PCC visits north Bristol

PCC Mark Shelford met with a variety of different community organisations in north Bristol to learn about their fantastic work.

The PCC began his day speaking with local Councillors Kye Dudd and Brenda Massey about their police and crime concerns before meeting with the Southmead Community Trust at the Greenway Centre. The charity provides inspiring and accessible community spaces for those in the local area with the aim of creating a thriving and health community.  

The Southmead Development Trust oversee the running of the Greenway Centre and Southmead Adventure Playground, which are well-loved local venue that host popular community events throughout the year.  

After this, the PCC met with the team at Restore Trust including CEO Suzanne Thompson and service user Claire Allsopp. The Restore Trust supports offenders from reoffending and the team has started a new campaign to raise £150,000 by March 2023. The money will be used to open a non-for-profit café on Gloucester Road where those being released from prison can build skills in local paid employment.

Following this, the PCC sat down with the Lockleaze Neighbourhood Trust to discuss the work they are doing to support the community. The team has developed a strong local network and has teamed up with youth and holiday clubs, Vicar Rob from the local church and the Lockleaze Adventure Playground.

The team key focuses include the local housing plan, which provides priority, social housing to families in need and mentoring to tackle issues with anti-social behaviour (ASB), street dealing and knife crime among young people in the Gainsborough Square Area.

The PCC ended his day meeting with Councillor David Wilcox and the Acorn Speed Awareness Campaign Group. The latter presented him with a report on all the speed related and road safety incidents that had taken place in the area over the last year.

The PCC discussed working collaboratively with Avon and Somerset Police’s Road Safety Unit and other partner agencies to raise their concerns.

“It was brilliant to meet with these local community groups and councillors in north Bristol.

“It was fantastic to meet with Restore Trust to hear about the wider breadth and depth of work the team is doing to educate and rehabilitate offenders. Education and employment are key pathways following release from prison to ensure people don’t go back to reoffending.”

PCC Mark Shelford