Bristol Council in shock U-turn over Keep Architecture’s controversial housing

Keep’s proposal involves demolishing Bristol’s Broadwalk shopping centre and building 850 homes on the site for three clients: BBS Capital, Melburg and Galliard Homes. The plans were unexpectedly and narrowly waved through on Wednesday (5 July).

The decision comes after councillors unanimously refused the scheme in a planning committee meeting on 31 May, describing its design as ‘unacceptably dense’. This was despite planning officers having recommended the scheme for approval subject to an increase in the provision of affordable housing.

The council's planning committee had met intending to ratify its original refusal for the plans – submitted for outline planning permission in August 2022. Even though the proposals had not been amended since their rejection, councillors had a change of heart after listening to pledges by the developers to increase the proportion of affordable housing.

In a series of short speeches, representatives from parties including Galliard Homes, Savills, BBS Capital and Keep Architecture outlined commitments to work alongside Homes England and housing associations to provide a ‘high proportion’ of affordable housing within the scheme. And they said that Broadwalk Shopping centre tenants could ‘no longer afford the upkeep’ of the centre, which is in decline.

Council planning officers said the promised extra affordable housing would be ‘likely, but not guaranteed’.

Keep Architecture director Simon Coles told the council the site already had ‘planning permission for a height of up to 12 storeys [and] the new proposals [were] no taller than the maximum height’ consented, with most blocks being eight storeys.

Coles went on to outline the quality of the homes in the new scheme as well as the provision of ‘flexible and attractive retail units that [will] ensure the long-term success of the development’.

Councillors remained divided over the scheme, however. Green councillor Fi Hance said she was ‘bewildered’ to be reconsidering ‘a unanimous decision we all came to at the last meeting’, but Labour councillor Philippa Hulme admitted that ‘we think the planning balance has shifted more in favour [of the scheme] ... even though we wish the homes could be developed with less density’.

In a final vote, four councillors backed granting permission while four were against with the chair casting their deciding vote in favour.

Keep’s mixed-use scheme will involve flattening the greater part of the 1970s-built shopping centre in Bristol’s Knowle district.

The decision marks a turning point in a long and controversial saga over the proposals, which have split opinion in Bristol for more than 18 months. More than 230 objections were lodged against the planning application, including from Knowle Neighbourhood Planning Group and Bristol Civic Society.

Affordable housing was one of the key concerns raised by objectors. The scheme’s affordable homes provision is 9.8 per cent, which falls below Bristol’s target for the Knowle area.

As well as new housing, the scheme incorporates 7,430m² of shops along a new pedestrian street between Redcatch Park and Wells Road, plus 190m² of community space, a 310m² library, 870m² for a theatre or cinema, and parking for more than 300 cars.

In a design and access statement, Keep said the buildings would be primarily clad using brick, fibre cement and metal panels.

The Bristol-based architect, which is also working on large-scale housing schemes at various stages of planning in Wiltshire, Truro and Pembrokeshire, said its proposed redevelopment of the ‘failing and inappropriate’ Broadwalk Shopping Centre would ‘balance the needs of the existing community whilst creating an attractive, appropriate and sustainable development’.

Bristol Council declined to comment on the new decision. Keep Architecture has been contacted for comment.