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Charging for activities such as choirs in parks ‘doing real harm’
Hundreds of people are urging Bristol City Council to consider changes to new parks licences which are impacting a choir for new parents and their babies.
Bring Your Own Baby Choir which meets for weekly classes in St George’s Park, St Andrew’s Park and Ashton Court is one of dozens of small businesses hit with new charges as the council is now forcing them to pay for a licence to operate in parks.
Some of these businesses such as the BYOB Choir have tiny turnover and the new licence fees mean they are struggling to stay afloat.
As Bristol24/7 has previously reported, almost 600 people have signed a petition urging Bristol City Council to reconsider their park fees structure.
BYOB Choir founder Julia Turner asked councillors on the public health & communities committee why dog walkers pay a reduced fee.
Turner said: “The council’s approach to introducing fees for businesses in parks has led to dog walking businesses paying less than those offering wellbeing services that support new mums, despite the fact that dog walking businesses use the park much more frequently.
“Does the council really feel that this is morally correct?
“I’m tired of asking the same questions; I’ve got a two-year-old and I had no sleep last night.
“But I want to live in a city where the wellbeing of postnatal mothers is highly prioritised and not put below the needs of dog walkers.”
So far, 85 businesses have applied for a licence, with a total turnover exceeding £1.5m. The council expects to raise £25,000 from charging for the licences.
Kate Spreadbury from Bristol Parks Forum said: “Let’s Walk, who have for years worked with communities who are not traditional users of parks, can no longer afford to lead walks in Bristol.
“But it can do so in an adjoining local authority, because it will not be charged there.
“Let’s Walk is one of many small, not-for-profit, community-benefit groups who will and are disappearing, as a result of the charges for council licences.
“If we want to have an active and inclusive city, we need to support the groups used and valued in our communities.
“This policy is now doing real harm and we ask that you review its use urgently.”
Watch out for those walking poles – photos: Let’s Walk
According to Bristol City Council, the licences are needed to make sure groups using parks, such as new mums singing or elderly people walking, are suitably qualified and insured.
Chair of the public health committee, Lib Dem councillor Stephen Williams, repeated a denial that the licences were intended to raise money but were instead to ensure Bristol’s parks were safe.
It is unclear what safety threat choirs pose.
Williams said: “The position always has been that any organisation, that runs commercial activities with a view to a surplus or a profit on city land, has to apply for permission to do so.
“That hasn’t been enforced for quite some time.
“In recent years, local authorities have introduced licensing schemes to make sure that all business activities carried out are backed up by qualifications where necessary, public liability insurance and any other arrangements that need to be put in place.
“It’s not a revenue-raising objective by the city council. It’s a regulatory issue to make sure that our parks are safe.”
Williams said that other councils also charge for licences to use parks.
The scheme in Bristol has now been in place for a month and the council is listening to feedback and willing to tweak the rules.
Dog walkers get a reduced rate because the council already has rules in place to limit their activities in parks, such as fenced off areas where dogs are not technically allowed to enter.
Licences for one park cost £480 and licences for up to seven parks will cost £720. Half-price discounts are available for Bristol-based businesses with an annual turnover of less than £25,000, on licences for up to seven parks.
Licences for between eight and 15 parks cost £960 and will not be eligible for a discount. All these figures include the council fee plus VAT.
For commercial dog walking, licences for up to seven parks cost £360, while licences for eight to 15 parks cost £600.
Half-price discounts are available for Bristol-based businesses with a turnover of less than £25,000 who operate in seven or fewer parks. There is also a £60 application fee.
Main photo: Bring Your Own Baby Choir
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