CHIS Newsletter Winter 2024-2025

Chairman’s Report.

Autumn is the time for the CHIS AGM and the Remembrance Service at St Andrew’s churchyard. This year Committee member Commander Nick Sargent, in glittering naval uniform, laid the wreath of poppies. Unusually there was no attendance by the local Guides and Scouts at the ceremony but a score of us, including Captain Caroline Sargent, also in fine naval fig. paid tribute to the Fallen and sang heartily enough to be congratulated by the preacher. Once again we are grateful to Committee member Peter Stanley for organizing procedures, despite a painful medical condition this year, and to Paul Main for reading from the bible.

AGM, 15 October 2024. The necessary business went briskly; re- election to the Committee of Christopher Jefferies and Nick Sargent as well as the election of Richard Whitburn, all for three years. In a crisp and optimistic address our Treasurer, Stephen Bullimore reported a balanced budget for the first time for a few years, adding however that continuing rising costs meant that the future balance would depend on a rise in the annual subscription from £10 to £15. Full details will be in the Spring Newsletter. In our nearly sixty years this is only our second increase. A number of appreciative members have for a long time given more than the standard amount and will, we hope, continue to do so!

All members of the Committee were congratulated on their tireless work and vigilance on behalf of our area. The handsome new CHIS leaflet designed by Nick Sargent was already serving to attract new members – a vitally important matter.

Of course, the decent total of those present was attracted by the talk ‘The Commerciality of the Wine Business’, by Richard Davis of DBM, Princess Victoria Street. Their reward was an engaging and revelatory insight into the wine business, nationally (Bristol and Newcastle being the only docking places for the country’s bulk wine imports) and locally — a startling point being that the partial closure of Princess Victoria Street to motor traffic caused a loss of £100,000 to the Speaker’s firm, DBM.

Afterwards attendees were able to enjoy a brief wine tasting.

Other Talks. To nobody’s surprise, Professor Ronald Hutton’s lecture on ‘Modern Vampires’ in September drew a goodly audience, not to be disappointed by his wide range of reference to literature and film. At question time a number of younger listeners gave the speaker a run for his money and the rest of the audience a glimpse into a relatively unknown world.

Gordon Young gave a talk on the early history of printing, focussing on the so-called incunabula period that started with Gutenberg (1455–1500). It was enhanced considerably by selections from Gordon’s own collection of printed pieces, and a short film Gordon himself made around 20 years ago. Our 2025 talks season will begin on January 21 with a talk by Ed Drewitt, another speaker popular for his lively and enthusiastic presentation.

Streetscape. A member made contact with RoseMary Musgrave to lament the battered condition of a CHIS-provided seat sited in Clifton Vale. It is dedicated to Shirley Savage, CHIS’s first Secretary, and her husband Professor Bob Savage, who was among the first of our members. Within weeks, action was taken to replace rotted slats with specially seasoned wood, thanks to the initiative of Simon Cole, Peter Stanley and Paul Main.

Two fine Victorian lamps have been given to CHIS and are in store until further deliberation and advice from Christopher Jefferies and Nick Sargent.

It is a relief to record the Mound by the Children’s Playground is now no more and the grass is thriving on a smooth level. Ditto the previous sink-hole in Canynge Square, where work on restoring the gate and a low retaining wall continues. If only car access to the Square were made one-way, a thorough improvement would have been achieved.

After a complicated series of discussions, the proposed Defibrillator in Clifton Village is in place, affixed to the outside of the Royal Oak in the Mall. It will be financed by Clifton BID and maintained by the public house authorities.

Traffic and Parking. On another page there is an important request for members to comment on one aspect of the One-Way route (an aspect of the Low Traffic Neighbourhood scheme) at the corner of Princess Victoria Street and Sion Hill. Please take note in order to give your view.

Planning. A report on proposed developments in BS8 appears elsewhere, thanks to the work of our Planning Co-ordinators, Linda Edwards and Christopher Jefferies.

The Zoo’s North Car Park was ruled by a High Court Judge to be kept for ever unenclosed for the use of the citizens of Bristol in compliance with the Downs Act. This Down’s area was gradually encroached upon as a car park for the Zoo from the 1990s; despite the court’s ruling, the Downs Committee is intent on returning the site to commercial use for parking and even more activity. Yet again there is a strong likelihood of considerable amounts of council tax payers’ money being spent as a result of legal challenges.

FOOTNOTE. Re-instatement of the long-used right of way by the North Wall of the Zoo site has been organized by an appeal on the initiative of Christopher Jefferies. We await confirmation of the decision. Interestingly, there are in Bristol 14 similar footpaths which need to be legally affirmed.

Bristol Zoo Gardens. The behaviour of the Bristol Zoo trustees continues to disappoint. At three auctions in November, the trustees sold off around 350 items including historic sculptures, signs, paintings, posters, crockery, Victorian railings and 45 Victorian benches, this despite the successful application for Judicial Review of the planning application. We are told that there was no mention of the imminent auctions at the Zoo’s AGM in October, meaning even the Zoo’s shareholders were in the dark.

CHIS supported the crowd-funded appeal from a group of concerned residents in applying for a Judicial Review of the more than lamentable development plan for the Zoo Gardens site. Happily, leave to proceed with the appeal through further action has been granted on all three stated accounts. We intend to give further aid in support of this vital action to stop a wholly unworthy kind of architecture in this exceptional suburb – John Betjeman’s “Best in Europe”.

Plaques. The sun shone on the dedication by the Lord Lieutenant of our green plaque to Diana Wynne Jones at 7 The Polygon before a large group of friends and neighbours, with a generous reception after the speeches, provided by one of her sons in their former home. Paul Main had once again quietly ensured success with the proceedings.

Later it was good to see in Clifton Voice a report and photograph of the participants but on another page the photograph appeared again, aligned with a brief article on repelling wasps from local vineyards. All publicity is generally good but I think that the Committee are busy-bees rather than wasps.

To the surprise of local societies like CHIS and the Bristol Civic Society, the long-standing London-centred Blue Plaque scheme, having been taken over by English Heritage, is extending its range country-wide. We agree with Bristol Civic Society in regretting the absence of any local consultation and will make our objections known. Locals know their patch.

I will end by paying tribute not only to the Committee members mentioned above but also to those who produce and distribute the Newsletter, RoseMary Musgrave, Jenny Sparkes and Laurence Penney, as well as those who make sure the monthly minutes are produced, Vivienne François and Linda Edwards.

A Happy New Year to everyone.

Brian Worthington.