Trinity's Community Consultation

Thanks to the support of Architectural Heritage Fund, we were able to carry out an extensive community consultation, led independently by Artspace Lifespace. Working with PH3 Designs, we also worked to update our Feasibility Study for the Trinity Centre, to ensure we have a plan for future capital works linked to the feedback of communities we serve.

Our 12pt action-plan, linked to our Business Plan for 2023-26 will help to ensure we remain on track to respond to these fundings and recommendations, in line with our values:

Accessibility & visibility

1. Achieve 'Attitude is Everything Charter' Silver Award to further improve venue accessibility
2. Develop a 'soft' entrance into the building, introducing visual aesthetics to make the Centre more inviting, welcoming and celebratory of our communities
3. Provide a programme of publicly accessible drop-in activities to enable visitors to attend and utilise the site freely

Relevancy & equity

1. Develop activities in direct response to feedback and community needs analysis, including open access activities for young people and targeted provision for men aged 55+ living locally
2. Increase place-based work, delivering activity outside of Trinity to connect and engage new communities in partnership with local groups and artists
3. Adopt Equity Union minimum rate of pay for freelancers/artists and prioritise resources to nurture and support locally embedded artists
4. Invest in a cross-sector partnership model and prioritise support for grassroots groups who can proactively respond to community needs and interests

Reach & representation

1. Develop existing and new participatory decision-making forums to ensure representation across programmes
2. Develop targeted community-specific communications and engagement, including neighbourhood champions to reach our diverse communities and celebrate community achievements
3. Adopt Unlock: the Inc Arts Diverse Workforce Toolkit, which includes inclusive recruitment actions to reach and support a diverse workforce

Responsibility & accountability

1. Update our 2014 Green Audit to identify short, medium and long-term actions in response to the climate emergency
2. Appoint a dedicated mental health lead for Trinity’s workforce and offer mental health first aid training to support staff and centre users

Context

Trinity’s values are Empower, Respond and Amplify and we are committed to living these values through the proactive development of our workforce, programme and building. In response to previous surveys and feedback we have taken the steps to ensure our actions align with our values, including:

• Empower: Becoming a Real Living Wage employer in 2020 for all age-groups and roles, to ensure everyone is paid fairly to start their career in the arts

• Respond: Appointed a new Activities Coordinator in 2021 to lead asset-based community development activities and initiatives

• Amplify: Ran the 100 Beacons campaign, 2022 to raise the profile of the work of community buildings across the city, helping to inspire a £4m Community Resilience Fund for the city

If there is anything else you think we could or should be doing to make sure we live out our values, please get in touch with your suggestions: feedback@trinitybristol.org.uk

More info

What's Next? Community Consultation, Artspace Lifespace

Feasbility Study, PH3 Designs

Trinity Business Plan, 2023-26

The Real Living Wage Foundation  has announced that the new RLW will be increased by 10.1% in the new financial year (April 2023). Outside of London new Living Wage rates will rise to £10.90 an hour (£1 increase).

"We should not treat staff as a cost cutting measure but the engine which drives everything we do.  We know low-paid workers are being hit the hardest, with over half using foodbanks in the last 12 months, so the time for us to act is now". Adam Gallacher, Deputy CEO

With the largest year-on-year RLW increase announced recently we stand firmly with our commitment to ensure all staff and regular contractors are paid fairly. As such we have implemented the changes as of October 1 2022. This will mean entry level-staff members and those on casual contracts will benefit early from the increase.

We are proud to be an accredited RLW employer. New research from the Cardiff Business School shows that workers being paid the Real Living Wage have benefitted from more than £338m in extra wages since the start of this year, with one in ten employees now working for an accredited Living Wage Employer.

Find out more about the Real Living Wage by watching a short film about the positive impact it has on some of our team members here.

Tide and Tales perform during Summer Stay and Play sessions. Photo credit: Alistair Brookes

Trinity CEO, Emma Harvey, reflects on the challenges facing Bristol arts in the context of the wider cuts to arts funding and the impact this has on limiting pathways into careers in the creative industries.

In December 2023, Bristol City Council (BCC) announced their decisions for the Cultural Investment Programme, awarding grants in principle to 15 organisations. This included Trinity, newly funded Unique Voice, and Travelling Light Theatre Company who recently lost their regular funding from Arts Council England. Also Acta, ASLS, Asian Arts Agency, Bristol Pride, Circomedia, CYN, KWMC, Paraorchestra, Rising Arts Agency, Spike Island, St Paul’s Carnival and the Tobacco Factory.

With nearly a 40% reduction in total funds compared to past rounds, 13 groups missed out on regular investment. This included previously funded groups Bristol Old Vic, Encounters, Exchange, IBT, MAYK, RWA, Saffron, St Georges, Trigger and Watershed, alongside new proposals from APE, SSGB and Wardrobe Theatre.

"Rather than sharpening our elbows to fight for the crumbs that fall from the table we should be Oliver Twisting it up and asking for more."

As testament to the sector’s precariousness, two long-standing arts organisations were listed as, “closed or closing so not considered for investment”. Those not selected have responded with concerns about the continued cost of living crisis reducing audience revenue alongside rising overheads placing pressures on finances. Cultural institutions traditionally seen as too big to fail are facing an uncertain future and all funding is still subject to annual approval. This continued uncertainty means we're all on a sinking ship, just at different points of an inescapable decline.

Successes and setbacks are all part of business as usual at Trinity. After almost 20 years the best I can say when someone asks if we'll be here in twelve months is, "hopefully". In the voluntary sector, survival is as good as it gets. Hearing frequent ‘Nos' then trying to work out what's next is part of the job. Competitive funding rounds linked to political cycles are perhaps the worst at breeding a "them and us" mindset, making organisations old and new, big and small go up against one another for ever decreasing funds. It creates a short-term focus and leads to over-commitment, particularly from those smaller, newer groups desperate to move from being “out” to “in” any funding portfolio round. It leads to an unrealistic emphasis on measuring the intangible that benefits no one and decreases our appetite for risk, stifling the very creativity we’re seeking to support.

Rather than sharpening our elbows to fight for the crumbs that fall from the table we should be Oliver Twisting it up and asking for more. Were BCC to fund all 30 organisations listed to the maximum annual grant amount of £30k per year, this would amount to the amount to less 2% of the city’s total annual revenue spend. With many administrations nationally issuing or on the verge of section 114 notices due to difficulties in delivering balanced budgets, this can make such a case for arts funding appear entitled and out of touch with the everyday suffering of many across the country. But cuts to arts funding are part of a wider narrative (see links, below) of reduced investment in the arts that deprives those without the means from carving out meaningful experiences and careers in the creative industries.

Arts can be an easy thing to cut in difficult times but we’re doing so to the detriment of those who benefit from its power most. There is an intrinsic value that’s accepted and widely evidenced. Art is good for us; our economy, our health, our sense of place and belonging. And yet, one of the wealthiest city's in one of the wealthiest countries globally can’t even resource the creativity that sits at the heart of our local identity.

Collaborating with three local primary schools, Trinity recognises the significance of early engagement with culture in igniting creative aspirations. Children locally and nationally have witnessed reduced access to arts education compounded by challenges stemming from the pandemic and the ongoing burden of cost of living limiting access to out of school activities.

The ongoing decline in arts investment nationwide results in a gradual erosion of our opportunities to engage with the arts, limiting our cultural pathways. As the voices shaping our shared narratives become fewer, the story of our national identity risks being conveyed through an ever narrowing lens. Over time, this reduces the chances for individuals without existing wealth and means to pursue meaningful careers in an industry that contributes billions to the UK's economy annually.

It is commendable that, for the time being at least, BCC have sought to protect what remains of their public subsidy for the sector and focus what resource it can with the aim of sustaining participatory arts provision within neighbourhoods. But if we really want to ensure everyone has the opportunity to access and make art we need to think of better ways to ensure the investment is felt beyond a handful of suspects, however usual or unusual.

Some of the most successful schemes to support arts and diversify the arts sector have come from creative co-option of back-to-work schemes, from Future Jobs Fund and the recent Kickstart Scheme, providing paid entry level roles for <25s, to Thatcher’s Enterprise Allowance, which enabled some of the UK’s most prolific cultural practitioners to carve out their early careers and saw the birth of Brit Art movement.

Some trusts and foundations are catching on and supporting organisations and creatives in new and flexible ways. As far as public subsidy goes, we’re fighting for a seat at a table where chairs are continually being taken out of the game. Who will secure the chair once the music stops? A more impactful path involves collaborative efforts to lay the foundations for fairer resource distribution. Let’s stop playing someone else’s game and tip the table over.

By Emma Harvey, CEO

Further reading:

Bristol City Council defends cultural venue funding cuts (BBC)

Restore Bristol arts funding! (Equity)

The arts are in crisis (Gal Dem)

Government urged to intervene over local arts cuts (Campaign For The Arts)

Funding cuts and weak economy send UK’s visual arts into crisis (The Art Newspaper)

How will art funding cuts in schools affect creativity? (It’s Nice That)

Huge decline of working class people in the arts reflects fall in wider society (Guardian)

Scaffolding in place at Trinity - image by Khali Photography

“We are pleased to continue to support the Trinity Centre in its project to repair the historic fabric of this Grade II* listed building which was a former church. This additional grant will enable the conservation of further stonework and the windows. These works will help transform the appearance of the Trinity Centre which is a significant landmark in both Old Market and Bristol.” Sarah Ball, Heritage at Risk Architect at Historic England in the South West

Having already supported us with a grant of £106k, Historic England have pledged a further £68k uplift grant towards our urgent conversation works. Significant historic damage to the building’s fabric - including corroded iron works and damage to the stained glass windows - was uncovered as part of recent investigations carried out on the 19th-Century Grade II** listed building - leading to fears that Trinity Centre could one day face closure if not addressed.

"When we announced the news earlier this year we were overwhelmed by the messages of support, generous offers and donations from the community. Funding from Historic England means we are one step closer to our £200k fundraising goal - we are very grateful for this support.” Emma Harvey, Centre Director.

We have launched a fundraising campaign to raise another £135k to cover the full cost of the planned programme of works - which includes sustainability measures to reduce running costs - before the scaffolding is planned to come down in the Autumn. Running from March - October we have an an exciting program of fundraising activities - including our famous annual garden party, 13th May.

Help us secure Trinity's past, present and future

Locality, an organisation that supports community businesses to be strong and successful, came down to Trinity for a day to film a short video focusing on Trinity's role as a community arts hub.

"In a physical space when you’re enjoying something, whether you’re having fun just getting down, having a dance or making something and being really proud of that thing that you made – art is just quite magical". Emma Harvey, Trinity CEO

Featuring Trinity regulars Hype Dance as well as CEO Emma Harvey, the film shines a light on the range of community activities at the centre, from neighbourhood celebrations to accessible and affordable dance and music events, as well as nurturing emerging artists.

Trinity is one of the few remaining truly independent community arts venues in the city so it felt fitting to launch the film on Venues Day, 5th October 2021. To mark the film's launch, Trinity took over Locality's social media to celebrate the charity's role as a hub for community arts.

The film was part of a wider set of films showcasing the many great activities that take place across the community and voluntary sector. You can find out more about the work Locality do by visiting their website.

Isto é PARTIS & Art for Change 2024 - Image Credit: Carlos Porfirio

In January, Trinity participated in the Isto é PARTIS & Art for Change 2024 conference held in Lisbon, Portugal, shining a spotlight on the transformative potential of citizen-led approaches in the arts.

The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and "La Caixa" Foundation are actively working to platform and support the tangible impact of participatory arts initiatives, reshaping cultural dynamics, and fostering more just and cohesive communities. The conference served as a beacon for continued dialogue and action in the pursuit of a more inclusive cultural landscape.

Featuring panels exploring diverse methods of citizen involvement in cultural dynamics, Trinity Community Arts, represented by CEO Emma Harvey, emphasized the significance of creative community spaces in shaping cultural dynamics in the arts. Emma shared insights into Trinity's work managing the Trinity Centre as a publicly-owned civic arts space, alongside efforts to save another publicly-owned asset, Jacobs Wells.

Trinity shared a panel with Lara Seixo Rodrigues, Marta Silva, and Miguel Atalaia, highlighting examples of collaborative and citizen-led cultural activity, including the Largo Residências in Lisbon and the Bons Sons festival in Tomar. Bons Sons - akin to Trinity's annual Garden Party, the annual community festival involves the entire village coming together to deliver a celebration of music, culture and local pride—an inspirational example of true citizen empowerment.

Trinity's partner, Saad Eddine Said, Co-Director of the Citizens in Power initiative, delivered a keynote speech on avenues for active citizen-led decision-making. Trinity, in is working with Citizens in Power and St Paul’s Carnival, to develop a Citizen Assembly for Culture, supporting communities in the West of England Combined Authority to shape their cultural delivery priorities and plans – funded by Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (UK Branch) and the West of England Combined Authority. The conference also highlighted Battersea Arts Centre’s social enterprise programme, The Agency, which uses a co-design model to support young people to unlock their creative potential.

This collaborative effort, led by The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, amplified initiatives that are unlocking the transformative power of citizen-led approaches in the arts. The Foundation's commitment to fostering partnerships between communities, creatives, and institutions, as showcased in the PARTIS & Art for Change initiative, exemplifies a forward-thinking approach to shaping the future of towns and cities. This conference facilitates key conversations and projects that contribute to the creation of more just, cohesive and culturally vibrant communities.

Further reading:

Community painting day with Rose Popay. Photo credit Khali Ackford

Trinity is a charity whose work connects communities and contributes to urban regeneration, through a progressive programme of live music and creative activities.

Following the success of Trinity’s recovery post-Covid we are in an exciting period of change and growth in the organisation and are looking for new team members.

Youth Service Manager

Join our Arts Programme team in the newly created, full-time, Youth Services Manager – in response to consultation, we are expanding our programme of activities for children and young people and require an experienced Youth Services Manager to help us build on our longstanding offer in music and nature play, developing  new areas in dance & performing arts, alongside an enhanced outreach offer for schools and neighbourhoods.

The successful candidate will be experienced in designing and delivery of creative programmes for children and young people and will be passionate about using arts and creativity to help build skills, confidence and progression for those taking part.

Duty Manager

We're also looking for a part-time Duty Manager (15hr pw basic) to join our team in time to help us with the delivery of our late-night programme alongside our varied community events.

The ideal candidate will have a passion for working in a community and live-events setting and  will be flexible and adaptable, ideally with previous experience as a key-holder or event/house manager.

To find out more about the roles head over to Get Involved to download the recruitment packs or if you have any questions about the roles, please get in touch on info@trinitybristol.org.uk

New intern Davontay Benjamin checks out the damage to the stone with specialists.

Last October, work commenced a 11 month project to undertake vital repairs to the building's fabric and structure.

Enabled through the help of Heritage Lottery Fund, Historic England, Allchurches Trust and 13 other funders, as well as generous donations from members of the public, works began on the lead-roof, original stained glass windows and stonework structure, including the iconic Georgian towers.

With full scaffolding in place, specialists have been able to undertake a more comprehensive metalwork survey. Investigations to metal cramps that hold the stonework in place, reveal the damage to the building is far worse than anticipated.

If we don't do these works now, Trinity will be placed back onto Historic England's At - Risk Register. In real terms this means we are going to have to raise an additional estimated £200k other wise Trinity will be at risk of closure- and we need your help to do that.

How you can help

Trinity is and has always been a central part of the community. Our mission it to keep it that way and protect the building's future and to ensure that Trinity’s doors stay open.

A donation, however big or small, will help us to bridge the gap and ensure we are able to complete these important repairs.

Your support will secure the future of our much-loved community space.

Click here to donate today.

Some of the damaged stoneworks

Get involved

Last year Trinity was used by over 50,000 people. Everyone has a story about Trinity - attending a gig, taking part in a community garden activities, taking part in one of the many community led programmes or even being one of the 200 young people attending our bespoke music courses.

If you're interested in becoming a part of our heritage story - a part of a community and a part of this much-loved building's journey - why not get involved in our Heart & Soul Heritage project? Click here for more info...

Trinity was exited to welcome IDLES band to the Centre in January 2021, as part of a socially-distanced film for their single Carcinogenic.

"Venues are at greatest risk because they are mostly small businesses, not interested in profit or investors but in the nourishment of creative, open-minded, critical thinking."

Mark Bowen, IDLES

(NME, Jan 21)

Each band member performs in some of Bristol's most loved grassroots music venues, including The Louisiana, Exchange, The Mother’s Ruin, The Old Duke, and of course The Trinity Centre.

The film was in support of Independent Venues Week that, with support from Music Venues Trust, have been working to raise the profile of grassroots music venues impacted by lockdown restrictions.

Speaking to NME about Independent Venue Week, guitarist Mark Bowen said: “Now more than ever independent musicians and the music industry at large need to unite to keep from being decimated. Between the pandemic and a government who not only don’t care about the future of the arts (especially independence within the arts) but take a pro-active role in its diminishment, independent venues are at greatest risk because they are mostly small businesses, not interested in profit or investors but in the nourishment of creative, open-minded, critical thinking.”

Click here to read the full article in NME.

TLK performing in the Fyfe Hall as part of Trinity Presents. Image credit Khali Ackford/Trinity Community Arts

In the past year, Trinity has welcomed some of the best artists in the UK, from Brit Award-winning Sam Fender to singer-songwriter Joy Crookes (on her breakthrough tour) to post-punk band Goat Girl. We've hosted all-nighters welcoming the likes of Teachings In Dub and Electrikal Wall of Sound. In-house we programmed some of the best acts Bristol and the South West have to offer, from Booty Bass giving it everything in the Garden Sessions to sublime Jazz from Waldo's Gift in the Fyfe Hall.

We are pleased to announce in recognition of this and, for the second year running, Trinity has been nominated for a Grassroots Venue: Spirit Of The Scene Award as part of The Music Week Awards.

As the winner is selected by public vote, you can help by:

1. Vote for Trinity by clicking on this link 👉 (voting takes 1-2 mins)
2. Spread the word - Share the link on socials alongside pics of your fav gig you have been to at Trinity in the last year and don't forget to @ us and use #ReviveLive hashtag
3. Be quick - Voting closes at 5pm 18 March 2022

The Award is supported by Music Venue Trust whom advocate for Grassroots Venues in the UK and we are nominated alongside eight other grassroots venues in the UK: Le Pub, Night & Day, Omeara, Rescue Rooms, Sneaky Pete's, The Boileroom, The New Adelphi and The Sugarmill.

We wish everyone the best of luck and anticipate a very enjoyable evening together on Thursday 26 May during The Music Week Award Ceremony when the winners will be announced.

We aim to use resuable cups at all events to reduce waste and the impact plastic waste has on the environment

Having trialled our brand new reusable Trinity Cups at this year's Garden Party we're now rolling these out across all events. We want to make sure that Trinity does its bit to be green and what better way than introducing a system or reusable cups. We've already seen a reduction of of our waste by 80% after just one event.

In order to make sure that people don't take our cups home (they are pretty lovely so you might be tempted) we will be asking you for a £1 deposit when you place your first order at the bar. We will then return this at the end of the night when you bring your cup back.

If you decide you want one of our lovely cups for your own home (who wouldn't, perfect for camping and using for those long summer BBQs in your own Garden) you can choose to not get your deposit back. You can even swap your used cup on your way out at bar for a lovely fresh one. All proceeds from this are then fed back in to our fundraising efforts so it is a win win all round.

Ashton Court Future Ville Launch. Photo credit Caroline Thake

Bristol City Council has announced The Community Resilience Fund to be made available to community groups delivering provision in some of Bristol’s most deprived areas. The announcement of the grant follows the publication of Trinity’s 100 Beacons Report that we submitted to the City Council.

The report, created in partnership with other venues and the Council, shines a light on Bristol's community and cultural assets, including the critical role they played in providing local services as part of the COVID19 response.

"Huge thanks to Trinity for advocating for other community buildings in some of Bristol’s most neglected areas and to Bristol City Council for engaging and responding to this need” Katherine Chiswell Jones, Art Space Life Space

We created the report with the intention of building a collective case for capital investment in the city’s youth, community and cultural assets and we are pleased that Bristol City Council has now announced the commitment to funding these much-needed spaces.

The one-off pot of £4 million is also available for city-wide self-organised equality groups and is intended to help groups invest in costs, such as works to improve access, upgrading ICT infrastructure or works to a community building.

Our 100 Beacons report was part of our continued commitment to advocating for shared community and cultural spaces. We are members of Locality, support a ’Community Power Act’ and, have invested in Stokes Croft Land Trust.

Find out more about the funding and how to apply here

Bristol Resists Mural by Tanith Gould - Image Credit: Sam Prosser

We are joining forces with Arts organisations from across Bristol to create #67MillionVoices, to raise awareness of the possible risks to the future of freedom of expression.

The right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and association is a fundamental cornerstone of any democratic society in particular in Bristol as a city of civic action with everything from bridges to buses, supermarkets to statues forming the backdrop to centuries of resistance that has helped to advance workers and civic rights nationally.

Freedom of expression is a unique and precious liberty on which the UK has historically placed great emphasis in our traditions of Parliamentary privilege, freedom of the press and free speech. UK Government, July 2022

This is why we believe the introduction of the Public Order Bill risks criminalising our fundamental rights of freedom of expression - to share our views, to raise our voice and to take action. Proposed amendments within the Public Order Bill contradict this core British value by enhancing restrictions that can be imposed on people who take part.

Trinity is here not only to protect popular ideas but to also platform the breadth of opinions that makes up the world today and to safeguard against all forms of censorship as the most common violation of artistic freedom, in pursuit of our vision, creative expression for all. In a diverse city like Bristol with diverse perspectives, our personal freedoms start and ends where another person’s begin and we work to develop approaches that gently blur the edges between our freedoms to achieve peace and unity from producing creative content and providing space for conversation as well as helping people to develop the skills and networks they need to take action about the things that matter to them.

We are concerned that the proposed changes allow disproportionate use of powers to restrict and control in a way that contradicts our collective aims of freedom of expression, including banning orders to completely remove a person’s right to attend a protest. This is less about the rights and wrongs of toppling a statue. Throughout history and today people have protested in a number of ways to have their voices heard:

• The Suffragettes were always inventing new ways to keep their campaign in the public eye and often chained themselves to railings. The Public Order Bill would make it a new offence to "lock on" to others, objects or buildings, which would impact heavily in particular on environmental activists.

• The Trade Union Act of 1871 led to a flurry of striking across industries including coal mining and textiles, as new unions fought for better conditions which caused widespread disruption to industrial activity. The Public Order Bill would make a new offence to obstruct or interfere with the use or operation of key national infrastructure and major transport works, which would impact on the industrial action of groups such as transport workers and airline staff.

• Prominent Black Bristolians such as Paul Stephenson and Roy Hackett have made a huge difference to the advancement of UK civil rights. The Public Order Bill would make introduce new protest-specific stop and search powers, which would risk disproportionately targeting Black people who are are nine times more likely to be stopped and searched by police than white people.

Do we want to find ourselves in a position where people are too scared and would risk a hefty prison sentence, a large fine, restrictions on their ability to use the internet and electronic tagging of to prevent them from attending future demonstrations.

If we tolerate this, who in future will to stand up for the things that matter to us all?

Take action today

Locally and globally, the right to peaceful assembly and protest are fundamental principles of any democracy.We call on MPs to vote it down.

✔Write to your MP to ask them to protect your rights to peaceful protest, by asking that the proposed parts of the proposed Public Order Bill giving the police disproportionate powers to tackle lawful protests are removed.

✔Amplify our collective message on social media

✔ Get Informed - read the online timeline of events so far

✔Sign Liberty's petition to drop proposals in the Public Order Bill

#67millionvoices make culture - use yours today

#BristolResists #TrinityResists