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Choir leader asks council to reconsider fee structure for park activities
A new petition by the leader of a community choir group is calling for the council to reconsider the current fee structure for activities in parks.
Julia Turner, who started the petition, has run Bring Your Own Baby Choir for long enough to know what the sessions mean to the women who turn up.
Four mornings a week, parents and carers with babies gather in parks across Bristol, including St George Park, to sing together. The sessions, Turner says, provide vital support for postnatal mental health and social connection.
So when Bristol City Council introduced a new park licensing structure that would charge her significantly more than commercial dog walkers operating in the same spaces, she wanted to understand why. Under the new system, Turner’s business would pay roughly twice what dog walking services pay in licensing fees.
Julia Turner runs the Bring Your Own Baby choir group – photo: BYOB Choir website
In the petition, Turner says: “Despite complaints from the public, Bristol City Council has this month imposed a fee structure for using public parks and green spaces which favours dog walking businesses over services like mine.
“It’s incredibly insulting and disheartening to be charged more for providing a class that supports the wellbeing of new mothers than professional dog walkers pay to use these spaces. This disparity sends a troubling message about the value placed on essential postnatal services compared to commercial dog walking.”
When she raised the difference in fees with the council independently, she was told that dog walking had been treated differently because of “the distinct nature of this business model and the relationship between clients and their nearest park”.
“What is this distinct nature?” Turner said, when speaking to Bristol24/7. “If a dog walking business has the same turnover as mine, which is what fees are based on, why should they be paying 50 per cent less? Proximity is just as important for wellbeing groups. It needs to be local, especially for postnatal women.”
At a full council meeting in March, Stephen Williams, chair of the public health and communities committee said, the licensing structure was “not based on the social value of different activities, but on establishing a consistent and manageable approach to regulating commercial use of parks”. Dog walking rules in Bristol, he added, were “comparable with other local authorities”.
Turner doesn’t find that reassuring: “Saying it’s comparable to other local authorities is not an acceptable answer. What are the actual reasons behind this decision?”
Her concerns go beyond the fee structure. The new rules also place limits on the number of participants allowed in wellbeing sessions. A restriction, she says, could threaten the viability of groups like hers entirely.
She said: “I’m being asked to pay twice what dog walkers will pay.
“These are groups supporting women at a potentially vulnerable time in their lives. Why are they valued less? This isn’t just about cost. It’s about whether groups like mine can continue to exist at all.”
Through the petition, Turner wants to understand how the council designed the structure for the fees and to hopefully get them to reconsider it and prioritise the welfare of groups like hers who use the park for community activities.
Addressing the issue, Williams told Bristol24/7: “There is no specific discount applied to professional dog walkers, who are charged under a different fee structure to the Parks Business Licence.
“This approach reflects how commercial dog walking is commonly managed by other local authorities and does not represent a reduction compared with other activities, nor is it intended to provide preferential treatment to any one type of business.
“We have a responsibility to manage the city’s parks and green spaces so they remain safe, pleasant and welcoming for everyone. Licensing plays a vital role in achieving this, helping to ensure that businesses operating in these important public spaces are appropriately insured and act responsibly.
“The licence fees cover the cost of administering the scheme, with any surplus money reinvested into maintaining and improving our city’s parks.”
The council also confirmed receiving 84 applications under the current fee structure as of April 30. The 50 per cent discount on the fees is applied to Bristol-based businesses that have a turnover under £25,000 and use seven or fewer parks.
Kiran Dhami is reporting on St George, Easton and Eastville as part of Bristol24/7’s Community Reporters programme, aiming to amplify marginalised voices and communities often overlooked by mainstream media.
This initiative is funded by our public, Better Business members and a grant from the Nisbets Trust.
Main photo: Kiran Dhami
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