Police tried to mediate an agreementA Union flag on West Street in Bristol on Wednesday 10 September 2025(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)

Police were called to a South Bristol street after the row over flags being tied to lampposts escalated into accusations of theft and assault between a group of people who said they put them up, and those who were taking them down. There were tense scenes on one road in Ashton Gate on Sunday morning (September 21) as local residents who said they had put up a fresh line of St George flags tried to stop another group of local residents from taking them down.

Police were called and allegations and counter-allegations were made, and Bristol Live understands that a mediation meeting between some involved in the two groups took place that afternoon.

More St George flags have since been put up on streets in Ashton Gate and Bedminster this week, while teddy bears bearing Union flags and messages of unity and welcome, that were put up in place around the area at the weekend, have disappeared after just one day. There now appears to be a police-brokered stand off with one group maintaining that they will keep tying new Union or St George flags to lampposts, and another group of local residents pledging to take them down again.

The on-going dispute over the presence of the flags escalated on Sunday morning at Duckmoor Road in Ashton Gate. Bristol Live previously reported how a group of people putting Union flags up on lampposts in that street and Luckwell Road earlier this month were shouted at by angry residents of that street who objected to the flags being put close to their homes.

Those flags on Duckmoor Road and West Street disappeared after a few days, but overnight last Friday into Saturday morning, September 20, new St George flags were tied onto lampposts all along Duckmoor Road and also on nearby West Street in Bedminster. It was the second time flags had been raised on that street.

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Part of the reaction to the flags being raised in Duckmoor Road the first time was the formation of a community group who said they were opposing it because the motivation behind the flag raising was overtly anti-immigration and racist.

Bristol Live previously reported that those behind the flags being raised in Bedminster, Ashton Gate and Bedminster Down posted publicly on social media saying they were putting up the flags as an anti-immigration message which linked asylum seekers to attacks on women and girls.

What happened at the weekend

New St George’s flags were put up on Friday evening, more than a week after the first set of Union flags had been taken down. The St George flags were taken down again in daylight on Sunday morning by a group of people who live on that street. “One neighbour even came with her two kids in a pram,” one of the organisers, who declined to be named, told Bristol Live.

He said their group of neighbours numbered around eight, and as they got to work on Sunday morning, ‘most people were supportive’, but a few people strongly objected, and things turned nasty.

“We wanted to take the flags down to make people feel safer and more welcome in our community,” he said. “The flags may have been raised in the name of patriotism but, the people doing it have links to football hooliganism and far right parties.

“Other residents have told me that they’re scared they could be attacked because they aren’t white and that’s not how anyone in our neighbourhood should feel,” he added.

“About half way down the road the police drove past and told us that they didn’t care about the flags going up or coming down, but that they didn’t want to have to deal with a confrontation between the two sides and that we should just walk away if people got aggressive.

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“The majority of people who saw us taking down the flags were supportive and thanked us for taking them down, saying they feel better without them. However, a very vocal and aggressive minority disagreed. A few people shouted abuse from their cars, swearing at us and calling us traitors.

“Then as we were outside the block of flats one man came out in an England football shirt and started abusing us.” The resident claimed the man yelling offensive comments at the group.

A Union flag on a lamppost on West Street in Bedminster, on Saturday evening. It - and all the others - were removed by a group of unknown people at around 5am on Sunday morning, according to eye witnessesA Union flag on a lamppost on West Street in Bedminster, on Saturday evening. It – and all the others – were removed by a group of unknown people at around 5am on Sunday morning, according to eye witnesses(Image: Bristol Post)

The group then decided to stop taking down the flags, but as they made their way home, they said they were confronted by another man. “A man in the blue sweater was aggressively trying to get up in our group’s faces and pushing his chest into people and actively blocking our way as we tried to leave peacefully. He was filming us, calling us lefty scum, saying we’re dishonouring the people that fought in WWII and other more explicit insults,” the resident said.

The group allege that, as both sides were filming the confrontation on their phones, the man tried to physically take back a flag from the women who had gathered them all together, and in the process she was knocked to the ground. The group of residents then left with the flags – apart from one – and within minutes the police arrived. They had been called by one of the people who confronted the group, who alleged they were going up and down Duckmoor Road stealing flags.

A group of people tie Union flags high on lampposts in Luckwell Road and Duckmoor Road in Bedminster, South Bristol, on the evening of Wednesday, September 10, 2025A group of people tie Union flags high on lampposts in Luckwell Road and Duckmoor Road in Bedminster, South Bristol, on the evening of Wednesday, September 10, 2025(Image: Bristol Post)

Later that day, the man who confronted the group taking the flags down, and one of the group who took them down went to Broadbury Road police station in Knowle West to give statements and attend a mediation session.

That ended with an uneasy ‘understanding’ that could well see flags being put up and taken down regularly now in these streets. “My understanding is that it was agreed that if we see somebody put up a flag, we won’t engage – unless it is put up outside of our house,” the man who spoke to Bristol Live said.

“If they see us take down a flag, all they will do is ask for it back, other than that, they won’t engage. We will give them the flag if they say it’s theirs. If nobody is around, we will dispose of the flag,” he added.

Some of the cuddly toys that were tied to lampposts in Ashton and Bedminster over the weekend of September 20-21. The toys, bearing messages of hope and solidarity and Union flags, were put on lampposts after Union flags and St George flags were removed. Most of the toys themselves were removed by unknown people on the first night they were placed thereSome of the cuddly toys that were tied to lampposts in Ashton and Bedminster over the weekend of September 20-21. The toys, bearing messages of hope and solidarity and Union flags, were put on lampposts after Union flags and St George flags were removed.
Most of the toys themselves were removed by unknown people on the first night they were placed there(Image: Bristol Post submitted)

“They know we will keep removing the flags, and we know they will keep putting them back up. The guy in the blue thinks it will die down shortly as it begins to get colder. He has said he will speak with the group and tell them to leave off Luckwell Road and Duckmoor Road for a little bit to let feelings die down a touch.

“I think this response is pretty dismal,” he said. “It doesn’t make our streets safer and the police should do a better job of protecting our community,” he said.

What did the police say

Bristol Live contacted Avon and Somerset Police earlier this week about the events of Sunday in Ashton Gate and a response is awaited.

The Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset, Sarah Crew, did issue a long statement about hate crime and rising tensions, and called for unity. “There remains a deep sense of fear in some, especially our racially minoritised communities, who are telling me their anxiety is worsening,” she said this week.

Some of the cuddly toys that were tied to lampposts in Ashton and Bedminster over the weekend of September 20-21. The toys, bearing messages of hope and solidarity and Union flags, were put on lampposts after Union flags and St George flags were removed. Most of the toys themselves were removed by unknown people on the first night they were placed thereSome of the cuddly toys that were tied to lampposts in Ashton and Bedminster over the weekend of September 20-21. The toys, bearing messages of hope and solidarity and Union flags, were put on lampposts after Union flags and St George flags were removed.
Most of the toys themselves were removed by unknown people on the first night they were placed there(Image: Bristol Post submitted)

“People are scared to go about their daily lives for fear of being attacked in the street. This is not acceptable. We will be robust and relentless in bringing to justice those who perpetrate crimes motivated by hate. Everyone expects and deserves to feel safe and secure where they live.

“There is also a deep sense of anger and powerlessness in other communities. People who feel left behind, marginalised and misunderstood. Who feel that those in power or authority don’t seem to care about their lives. They must be allowed to voice their views within the law and with respect.

“It’s our job to ensure we keep all communities safe; we deal with all incidents of hate crime robustly and we’re visible to those who are feeling scared. It is also our responsibility to enable lawful protest; to uphold the fundamental rights we cherish – freedom of conscience, expression, and association, but in a way that respects and does not intimidate others,” she added.

Cuddly toys and new flagsSome of the cuddly toys that were tied to lampposts in Ashton and Bedminster over the weekend of September 20-21. The toys, bearing messages of hope and solidarity and Union flags, were put on lampposts after Union flags and St George flags were removed. Most of the toys themselves were removed by unknown people on the first night they were placed thereSome of the cuddly toys that were tied to lampposts in Ashton and Bedminster over the weekend of September 20-21. The toys, bearing messages of hope and solidarity and Union flags, were put on lampposts after Union flags and St George flags were removed.
Most of the toys themselves were removed by unknown people on the first night they were placed there(Image: Bristol Post submitted)

On Duckmoor Road, West Street and North Street in Bedminster, teddy bears and other cuddly toys wearing jumpers with Union flags were tied to lampposts later that Sunday.

The cuddly toys bore knitted messages like ‘hope’ and ‘community’ and the name of the Bristol City of Sanctuary organisation, but almost all were removed on Sunday night and only a handful now remain.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday and Wednesday evening this week, more St George flags were tied to all the lampposts in West Street and Duckmoor Road – for the third time – and almost all remain in place.

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