Fighting new housing proposed on one of south Bristol’s ‘green lungs’

It takes about 40 minutes to walk the perimeter of the Western Slopes. Up steep, narrow Novers Hill to the roundabout joining Novers Lane, horses graze, backed by far-reaching views to Clifton. From below, on Hartcliffe Way, long runs of wild woodland can be seen covering the steepest parts of the hillside, reaching down to Pigeonhouse Stream. The site stretches south towards Imperial Retail Park, and north almost to Parson Street.

Connected to Crox Bottom, Manor Woods, and the Northern Slopes, the Western Slopes form part of a vital wildlife corridor. This vast space could be lost if planning permission is granted for more than 500 proposed new houses. The majority could be built by Bristol City Council’s own housing company – despite the council having declared both an ecological and climate emergency in recent years.

Before the planning applications have even been submitted, the Friends of the Western Slopes are fighting to save one of south Bristol’s ‘green lungs’.

For as long as anyone can remember – even a 92-year-old Headley Park resident – the Western Slopes have largely been farmland, used for animal grazing.

Housing went up across Filwood ward during the interwar years, and the Western Slopes were nibbled at: in the northwest corner, the site of an old mill on the Malago has sprawled into an industrial estate. Records also show a refuse tip near Pigeonhouse Stream from 1965 to 1968, though few traces now remain.

There is a small farm on the Western Slopes, with far-reaching views towards Clifton. Photo by Jess Connett

Two schools have been built on the space – Novers Lane Infants has since been demolished but the Juniors remains, as Greenfield E-ACT Academy. A development of 14 houses, built on the site of an existing home on Novers Hill, was completed in 2017. Largely, the slopes and their wildlife remain undisturbed.

Locals fought off major developments in 1990, 2000, and 2002. A Bristol Post article from July 30 2002 describes plans to build 83 houses, and destroy 100 feet of ancient hedgerow in the process; residents protested and Persimmon Homes Wessex’s application was rejected.

The Western Slopes were first earmarked for development by Bristol City Council as part of the 2012 Knowle West Regeneration Framework. This is a 20-year plan to substantially invest in and improve the area. Consultations began in 2008 and the Western Slopes were identified for development. This fed into the Bristol Local Plan review in 2014, which allocates 10.6 hectares of the site – around half the size of Victoria Park – for new housing.

Houses on Novers Hill mark the top of the Western Slopes, as seen from Hartcliffe Way. Photo by Jess Connett

Ed Cheney has lived on Novers Hill for two years. He knew about the possibility of local land being developed, but says recently there has been an “acceleration” in activity, especially with 50 houses planned for the green space of Knowle West Health Park.

“There does need to be some regeneration in Knowle West but it just seems that’s tied to mass housebuilding,” Ed says. “It’s a shame these spaces can’t be enhanced by the council – all the ‘enhancements’ seem to come with building on it at the same time.”

A petition calling on the council to stop building on green spaces, started in response to the plans in Knowle West, has received almost 1,800 signatures. Its creator, Martyn Cordey, points out the council’s own stance on protecting ecology: in February 2020 Bristol became the first major city to declare an ‘ecological emergency’.

With some 15 per cent of UK wildlife at risk of extinction, largely due to habitat loss and climate change, mayor Marvin Rees said: “We need our buildings, streets and open spaces to support wildlife and create a more nature-friendly city, and we need new developments to do the same.”

Mayor Marvin Rees stands next to Ian Barrett, CEO of Avon and Wildlife Trust, after declaring an ‘ecological emergency’. Photo courtesy of Bristol City Council

As well as the proposed Western Slopes and health park developments, green space in Filwood ward is currently threatened at Inns Court, Filwood Broadway, the Northern Slopes, and sites on Airport Road and Broadbury Road.

Len Wyatt is the convenor of Knowle West Future, a local planning group tracking the council’s regeneration plans. He says the regeneration of the area must strike a balance: “It is critical that in addition to addressing the crises that the council has to deal with – whether housing, climate change or ecological – that any proposals brought forward are not just about maximising the number of homes provided but address the wider needs of the community.”

This includes providing schools, community buildings, medical facilities, shops, spaces for children, and keeping green space intact, Len says. “All of these contribute to sustainable regeneration and a thriving community.”

Two parts of the Western Slopes have been earmarked for more than 500 new houses. Image from Google Maps

In January 2021, documents were submitted to Bristol City Council’s planning portal, illustrating a scheme to build 157 dwellings on the privately-owned northern part of the Western Slopes.

Housing giant Lovell Homes plans to build a mixture of houses and flats, set around two new access roads off Novers Hill. A section of the existing trees and the hedgerow flanking the road will be kept, creating two ‘bat corridors’. There will be two grassy open spaces and a new children’s playground.

The proposed development is just uphill from Pigeonhouse Stream, a Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI). Correspondence from Nature England, published on the planning portal, confirms that the housing site itself is not in a conservation area, and that “significant effects” on the nearby SNCI are “unlikely”. Though, Nature England add, they have no information about the area’s protected animal species.

Thirteen protected species, including otters and kingfishers, were found in the wider area during an ecology survey published in 2014, undertaken as part of the Knowle West Regeneration Framework. In 2010, local waterways including Pigeonhouse Stream were found to have “exceptionally rich arrays of woodland floor plants”, including rare and uncommon species. Residents report seeing bats, badgers, buzzards, kestrels, owls and sparrowhawks.

Plans for 157 houses to be built off Novers Hill leave two ‘bat corridors’ and open green spaces. Image from Pegasus Planning

A second proposal for the southern part of the Western Slopes was unveiled in March 2021, when Bristol City Council’s housing company, Goram Homes, announced plans to build houses on 12 council-owned sites. This includes approximately 360 on the Western Slopes – bringing the total for the site to 517.

Goram Homes note the “ecological challenges” of the site, and say they will “work with experts to ensure the development is carried out in an ecologically sensitive way to produce an exemplary scheme”.

Jim Smith, Bristol Tree Champion for Knowle West, told Bristol24/7 he is “extremely angry” about the plans to build on the Western Slopes. “Nature is very, very low down in the council’s priorities. I moved here because there’s loads and loads of beautiful green spaces, and now that’s being denied to me. The whole system is disgusting,” he said.

Knowle West resident Ed Cheney called south Bristol’s green spaces the “green lungs of the city”, and branded the Knowle West Regeneration Framework “a ‘degeneration framework’ for nature”.

He adds: “Knowle West is considered one of the most deprived areas but it has one of the richest semi-wild environments. I just hope we can keep it for a bit longer.”

Local councillor Richard Eddy says building on the Western Slopes could ‘herald the march of concrete’ over Bristol’s green spaces. Photo supplied by Richard Eddy

No formal planning applications have yet been submitted, though residents are already coordinating efforts to write to local councillors and the mayor, objecting to green space even being considered for housing. Once the plans are submitted, there will be public consultations.

Richard Eddy, Conservative councillor for Bishopsworth and a member of Bristol City Council’s Housing Management Board, says it is important to remember that individual planning decisions do not set a precedent. “However, in practical and political terms, development of the Western Slopes could well herald the march of concrete over many of Bristol’s previously sacred, hitherto safeguarded open spaces.” The Western Slopes aren’t in Eddy’s electoral ward but he feels the development will affect his constituents.

Eddy says there is no denying Bristol has a “massive housing crisis”, but allocating land for housing “must be done transparently and democratically and reflect the Council’s full planning policies, including maintaining the balance in appropriate development and preserving our open spaces, maintaining recreational access, and not adding to our carbon and destruction-of-the-environment footprint”.

Eddy adds: “It is vital that any plans for the Western Slopes do not ‘kill the golden egg’ which makes southwest Bristol so special.”

Residents of Headley Park and Bedminster Down look across to the Western Slopes, where horses graze. Photo by Jess Connett

While Bristol’s parkland and greenbelt are protected by planning laws, preventing a semi-wild green space without public access from being developed is more challenging. One possibility, raised by locals in 2019, is to designate the Western Slopes as a Local Green Space or Reserved Open Space. This government-level planning policy allows communities to identify the spaces of value to them, and would offer protection from ‘most forms’ of development, subject to regular review.

Bristol City Council included the policy in the most recent draft of the Local Plan, but they say this is not expected to be adopted until late 2023.

One part of the Western Slopes is already being developed. A Bristol Waste household recycling centre on Hartcliffe Way, near Bedminster Fire Station, was granted planning permission in 2020. This was despite residents raising numerous concerns during the planning process, including impacts on the area’s badger and bat populations, noise issues, and increased traffic.

The site of a new Bristol Waste recycling centre on Hartcliffe Way, with the trees of the Western Slopes behind. Photo by Jess Connett

Bristol City Council’s own air quality team maintained an objection to the recycling centre. Their report states: “The development proposal is located close to one of the most polluted areas of the road network in Bristol, with measured pollution concentrations above legal annual nitrogen dioxide EU limit values and UK objectives.”

The team identified six areas where air quality would be moderately or slightly adversely impacted by the development. Two were at Parson Street Primary School; three were in locations where the air quality was already illegally poor. Bristol’s air quality contributes to the deaths of five people per year.

The planning committee ultimately approved the application “on balance”, based on the need for the facilities in the area, and to “future proof this part of the city when additional large residential sites are developed”.

Green views across south Bristol and an important natural habitat could be lost if the housing developments go ahead. Photo by Tony Pitt

A spokesperson for Bristol City Council told Bristol24/7: “We acknowledge that the prospect of new development at Western Slopes, including the potential impacts on wildlife, can cause concerns for many residents. Reflecting the principles of the Knowle West Regeneration Framework, the development at Western Slopes as set out in the Bristol Local Plan strikes a balance between delivering regeneration and protecting and enhancing the ecology of the city.

“Development of the site will be informed by an ecological survey which will provide mitigation measures to compensate for the impact on meadow and grassland habitats. It will also be required to maintain the integrity and connectivity of the wildlife network. Alongside the area earmarked for much needed new homes, the Local Plan also designates a swathe of land to be protected as open space and as an SNCI.

“We will also work closely with ecologists and arboriculturists to ensure that ecology, flora and fauna is integral to the overall design proposals.”

The council notes that the plans are still in their early stages. They say any housing will be built in line with the council’s own climate and ecological emergency strategies, and that Goram Homes will adhere to Building with Nature standards:

“Goram Homes is committed to delivering increased biodiversity and carbon neutral housing. Any developments will meet adopted policy requirements that seek to protect, provide, enhance and expand the green infrastructure assets which contribute to the quality of life for people and nature.”

To find out more about the Western Slopes development plans, join Friends of the Western Slopes on Facebook. Knowle West Future’s next meeting about local regeneration will take place via Zoom on April 21 at 5pm. To take part, email knowlewestfuture@gmail.com

Main image by Tony Pitt

Read more: Knowle West residents fight plans for 50 homes on Health Park