch a strategy and a dedicated board to work on post-16 education as part of the Learning City Partnership and I am following developments closely.

I’ve also been working with businesses and training providers to boost the number of quality apprenticeships in Bristol South. My annual South Bristol Jobs & Apprenticeships Fair helps link people to these opportunities, and the next one is at the South Bristol Skills Academy in Hengrove from 11am-3pm on Thursday February 28. It’s free to attend.

I will continue to push for action in Parliament and work with local schools and colleges and others to tackle this entrenched educational inequality and ensure that university is a viable option for more young people in Bristol South.

February 2019

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February 2019

INVITATION

CJ Hole Southville invite you to accept our offer of a free sales or lettings valuation.

To arrange an appointment, please telephone the office or call in personally.

If you have instructed another agent on a sole agency and/or sole selling rights basis, the terms of those instructions must be considered to avoid a possible liability to pay two commissions.

MEDIUM SOUTH WEST

268 North Street, Southville, Bristol BS3 1JA

t: 0117 963 4373 southville@cjhole.co.uk With 17 offices covering Bristol, Gloucester and Somerset

OPENING HOURS Monday - Friday 9am - 7pm Saturday 9am - 5pm

SOUTH WEST

MEDIUM AGENCY ESTATE AGENCY YEAR 2011

The Multi Award Winning Agent