What's the feedback from the consultation?

I have been attending weekly meetings with Council staff and every single comment submitted has been discussed in detail. There are of course a number of themes emerging which I covered in my June update.

Overall though I am pleased that two thirds of respondents expressed support for the scheme even though some were asking for significant changes. Wherever possible changes have been made to the scheme to reflect your concerns and comments. I have been asked not to share the full details at the moment as the plans are still being revised. However I can share that:

• We will be reducing the number of long stay spaces and increasing the number of residents only spaces.
• The daily charge will be increased, though by not as much as I wanted. Nonetheless I have secured a commitment from the Council that in the event the charge does proves to be too low (as many of us expect) then it will be revised upward quickly.
• All residents will be entitled to apply for up to 2 permits.

Details of all changes and a revised scheme plan will be published on the Councils website when the TRO is issued.

Doesn't the scheme just turn Leigh Woods into a cheap overflow car park for Bristol?

This point made has been made to me a few times and want to address it directly.

Let's be honest. At the moment Leigh Woods is a free overflow carpark for Bristol. Anyone can park anywhere, anytime, and for as long as they like. They can do all this for free.

This scheme may not go as far as you like but it does move us significantly in the right direction. This scheme, in conjunction with the commitment I have secured to review it after 6 months, should mean we can find a happy balance for everyone in a relatively short period of time.

I appreciate that I can't please everyone. Indeed, it is not in my power to do so. I am your local councillor, not the scheme designer. What I can do is advocate for you in the meetings where the decisions are made. I have been doing this and I hope you will see that significant changes have been made to reflect your concerns. I will continue to do this for you.

When will the scheme be implemented?

Sadly we are are looking at another short delay. When I last wrote I was expecting the scheme to be implemented late September / early October, work is now expected to be undertaken in November. 

I pushed for the recent consultation and we have taken more time than expected considering and dealing with your queries. Although I know many of you will be disappointed I think it was right to delay slightly so we could get things right.



If you want to keep up to date on local issues in and around Long Ashton, Failand, Wraxall, and Leigh Woods then please sign up to my newsletter. If comes out (roughly) monthly and is a summary of all the articles I post on this website and social media.