Lockdown 2.0 Diaries: BS16 – Fishponds, Staple Hill, Mangotsfield and Emersons Green

It’s like the pubs in Staple Hill are frozen in time after having to close their doors once more when the second lockdown came into force.

While a growing number of shops and houses are decked out with sprinklings of festive cheer, a chalk sign outside the Old Mail House on High Street is still promoting a Halloween fancy dress event for October 31 – just days before the current restrictions came into play.

Further up the street, a man peers curiously through the windows of The Staple Hill Oak on Monday afternoon, but there is no sign of life in this Wetherspoons premises.

In contrast, Staple Hill Stores on the corner opposite is open for business, a stack of sturdy-looking brooms displayed outside. A couple of shoppers peruse the plentiful fruit and veg options in The Fruit Tree nearby, which has a handful of small Christmas trees for sale, and people are queuing up outside the Post Office across the road.

Pubs stand empty in Staple Hill but many shops are still busy

Taking heed of the numerous signs attached to posts by the crossing, a couple of women keep a safe few metres apart while they wait for the lights to change. Another person waiting opposite is embracing the Christmas spirit early with a bright Santa hat perched on her head.

Up in Page Park, people of all ages are making the most of the autumnal afternoon sun. A couple of people relax on the benches in the sensory garden, where a child pauses to hug the statue of three children by Pat Ward, before skipping off behind her dad.

People make the most of the autumnal afternoon in Page Park

Socially distanced queuing in the cafe in Page Park

Near the café, a woman regales her friend about her first taste of Marshfield ice cream while a rap artist pauses to tell people about his work, which contains no swear words. Children can be heard playing in the background and the scene appears one of carefree contentment and a welcome escape from the challenges of lockdown.

Earlier in the afternoon on Fishponds Road, the shutters covering the fronts of non-essential businesses are a reminder of the impact of lockdown restrictions on many of the city’s independents.

Here, the busy street is bustling with people heading in and out of the shops that remain open. A small queue has formed outside Lloyds Bank and Aldi is doing a roaring trade, with customers waiting patiently spaced out along the side of the building.

The playpark in Fishponds Park has been fenced off and all is quiet inside the green space, where a couple of lone figures sit on the benches. On the corner opposite, renovation work is underway on the currently-closed Porto Lounge.

The playpark in Fishponds Park is currently fenced off

Incredible Edible plans to turn this Fishponds plot into a community orchard

Further up, a chalkboard sign stuck in the overgrown land opposite Co-op on Straits Parade announces Incredible Edible’s plans to turn the patch into a community orchard, with planting to commence on December 14.

In Mangotsfield, it’s a familiar scene as hordes of school children and teenagers head home for the day but businesses on St James Place are quiet – the Tesco temporarily closed – as is the Grapevine Brasserie on the corner.

“Then I went over the handlebars…” a small boy gives his mum a dramatic account of his latest escapades.

A sign thanks NHS workers

Children run up and around the hill outside the historic engine house by Colliers Break in Emersons Green, where a sign attached to the existing post reminds people to keep a 2m distance.

Across the common, dog walkers are making the most of the late afternoon light, while a few school children make a beeline for the nearby playpark.

All is quiet in Mangotsfield on Monday afternoon

Signs remind people to social distance

Takeaway Indian street food is available from Emersons Green village hall on Friday evenings

At Emersons Green library, a sign advertises authentic Indian street food takeaway by Bojan, which is available to collect from the village hall every Friday evening. By around 4pm, the shopping area opposite is filling up fast with people nipping in for supplies after school, while a small group of skaters skate up and down the ramps set up on the hill set against the pink evening sky.

Heading back along the Bristol and Bath Railway Path, a cyclist pauses to talk on the phone, leaning his bike against the structure that was once the Mangotsfield railway station, which was closed in 1966 as part of the Beeching cuts.

Inside the Staple Hill tunnel, the sound of water dripping down onto the damp floor below is accompanied by the steady breathing of a runner making his way along the dark path. Flashes of white and red lights come and go as cyclists hurry on their way home for the day.

Waiting at the old Mangotsfield Station on the Bristol and Bath Railway Path

All photos by Ellie Pipe

Read more: Lockdown 2.0 Diaries: BS15 – Hanham, Kingswood and Longwell Green