A tantalising glimpse of how this year’s Bristol Christmas Market in Broadmead will look has been unveiled in new plans recently submitted.
Each week Bristol City Council receives dozens of planning applications seeking permission for a whole range of developments.
Over the past seven days, those applications also included converting a former 17th-century bar into homes and a micro-pub, and retaining raised decking built without permission in a back garden to give a seriously disabled, wheelchair-bound girl a lease of life.
Here’s this week’s round-up of notable planning applications submitted to the council.
Every week dozens are validated by the local authority and we have selected some of the more interesting proposals.
All planning applications submitted to the council have to be validated and are available for inspection by the public.
Anyone is also allowed to submit comments about the applications — whether in support or objection.
The majority of applications are decided by planning officers at the council under delegated powers.
To see all the planning applications, traffic diversions, road layout changes, alcohol licence applications and more in your area, enter your postcode below or visit the Public Notice Portal HERE
However, some will go before elected councillors who sit on planning committees.
No dates have been set for when the planning applications below will be determined.
They can be viewed by going to the planning portal on Bristol City Council’s website.
Christmas Market
It may only be May, but plans have been submitted for this year’s Christmas Market in Broadmead.
The much-loved festive event will again take place between the road opposite the entrance to Cabot Circus and Merchant Street, with dozens of Bavarian-themed wooden stalls and chalets selling gifts and crafts alongside food and drink, including the Jäger Barn Bar area.
Photo of how Bristol Christmas Market’s entrance arc would look(Image: Relevention)
This year there will also be a traditional horse merry-go-round and a new bar called ‘Karussell’, plus a huge nine-metre Christmas entrance arc from Merchant Street.
In planning documents, operators Relevention said the attraction would be open from November 6 until December 23, with opening times 10am to 8pm daily and until 10pm for food and beverages.
Pub conversion
An historic drinking hole on the main Bridgwater Road to Bristol Airport would be turned into seven new homes and a micro-pub.
The Kings Head in Bedminster Down, which dates back to the mid-17th century, shut at the end of 2024.
Plans have now been lodged to redevelop the property into three homes and a ground-floor micro-pub with a staff flat above, along with building four new detached houses on the site.
In planning documents, the designers said: “The building is to be retained as a Micro Public House with associated staff accommodation; retaining the character and appearance of the building itself.
“The proposal seeks to include seven plots consisting of two-to-three bed houses – all with generous garden space and privacy from the main road.
“The Kings Head is to be retained as a Micro Public House with associated staff accommodation; retaining the character and appearance of the building itself.
“The application demonstrates that The Kings Head is no longer economically viable in its current form – justifying the proposed change of use.”
Raised decking
Rear garden raised decking, fencing and a balcony built without planning consent to help a ‘profoundly disabled’ girl enjoy her surroundings could be retained.
The homeowner at Wingfield Road, Knowle, is seeking permission to keep the structure in place.
Bristol City Council previously issued an enforcement notice to take it down but this was quashed by a government planning inspector last month because of a ‘lack of clarity and potential injustice in its requirements’.
In planning documents, architects said: “The appellant now seeks to regularise the development through a scheme that balances neighbourly amenity with essential accessibility needs.
“The primary driver for this development is the profound disability of the appellant’s daughter.”
It said she suffered from ‘chronic, severe pain and is wheelchair dependent’.
The architects said: “Due to the steeply sloping nature of the rear garden, the raised decking is the only feasible way to provide her with safe, level access to private outdoor space directly from the home.
“While the original structure was built without permission, this application proposes a revised scheme that proactively addresses the council’s previous concerns regarding overlooking and overbearing impact.
“The quashing of the enforcement notice provides an opportunity to consider this development on its planning merits.
“The revised scheme represents a proportionate, policy-compliant solution that safeguards neighbour privacy while fulfilling a critical, life-enhancing need for a disabled resident.”