‘Harbour Fest has turned into ‘safety fencing festival’ with little to do with maritime’

The Harbour Festival this year was a washout – but not only because of the weather.

It seems that Bristol’s risk assessment bureaucracy has got hold of the event and turned it into a ‘safety fencing’ festival with little or nothing to do with anything maritime.

My first impression in walking around harbour on the Saturday was that there was nothing of significance on the water, either in terms of interesting vessels apart from the ones we already have, or in terms of activity except for the same ‘jet stream’ acrobat viewed, if you were lucky, through yet more safety fencing erected along the water’s edge.

On the Water: James Prestwood @BristolHarbFest pic.twitter.com/AajNJXhPwH

— RobertJCBrowne (@browne_jc) July 16, 2023

So where was the activity?

It was largely corralled within hundreds of ‘heras’ fencing panels in College Green and Queen Square, neither within view of the harbour, or in Millennium Square, with its fountains switched off, or on the ex-Lloyds Amphitheatre which was totally fenced off from the water.

I honestly don’t understand what risks the fencing was meant to deter – or the army of bag searchers who would have caused even longer queues into each ‘venue’ in better weather.

It seemed to me they represented a much greater risk to our fun and freedom than any risks they were supposed to prevent.

Barriers are a British disease, not to be found to anything like the same extent in most European cities.

What are we afraid of?

Do they only serve to save the backsides of politicians and bureaucrats who are excessively risk averse and like to keep citizens under control? Apart from anything else barriers along roads and water are such a bad example to our children.

Are they supposed to think that when there are no barriers then it is safe to step into the road, or the water?

St Paul’s Carnival made a triumphant comeback after four years away – photo: George Ferguson

If I was a stall-holder paying a hefty fee at the Harbour Fest this year I would be asking for my money back, and it would certainly take a complete change of approach and an awful lot of persuasion to get me back next year.

The failure of the 2023 Harbour Festival is to be contrasted with the huge success of the St Paul’s Carnival this year, which was free of barriers and bag searching and consequently brought back memories of the great atmosphere of earlier carnivals.

The organisers are to be congratulated for creating a major event that was more naturally policed and resulted in only two arrests amongst what must have been some 200,000 attendees of all ages and backgrounds.

It was a truly inclusive community event – and great fun.

Bristol has a good reputation for street life and family fun, with fond memories of the Make Sunday Special programme and the 2014 Park Street Slide, which went viral across the globe.

We managed a huge crowd then without overbearing and expensive security.

I hope that in May 2024 we can celebrate the tenth anniversary of ‘the Slide’ with something equally special.

To conclude, it would be a crying shame to let the Harbour Festival fizzle out as a result of this year’s fiasco.

However we need a very determined effort and a much more imaginative regime, in the spirit of the St Paul’s Carnival organisers, if it is to attract good partners and recreate the dynamic maritime atmosphere of earlier years.

George Ferguson stood as an independent mayor for Bristol from 2012 to 2016 – photo: Bristol24/7

This is an opinion piece by George Ferguson – an architect and former mayor of Bristol

Main photo: Plaster

Read next:

• In photos: Bristol Harbour Festival 2023
• Exploring the history of Bristol Harbour Festival
• St Paul’s Carnival makes triumphant return after four years away

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