![\"Autumnal](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0_BRI_PG_231123weather-10.jpg\")
Autumnal colours visible through Castle Park in Bristol, in November 2023(Image: PAUL GILLIS \/ Reach PLC)<\/p>\nLabour’s plans received unanimous support by Bristol city councillorsAutumnal colours visible through Castle Park in Bristol, in November 2023(Image: PAUL GILLIS \/ Reach PLC)<\/p>\n
Plans to make Bristol parks safer for women and girls received unanimous support from city councillors despite concerns about the potential impact on wildlife such as bats. A motion<\/a> by opposition Labour<\/a> calling for better lighting along paths, more help and information points, visible staff or wardens on site, removal of overgrown vegetation, and the creation of clear sightlines was endorsed by 60-0 votes at a meeting of full council.<\/p>\n It means two parks, including Castle Park which is already the subject of a major revamp as part of wider proposals<\/a> to transform the city centre, will be selected to pilot improved safety measures.<\/p>\n These could then be rolled out to open spaces across Bristol, which would be a decision for the public health and communities committee which has been tasked with identifying other barriers that prevent people from using parks as well as the funding needed to address these.<\/p>\n Cllr Lisa Durston (Labour, Filwood), who tabled the motion, told the meeting: \u201cWe all know how important parks and green spaces are, for our physical health, our mental health, our connection to nature and a sense of community. We also know that not everyone gets to enjoy them equally.<\/p>\n \u201cGirls\u2019 participation in parks drops off sharply around age 11 or 12, often because the spaces and activities just don\u2019t feel designed for them. If we design with inclusion built in and listen to the voice of lived experience from the start, we can create parks that work for everyone.<\/p>\n \u201cThis motion is about making Bristol\u2019s parks places where everyone can feel welcome and safe.\u201d<\/p>\n Seconding the motion, Cllr Sue Kollar (Labour, Bishopsworth) said many people found it daunting to walk through parks now the clocks have gone back and it gets dark earlier. She said: \u201cWe shouldn\u2019t accept a situation where people avoid our parks and green spaces for half the year.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can\u2019t stop it getting dark, but we can ensure that when it gets dark, it feels safe. I understand that when other members have asked for lighting in parks, the council has said \u2018no\u2019, citing lighting\u2019s effect on bats and other wildlife.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are valid environmental considerations. But surely, safety for people should come first.\u201d<\/p>\n Cllr Cara Lavan (Green, St George Central) told the meeting on Tuesday, November 4: \u201cI welcome this motion and the attention it brings to the safety and accessibility of our parks and green spaces. Years of government austerity have left our parks budgets severely depleted.<\/p>\n \u201cWith no end in sight, councils like Bristol are often only able to carry out the bare minimum in maintenance.\u201d She said a new parks and green spaces strategy, approved last year, committed to consulting women\u2019s and girls\u2019 groups on big changes to parks.<\/p>\n \u201cHowever, both the capital and revenue implications of the motion mean it must be considered carefully,\u201d Cllr Lavan said. \u201cWe know that interacting with nature reduces stress and improves both physical and mental health.<\/p>\n \u201cYet nature itself is under threat. One of the challenges this motion presents is balancing the safety of park users \u2014 especially women and girls \u2014 with the need to protect wildlife.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile bright lights can make parks feel safer, they can also harm nocturnal wildlife. Conversely, too little light may give a false sense of security. We must find solutions that work for both people and nature.\u201d<\/p>\n Public health and communities committee chairman Cllr Stephen Williams (Lib Dem, Westbury-on-Trym & Henleaze) said: \u201cOn the issue of lighting, there are conflicting opinions not just on wildlife versus human use of the park but also whether having parks lit all the time might actually encourage lots of bad human behaviour if they think it\u2019s a good place to turn up at night.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are proposing to spend millions of pounds of capital investment on upgrading Castle Park \u2013 the last upgrade was in 1993.<\/p>\n \u201cI actually feel unsafe in Castle Park because many of the pathways are enclosed, aren\u2019t overlooked by anybody and as trees have grown around them it\u2019s become even worse, so sightlines are an important issue as well.\u201d<\/p>\n Cllr John Goulandris (Conservative, Stoke Bishop) said: \u201cUnder the previous Labour mayoral administration, the budget for parks was repeatedly slashed year after year.<\/p>\n \u201cSuch was the cavalier approach to our parks that the mayor adopted the bizarre view that parks should be self-funding, the alternative presumably being to close them and turn them into development opportunities for his corporate friends.<\/p>\n \u201cAnyhow, Labour sinners, we welcome your repentance and your focus on parks.\u201d<\/p>\n The motion means there will be an annual \u201csafer parks report\u201d to the public health and communities committee. Bristol City Council<\/a> launched a public engagement exercise called Castle Park Conversations<\/a> in September.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Labour’s plans received unanimous support by Bristol city councillorsAutumnal colours visible through Castle Park in Bristol, in November…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":576427,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8818],"tags":[14343,381,3893,748,527,393,4884,14144,20078,528,11518,285,10298,16,15,11386],"class_list":{"0":"post-576426","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bristol","8":"tag-bishopsworth","9":"tag-bristol","10":"tag-bristol-city-council","11":"tag-britain","12":"tag-conservative-party","13":"tag-england","14":"tag-great-britain","15":"tag-green-party","16":"tag-henleaze","17":"tag-labour-party","18":"tag-liberal-democrats","19":"tag-politics","20":"tag-st-george","21":"tag-uk","22":"tag-united-kingdom","23":"tag-westbury-on-trym"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115565833744986936","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/576426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=576426"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/576426\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/576427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=576426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=576426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=576426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}