Imagine a summer night, a cool drink in hand, and nowhere to sit. Outdoor seating has helped Bristol nightlife thrive - and Bristol City Council want to take this away.
April 2023, just before the Summer began, Bristol City Council informed local city centre bars and pubs that they needed to bring all furniture off the street by 11pm. This means businesses have to move people off seats and bring all their furniture inside; getting in the way of customers inside, and potentially dangerously overcrowding their pubs.
Previous to the pandemic, the Mother’s Ruin did not need a pavement license for tables and chairs. However, since 2020, Bristol City Council have insisted that the business has pavement license; this license when granted mirrored the trading license of the pub - 10am until 2am, until this month, when the Council enforced an 11pm curfew without consultation.
Bristol City Council encouraged the use of pavement licenses to businesses like the Mother's Ruin Bristol respective during the pandemic. Outside seating breathed life back into the streets of the Old City made quiet by COVID19.
It has given space for those immunocompromised and those who require disability access, bringing curated hospitality to everyone’s needs: table service, QR codes, extensive mocktail and alcohol free menus. This is what Bristol City Council granted to the local pubs and bars of Bristol; with an aim to make areas accessible, to boost the local economy and music scene.
Bristol City Council originally celebrated pavement licenses. It was plastered on tourist billboards, touted as a new future of Bristol. Now they’re wielding an open attack against it - going back against their word, trying to hide and shun the nightlife community.
Shutting down our pavement license would not just shrink the currently expanding Mother’s Ruin, setting it back at least 600K in annual turn over, but would shut down a lively and exciting part of Bristol’s night life scene which people enjoy so much. Hitting independent venues the hardest, And it’s not just us - it’s the entirety of the Old City, reaching as far as King Street, an area known for their beautiful outside seating next to the waterfront. Areas affected are as follows:
St Nicholas Street: The Crown, The Mother’s Ruin, Seamus
O’Donells, Boardrooms, Mr Wolfs.
King Street: King Street Brewhouse, The Old Duke, The Llandoger
Trow, Kongs, The Famous Royal Navy Volunteer, Hey Dude Bar, King
William Ale House, Small Bar, Bristol Old Vic.
The real question is - why change anything now? How will it benefit Bristol by taking pavement licenses away from local businesses? If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. Even better; if it’s thriving, don’t stop it! Curfews risk changing police focus to dealing with public order offences as a result of kick outs.
Taking away pavement licenses is a huge mistake which will hinder the local economy and irreparably damage night life and it's cultural community in Bristol.
#SaveOurSeats
Started by: Marc Griffiths
This ePetition runs from 19/04/2023 to 31/05/2023.
5810 people have signed this ePetition.