Fees for fitness coaches on Downs discussed in secret

A controversial plan to charge fitness trainers money to hold classes was discussed in secret after members of the public were kicked out of the committee that runs the Downs which is made up of councillors and unelected members of the Society of Merchant Venturers.

Anybody whose business involves using the Downs could soon be charged an undisclosed figure for an annual licence to use the area.

Parks licences were recently proposed by Bristol City Council covering parks across the city. This would involve charging businesses a £450 licence fee every year, for activities like professional dog walking, yoga or bootcamps.

But fees for the Downs would be different because of its unique governance arrangements.

After a huge backlash, council bosses swiftly put the proposals on pause pending further talks with affected businesses.

However, the licences could still go ahead for the Downs and potentially at a more expensive price per licence; although the details of this are confidential.

Campaigners tried to ask members of the Downs Committee about the proposed licences during a public meeting on Monday but instead of getting a response, they were told to leave the meeting.

Bristol lord mayor and chair of the Downs Committee, Henry Michallat, said: “The items we’re discussing in the closed session contain sensitive information and confidential information.

“Openness and involvement are something that this committee takes very seriously but we have to have the ability to discuss sensitive information.

Some of it is private correspondence, legal information and commercially sensitive information.

“We want to be as open and transparent as possible but obviously there’s sensitive information that we need to discuss in private.”

The Downs are a popular exercise spot for people running, playing football, taking bootcamp classes and even playing quidditch.

Some exercise classes, however, can attract large groups as big as 60 people, prompting complaints from the Downs Advisory Panel, a group founded in 2022 made up of volunteers and professionals “who assist and advise the Downs Committee on matters of governance”.

In 2023, the panel suggested that personal trainers should be charged up to £1000 a year for a licence.

Local resident Maureen Norman said that the Downs “are supposed to belong to the people of Bristol and there should not be charges for this. After all, the van dwellers are causing more problems than exercise classes.”

The proposal to charge licences to use the parks stretches back to 2018. The former Labour cabinet signed off plans exploring the licences, but ultimately dropped them as they said fees “were a bad idea”.

Then earlier in September, the council announced that the plan had been revived. This sparked immediate opposition and more than 4,000 people signed a petition against the idea.

While the responsibility for parks lies with the public health & communities policy committee, led by Lib Dem councillor Stephen Williams, the U-turn was announced by the Greens who said the fees were “inappropriate” and “go against many of the values the city and we as a party hold as important”.

Main photo: Bristol HIIT Fitness

Read next:

• Calls to stop Merchant Venturers from managing the Downs
• ‘Money grab’ by council as charges to be introduced for paid-for activities in parks
• Council pauses plans to charge for paid-for activities in parks