We will do this by:

• Implementing energy saving initiatives, as detailed in our Green Audit
• Identifying a strategy for delivering a Solar PV installation
• Support the local community to participate in the Bristol Green Capital year
• Provide a venue for Green Capital events

Following the recommendations of the green audit undertaken by UWE graduates in 2014 year, we have set short and long term goals to make our Grade II* listed building and charity more ecologically sound.

Short term goals have already been set in motion, such as the switch from traditional lighting LED lights in all our halls, workspaces and outdoor spaces and switching to a green energy provider. The Trinity Centre has an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C - considerably higher than similar historic buildings, which have an average rating of D. Recent installation of a new boiler and Building Management System (BMS) system, insulation works to the loft alongside the LED lighting has led to a very good rating being achieved for the style of building.

Other actions such as staff training and public awareness are an on going commitment. We are encouraging our visitors to show a positive attitude towards keeping green, such as having recycling points. Through leading by example, we hope to increase local people’s awareness of what can be done. These actions will be combined with workshops and activities around recycling, permaculture and keeping green Trinity will continue to work within the community to build awareness around green issues.

Long term we aim to install solar panels on the premises and implement ongoing improvements within the building to reduce energy loss. We are seeking funding to become more self-sustainable and use less energy within the building. One example of this would be our goal to replace the acrylic coverings to the original stain glass windows with double glazing, to help better insulate the building.

As well as directly developing the building Trinity aims to develop new and improve existing projects based around sustainability and keeping green. We plan to do this by continually supporting and working with local art projects such as Litterati who held a week's residence in 2014 at Trinity. The project was a culmination of local artists running free daily workshops for young people based around the idea of re-using items that would be traditionally seen as rubbish. This project educated young people about the amount of waste that is produced as well as ways to re-use and prevent so much waste.

We will continue to support 'green' or 'eco' themed conferences and workshops held within the venue offering advice about local resources such as catering and transport links in addition to offering a discounted rate for charities and non-profit green organisations.

We will also evolve our own projects, investing more time into supporting flagship projects such as our Garden Project and Arts West Side. As part of the Bristol 2015 programme we will be delivering the 'Grow It...Cook it...Eat It!' project, to educate, support and involve people within the community in the Green Capital agenda, targeting hard to reach groups as well as the wider community.

Keep an eye out on our website to find out more about this and other projects!

''I am a member of Trinity Walking group and have been with them for a few months. I have enjoyed the walks not been on all of them but I do when I can. I was introduced to the walking group while I was in hospital.

I suffer from mental health conditions and wanted to do something to make friends and keep active after I left the hospital. The hospital arranged a meeting here at Trinity and I came after a phone call and have been going ever since.

Due to losing friends after leaving work and neighbours passing away or moving, I have felt lonely for a long while.

Ever since I have joined this group I am developing friendships and have felt a lot better.

Not only do I get the enjoyment of of walking and the exercise that comes with it, I explore new places and visit places that has a strong family history.

It would be nice to have some more female walkers, as we are mainly men, but at the same time it's nice to walk with new people and develop friendships. During the walk we stop of somewhere and have a cup of tea and a chat. Its good for my well being.

Living on my own I sometimes get a bit lonely and this walking group has given me something to look forward to and the confidence to meet new people else where.''

Trinity runs several walking group activities, involving people from a range of ages and abilities. Click here, if you are interested in joining the Trinity Walking Group, or taking part in our other Trinity Community Garden activities.

Lowie Trevena volunteers on our Heart & Soul project and while she is not helping out on the project she works for the Girl Guides. We asked her to chat to Maia, who is currently studying creative arts therapy at college and is at Trinity for a placement as part of her course.

As part of our Heart & Soul project we are collecting images, stories and archive material and Maia is going to be collecting stories from young people (18 - 30).

Hi Maia, what do you know about Trinity and have you been here before?

Trinity is a venue that does lots of music events, I have been here a Thali wedding in 2015 and Benjamin Zeph, who was really good.

Tell us more about Benjamin Zeph!

My mate got me a ticket and when I got to the Trinity Centre, half my family and friends were already here. It was fun; there was a great energy and I really enjoyed the spoken word. It was powerful, inspiring and I like to write poetry myself, so it was great. There was a mixed crowd, older and younger. It felt like my community was there; I’m from St Paul’s and I’m Bristol born and raised.

How old are you?

26, I’m going to be 27 soon.

Tell us a bit more about yourself

I write poetry, I draw, and I like read: the last book I read was the House of Games by Chris Johnston but my favourite book is How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff. I like punk, drum and bass and rock music. After finishing school, I did a diploma in Media and I really enjoyed the course, so I then did a two-year Media and Moving Image course, and since then I have been making short films for different organisations.

What are you currently studying? I am studying a degree in creative art therapy, so I’m doing lots of drama, dance and working with children in mental health - it is the use of creative arts in a positive and therapeutic way. I chose it as I have always been a creative person. My house mate suggested this evening course which was a taster of the course I do now and I enjoyed it so much that I gave up my full time job in a coffee shop and started studying. That job felt like groundhog day!

What is important to you?

In myself, I am confident and happy, and I want to use my own abilities to help other people to be free, and in the future I want a job where every day is different. It is important to be happy confident and respectful and to work in cohesion with other people. I love being part of a team and being able to get involved and meet new people.

Why did you choose to volunteer at Trinity?

I started off as I have to do a placement to help support a project that is running as part of my course. I went to a networking event at a hotel in Redcliffe and I met a lady called Sally from Macmillan Cancer, and she put me in touch with Karina [Castro, Projects Manager at Trinity] and then it went from there.

Who do you want to interview?

I am looking to reach out to young people from 18 - 30 to ask them questions such as what their your favourite club night is, their best gig and why people like coming to Trinity. I’ll be asking people to be on camera and I’ll be going to lots of gigs and events to speak to people.

If you would like to share your memories of Trinity or speak to Maia, email: tess@3ca.org.uk or call Trinity 0117 9351200 to speak to a member of the Heritage team.

Help us secure Trinity's past, present and future

During the afternoon prior to performing his show as part of Trinity’s IGNiTE, Scottee gave a workshop titled “Making Stuff About Stuff”. The session was delivered in an open-minded, safe space, allowing all participants to exchange ideas freely.

Those who attended were able to share amongst one another and with theatre maker and performer Scottee himself. They discussed ways of finding inspiration for creating new work through different exercises.

Scottee introduced ways of finding new themes to develop new meaningful work. He started off by encouraging the participants to create a list of words that reflects their identity in their own eyes and the eyes of others.

In the second phase of the workshop, Scottee invited the participants to create a list of what makes them angry and to choose one of these particular ideas and write a “rant” about it.

"It felt like a really safe and generous moment. I liked having less 'showing work' and more talking about creative process in an interactive way" - workshop participant

There are plenty more IGNiTE workshops around the corner. Why not join Shane Shambhu (Confessions of a Cockney Temple Dancer,10 Mar) or Akeim Toussaint in the day time (before Windows of Displacement, 23 Mar), or drop in just before Rent Party (16 Mar) take to the stage for a dance workshop?

People gather in the main hall for this years drumming workshop Photo @Alexa Ledecky

Families taking part in the craft workshops in the Main Hall Photo @ Alexa Ledecky

Almatic's lead singer Katie during their set on the Main Stage Photo @ Alexa Ledecky

Children taking part in Cirque De Silk's aerial workshop Photo @ Alexa Ledecky

All the enjoyment early on in our community garden Photo @ Alexa Ledecky

Miss T, who attends sessions as part of our music making project plays the Making Tracks showcase Photo @Alexa Ledecky

Families enjoying the spring sun and vibes with Trinity and her iconic towers in the background Photo @ Khali Ackford

Wecil Collective perform in the Main Hall, including an cameo from Trinity's Engagement Coordinator Dr Edson Burton who MC'd on the mics Photo @ Khali Ackford

Bristol artist, DJ and producer Dutchie during her set Photo @ Khali Ackford

Rider Shafique and Sam Binga played the end set at this years Garden Party Photo @ Khali Ackford

Trinity T's everywhere! Photo @Khali Ackford

And it ends ... with Lottie Ball & Edson Burton hosts of this years Garden Party Photo @ Khali Ackford

People enjoying the sunshine photo @Jessica Bartolini

We want to say the biggest and most huge thank you to everyone who donated during garden party– we raised over £2800 in donations and that is just incredible. The funds raised will go directly into our Trinity Conservation Campaign , helping to secure Trinty’s past, future and present.

So to everyone who popped a few quid in the buckets or donated to the campaign directly online, we are very grateful.

An early afternoon performance by Bristol Samba photo credit @Jessica Bartolini

And, this year the sun really did hold out for Garden Party - didn't it.

Families and children enjoyed the circus skills workshops photo @Jessica Bartolini

Throughout the afternoon the garden was host to family workshops, with circus skills workshop from Invisible Youth and a beautiful puppetry performance by Bunraku Puppetry, followed by puppet making. Dancers from HYPE Dance, a weekly dance group based at Trinity, took over the Main Hall and Fyfe Hall for two flash performances and we welcomed back the ever popular drumming workshops.

Family friendly activities ran until mid afternoon and included a puppetry performance @Jessica Bartolini

Hype Dance performed two very high energy dances to crowds at Garden Party @Jessica Bartolini

On the Main Stage the line up included Baraka,Gardna x Kreed, Sunun with a great headlining set from Om Unit (who started a Roofs not Walls chant!) photo @Jessica Bartolini

Area of Effect opened up Garden Party with a punk set @Jessica Bartolini

Young performers from our collaborative Making Tracks project opened up Garden Party on the Main Stage with a set from Basement Studio’s Area of Effect and later on, Trinity Music Student Sam Neal played new songs from his EP (that he is recording here at Trinity). The Inside Stage saw performances from Trinity’s Louis Stone, Basements Ziggy Thewin and a very fun DJ set from Dj Lee Baker.

Students from our Making Tracks project played throughout the day @Jessica Bartolini

Headliner Om Unit playing to a packed crowd as the day draws to a close photo @Khali Ackford

An array of stall holders brought a great selection of handmade and bespoke goods, complemented by the world cuisines offered by the selection of food stalls and Dr Bike was on hand for everyones bike based needs.

Resident historian Dr Edson Burton teamed up with Lottie Story and took control of the MC’ing, introducing some great Trinity based history and introducing the talented artists and bands to the stage.

Lottie and Edson say a very good night and thank you to the crowd at Garden Party @Khali Ackford

Big up to the all the volunteers who helped out this year – and all the staff members, security, stall holders and artists who helped make the day happen. We had over 2000 people come to our annual free Garden Party, it was very busy!

For more pics of this years Garden Party head over to our Trinity Facebook page or follow us on Instagram.

See you all next year, and thanks everyone for your donations. We couldn't do this without you.

Father Paul moved to Bristol in his 20's and is well loved in St Pauls @Khali Ackford

Before Father Paul’s talk I did not know much about him and his life in Bristol, but afterwards it was clear that he is regarded as family by the community in which he serves.

As the push continues to #SaveJWB, we look back to Trinity's 2018 Heart & Soul project and our series of talks where both national and international speakers shared their knowledge and experience on the positives and pitfalls of re-imaging historic buildings. In this blog we reflect on Father Paul's talk the re-purposing of churches as community spaces.

On the evening of Tuesday 29th May 2018, we were very grateful to Father Paul who stepped in to cover the planned speaker who was unfortunately unwell. He appeared an unconventional priest, wearing camouflage combat trousers and a shirt, very much living up to the talk title ‘Rebel Conformist’.

Before Father Paul’s talk I did not know much about him and his life in Bristol, but afterwards it was clear that he is regarded as family by the community in which he serves. He has touched the lives of a lot of people in Bristol, particularly the St Paul’s area where he has lived and worked most of his life.

Father Paul talked about the need for the church to respond to contemporary issues @Khali Ackford

Father Paul wants to be able to conduct these ceremonies and to celebrate love without judgement. He told many anecdotes about individuals from the community where he has worked, mostly to show that, "where there is life, there is hope".

Heart & Soul project coordinator, Dr Edson Burton, gave a warm introduction to Father Paul. Several audience members as well as Dr Burton clearly hold him in great affection, indicative of the widespread impact Father Paul has had over the years. In a childhood anecdote, Father Paul remembers growing up in Pontypridd, Wales, wishing he had a brother to play with as he only had one sister. Not until his twenties when he had moved to Bristol and settled in St Paul’s did he realise he was lucky enough to be surrounded by many many brothers and sisters now.

Father Paul started by talking about gay marriage, and the fact that in Wales and Scotland you can have a gay marriage in church, supported by the Church. However in England although you can have a civil partnership or gay marriage, you still cannot conduct these ceremonies as a vicar in a church. It saddens him that there is nothing in the wedding hymn book dedicated to LGBTQ marriage. Father Paul wants to be able to conduct these ceremonies and to celebrate love without judgement. He told many anecdotes about individuals from the community where he has worked, mostly to show that, "where there is life, there is hope".

On many occasions people have gone to Father Paul for help and he has been a huge support throughout the community. These pillars of the community that have not faded despite the move towards communities being started or maintained by technological means.

A lot of people fear that the sense of community relying on face to face contact is being lost due to societal changes- we all spend more time looking at screens. However, Father Paul is an example that where there are people living together in an area, there will always be community leaders and supporters, no matter the advances in technology. It is our human nature.

Many local residents attended Father Paul's talk @Khali Ackford

He says; "Things fit together in ways I don’t always understand but don’t object to." I enjoyed Father Paul’s talk because it shed light on the positive influence one person can have in a community. Tess Sieling, project intern

After Father Paul’s talk, he invited a friendly discussion within the group. We moved on to explore what is the role of the Church now? Is it to serve the spirit or to serve the law? There seems to be an openness particularly in Bristol and other large UK cities that is calling for the Church to serve the spirit. In contemporary society, issues that need addressing and the nature of human struggles have been changing, so there is a need for the Church to serve them in an equally contemporary way.

Perhaps a testament to Father Paul’s openness is the fact that at one stage, he was visiting a convicted murderer in prison in Cardiff while also planning the victim’s funeral in Bristol. He says; "Things fit together in ways I don’t always understand but don’t object to." I enjoyed Father Paul’s talk because it shed light on the positive influence one person can have in a community.

This write up was by Tess Sieling, who was the project intern on the Heart & Soul heritage project. The talk was part of a series exploring the challenges and achievements of transforming and preserving historic buildings and was programmed in collaboration with Bristol's Architecture Centre and the University of West England (UWE).

How to get involved

Click here to sign the Hotwells and Cliftonwood petition to Save Jacobs Wells Baths

Further reading

Read more from our Heart & Soul talk series - Dr Katie McClymont, Fidel Meraz and A Million Bricks of Love.

Read more about the Save Jacobs Wells Campaign here.

x-church in Gainsborough

As the push continues to #SaveJWB, we look back to Trinity's 2018 Heart & Soul project and our series of talks where both national and international speakers shared their knowledge and experience on the positives and pitfalls of re-imaging historic buildings. In this blog we invited Marcus Hammond, curator of x-church - a community space in Gainsborough, like no other - to come and share its story...

Over a million bricks hold together the love and forward-thinking acceptance of x-church. Marcus Hammond

Marcus Hammond bought a church building in 2006 and the night before he received the keys, the window got bricked. Therefore the first few days of his ownership were spent fixing the windows, and during this time he left the doors open. Children and young people walked right in and started playing in the space. This has lasted 12 years so far. ‘Now’, he said, ‘the building is almost incidental’.

It was interesting to learn that in the same way as the children wandering in, a lot of x-church’s journey happened almost accidentally: the building was described by someone as built in a slum-gothic way, and as well as enjoying the playful amalgamation of two words, Hammond and what was becoming a small team of volunteers decided it would be the name of a youth project.

x-church is host to many successful visual art installations

Physically building a place is hard but assembling the people is harder

They created a small dome structure for Slumgothic within the huge church space in which young people’s music and band practice can be contained. Immediately Hammond was building relationships with young people with total acceptance of who they are as individuals. Over time these relationships led to so much mutual respect that Marcus handed out keys to the front door. This helped with practical things such as not having to be there to unlock, but also gives the young people a sense of ownership of the building. With a mixture of surprise and pride, Hammond said, ‘So far, nothing bad has happened.’

The bare-brick architecture has become x-church’s strength and therefore not much has been added to make it more than a vast empty space. Marcus’s view is that physically building a place is hard but assembling the people is harder. For example, Mukhat Dar is open about his poignant story of how not all arts spaces end up in success as he reflects on The Drum Arts Centre (The Life & Death of an Arts Centre).

The x-church team like it when someone comes in and has a grand plan for an exhibition, show or event to hold there, and x-church is welcoming to almost all ideas. In a community like Gainsborough there is not an active interest in art or culture but x- church’s practice of ‘inconveniencing people with art’ proves that if you take it to the people they will engage.

From blocking out all the windows with card in order to turn x-church into a camera obscura to holding 24 hours of drumming for Syria, lots of events and exhibitions have taken place at x-church, some instigated by the young people and some by external artists. ‘Increasingly at x-church', according to Marcus, 'people don’t have a fear of making a fool of themselves.’ I agree wholeheartedly that there is a lot to be said for creating a space in which young people can take risks. In a time when young people are called upon to be available at all times via phones, it is increasingly important to allow freedom in other parts of their lives to benefit their wellbeing and independence.

Through loads of conversations and shared experiences, the lives of individuals and the Slumgothic community has been immeasurably touched. From what I heard at the talk, x-church is an inspiring example of what could be happening to benefit young people all over the world. Over a million bricks hold together the love and forward-thinking acceptance of x-church, but Marcus is not precious about what happens to the physical building, instead it is the people that matter. 'If the building collapsed we could just relocate somewhere else. Even to a field.'

This write up was by Tess Sieling, who was the project intern on the Heart & Soul heritage project. The talk was part of a series exploring the challenges and achievements of transforming and preserving historic buildings and was programmed in collaboration with Bristol's Architecture Centre and the University of West England (UWE).

How to get involved

Click here to sign the Hotwells and Cliftonwood petition to Save Jacobs Wells Baths

Further reading

Read more from our Heart & Soul talk series - Father Paul, Fidel Meraz and Dr Katie McClymont

Read more about the Save Jacobs Wells Campaign here.

We have a long-standing partnership with Leyhill HMP - a CAT D, open prison - and provide long-term work placements to individual life-prisoners for between 6-18 months, in order to help improve their chances of successful release.

Many prisoners come into prison unemployed and 73.5% return to unemployment on release*

If an ex-offender is able to come out and find work, somewhere to live and develop a support network, this greatly reduce the chances of them re-offending.

Many prisoners are released with nowhere to go and support from friends or family is not always available. Therefore, in our commitment to providing services for the whole community, it is vital that organisations such as Trinity provide support in the form of work experience placements for ex-offenders.

“I am currently serving a prison sentence at Leyhill prison. As part of my resettlement I go to Trinity Centre where I help out with all aspects of keeping this community centre up and running for all the people in the area. This has given me a lot of confidence to help me move forward in my rehabilitation, meeting new people and giving me a new view on how to be more open and to give me more options for when I do get released from prison.” Statement from an individual on placement from Leyhill HMP, who has been successfully released, 2013

The Trinity Centre is a large, converted, Georgian, grade II* listed former-church building, so ongoing maintenance and upkeep of the building and grounds is a constant challenge.

Our Leyhill volunteers bring with them skills including plastering, painting, carpentry, brick-laying, gardening and cleaning, including COSHH. The placements allow individuals to gain practical work experience, whilst also helping us to carry out essential repairs and maintenance that we otherwise wouldn't be able to afford.

Providing ex-offenders with the opportunity to apply their training within a real setting provides individuals with valuable experience to enable them to secure employment on their release.

“Thank you for making me feel part of the team and treating me like a human being again.” Statement from an individual on placement from Leyhill HMP, who has been successfully released, 2016

Want to read more? See: In memoriam: Phil, a story of change.

Our placements are provided on a case-by-case basis, where individuals are not shown to be on the Child Protection Register or Protection of Vulnerable Adults Register. A full disclosure is undertaken, where individuals are assessed to ensure that offering a placement will not pose a threat to either Centre users or other staff and volunteers. We also have an Ex-offenders Policy that we use to train staff and volunteers in working with ex-offenders. Lehyill HMP regularly monitor placements as part of their “Through The Gate” scheme.

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*HoC Work and Pensions Committee, Support for ex-offenders Fifth Report of Session 2016–17, p5

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Venue Accessibility

The venue is accessible on both floors.

People with disabilities can arrange for priority entry by contacting us in advance.

The stage is 1m high.

The hall floor has level access to all areas creating good sight lines throughout the venue and good visibility depending on crowd density.

We have a viewing area (floor level), house-right for wheelchair users and those who require seating.

The smoking area is wheelchair accessible.

Accessible toilets are located on both floors and a radar key system is in place. A radar key can be borrowed from the duty manager for the duration of the event you are attending.

We do not have an accessible bar yet; We can provide bartender service assistance upon request.

Seating

Most live music events are standing room only, unless otherwise stated.

Limited seating may be provided upon request.

We do not have a viewing platform but we can arrange a seat in our viewing area, at floor-level house-right.

Seating arrangements for theatre and dance performances vary.

Guide dogs

As a public space, guide dogs and personal assistance dogs are always permitted at Trinity.

Please be advised, the volume of music at live music events and club nights can reach continuous sound levels max 107db / peak level max 140db. As this could pose harm to your dog's hearing, we recommend seeking advice from your guide-dog school.

We also offer personal assistant tickets for all events.

Personal assistant tickets

We have a 2 for 1 Ticket Policy for personal assistants.

Please contact us to arrange a personal assistant ticket, providing one of the following documents, along with proof of your ticket purchase:

. Access Card or equivalent with a +1 symbol.

. Front page of DLA/PIP (no specific rate required).

. Front page of Attendance Allowance letter (no specific rate required).

. Evidence that registered severely sight impaired (blind).

Performers' accessibility

Trinity has a mobile accessible lift to enable wheelchair users and other users with mobility issues to access our Main Stage.

Users who would like to access the stage via our lift should speak to their Events Organiser as part of the bookings process.

Deaf & visually impaired users

Currently we do not have an Induction Loop.

Visually impaired customers, deaf or hard of hearing customers are welcome to stand at the front of the event and we can make security are aware of individual requirements.

People with photosensitive epilepsy

Some events use strobe and flashing lighting. Get in touch if you have any questions

Parking at Trinity

There are four accessible parking bays located next to the daytime entrance, which are situated on the left-hand side of the building.

Please note our Car Park in managed by Car Flow and an ANPR system and charges apply for all people parking at Trinity, including Blue Badge holders.

There is a 10 minute grace-period for drop-off /pick-up access.

There is free on street parking available for Blue Badge Holders within a 50yd radius of Trinity including areas of Stapleton Road and Old Market.

You can find out more about Bristol City Council’s rules on Blue Badge parking on their website here.

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Trinity is proud to have achieved Bronze status in line with Attitude is Everything's Venue and Festival Charter of Best Practice.

Click here for more information about access.

Be part of our archive celebrating the history of Trinity and the communities of Old Market

As part of our Heart and Soul: Trinity in the Community project we will be collecting stories, pictures and memorabilia documenting Trinity as a space of unique celebration & commemoration. We would love to hear from people who have memories of special occasions at Trinity - from christenings to weddings to civil partnerships to wakes to parties - from when Trinity was church, and now as a community arts venue. Your stories and pictures will form part of our end of project exhibition and online archive.

Want to get involved? Have a great story to share? Then contact Dr Edson Burton for more details: edson@3ca.org.uk with the subject header: Heart and Soul: Trinity in the Community

About the project

Heart and Soul: Trinity in the Community is a celebration of big life events at Trinity. Throughout 2018 there will workshops, talks and heritage activities for all ages. The project runs along side our most recent capital works and has been made possible with the help of these funders .

You can find out more about Heart and Soul: Trinity in the Community here, including how to get involved and how to contribute archive material here.

Trinity aims to provide unique opportunities for young people from challenging circumstances who are interested in developing a music career. Our in-house music training department has begun an exciting new initiative that provides young people with a chance to meet some of the national and international touring artists that perform within the legendary Trinity Centre – one of Bristol's key live music venues.

The first of these sessions took place in October 2015 with prolific Canadian multi-instrumentalist, heavy-rock legend, Devin Townsend. Devin was the founder, songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist in extreme metal band Strapping Young Lad (1994-2007) and has also had an extensive career as a solo artist.

Passing through Bristol on a rare 7 date UK acoustic tour, Devin happily took time out of his busy schedule to take questions from a group of 10 music students. Devin was incredibly welcoming throughout and the young people were visibly in awe as Devin discussed the perils of rock 'n' roll excess and unrealistic over ambition. He stressed that music should remain an enjoyable creative process, as opposed to a career driven choice, which was very inspiring for the young people.

He gracefully allowed the students to observe his sound check, giving the group a unique insight into the professional processes involved in ensuring sound levels for each instrument are balanced and correct, in order to best match the acoustics of the space and artist. Finally, he took time at the end to sign CDs and have photos with the students, before carrying on preparing for the show at Trinity, which was a huge success and well received by the audience on the night.

A big thank you to Devin for making our first Industry Insights session possible!

Spilt Ink developed Home at Trinity in collaboration with local school children

Spilt Ink Theatre, a trio of performers who specialise in movement, clowning and puppetry, created a new piece of work for children through a paid Trinity commission. The company worked in collaboration with a local school to develop a movement piece called 'Home’ - a piece that would celebrate the many cultural heritages of children in Bristol.

"My 4-year-old was totally engaged, repeating the keywords from the main character. She even wrote her own letter!"

Split Ink embedded themselves in the school. Many children felt anxious at first, having recently experienced disruption due to Lockdown restrictions however, through small group workshops, games and storytelling activities the children increased their confidence. As part of the journey children shared their own stories, many of whom had experienced the themes explored in Home, such as experiencing migration.

The final part of the development of the work saw the company inviting the children, their teachers and their families to Trinity to see a preview of the performance Summer 2021. As part of the post-show discussion the children shared their own insight into the themes of flight, home and belonging.

Having developed the seed of Home, Spilt Ink are now in the process of realising this into a full length children’s performance to be completed in collaboration with local school children and presented at Trinity in 2022.

Movema's Easter Dance Club. Photo credit Alastair Brooks

We were able to provide 150 local residents and users of the Trinity Centre supermarket vouchers as part of the Winter Crisis Fund. The support has come at a crucial time when families are grappling with unprecedented costs due to the ongoing cost of living crisis.

To allow for a fair and accessible process, we developed a user-friendly online form where individuals could indicate how they met our four predefined criteria for receiving vouchers. We then worked with key stakeholders to share the scheme, including printing flyers to distribute among resident groups and parents/carers whose children participate in activities at Trinity.

"I am in receipt of a low income. The shopping voucher really helps with everyday shopping, e.g., food, cleaning products. Furthermore, by being awarded the voucher, I feel listened to and valued. Thank you."

This initiative enabled us to offer some relief to the challenges posed by rising living costs, and the distribution of vouchers primarily benefited local residents with caring responsibilities. 78% of the vouchers were allocated to families whose children attend local schools or children's centres or take part in Trinity's Children and Young People program.

About the Winter Crisis Fund:

The Winter Crisis Fund is an initiative of The Society of the Merchant Ventures.