Welcome!

A brief introduction

The Stoke Lodge saga begins over 20 years ago but we’re constantly surprised at how few people know the story – either because they don’t really use social media, they’ve only moved to the area in the last few years or because they’ve heard a little, but didn’t now where to find more information. It could be any reason.

Stoke Lodge has long been at the heart of our community – a cherished green space enjoyed for walking, playing, picnicking, and community gatherings. Although it was formerly registered as a Village Green (VG29), and that legal status has since been removed, its role in our lives hasn’t changed.

To us, Stoke Lodge remains our village green in every way that matters. We continue to use and value it just as we always have – as a shared space for everyone to enjoy.

We’ll keep this fairly brief but if you want more information, the blog by We Love Stoke Lodge (the group who have been campaigning for the past six and a half years to keep access for all on the beautiful parkland) is very helpful, if you’re new to all this, here would be a good place to start.

We’ll add links to a few posts on this page.

Well, in 2011 Cotham School signed a lease with Bristol City Council that allowed them to use Stoke Lodge for PE.

The lease has clauses in it allowing for continued use by the community. The school decided that it needed a perimeter fence for the safety of its pupils and staff – claiming this was needed for safeguarding, even though they were happily using facilities at Coombe Dingle Sports Complex with no fence at that time – and at the beginning of 2019 it put one up. 

The community were upset by this because it left us with only a narrow perimeter path, muddy to the point of being impassable in winter, stopping local children being able to take a shortcut to school, or older people to the shops and bus stop and because of the type of gate, Stoke Lodge became completely inaccessible to wheelchair or mobility scooter users. 

A Town or Village Green (TVG) application had been in since 2018 and after several years of slow and expensive legal action the council’s Public Rights of Way and Greens Committee (PROWG, made up of elected councillors) granted TVG status in June 2023 and the registration formally took place on August 22nd. (Video here.) It’s illegal to enclose a village green so gradually the fence was removed.

The school took Bristol City Council to court in January 2025 to get the village green deregistered and We Love Stoke Lodge defended the decision alongside the council and in support of the individual applicant. Sadly, in a bewildering decision, the judge found against the council and the legal status of Town and Village Green was removed.

The school has now decided to build a new fence which blocks the public rights of way recognised in November of 2024. It has challenged their registration but while we hope it will be months, it could be years before the planning inspectorate make a decision. Until then, the rights of way still legally exist.

The new fence promised to address the issue of the dangerous muddy perimeter path and it did this by blocking that off too. It also promised improved landscaping, but so far has only cut branches of, dug into the roots of and felled protected trees. There were no badger gates in the last fence, despite the council asking for them to be fitted and there will be none this time either according to the construction workers on site.

And who monitors the CCTV?

Cotham School put up CCTV cameras after the fence was constructed for the protection of its staff and pupils and its property including the fence and gates. 

It’s important for users of the village green to note that the CCTV covers the top of the village green by the white hut as well as a wide area by its double doors, the area in front of the pavilion and the lane behind it.

It also covers the area in front and to the side of the silver electrical cabinet near the back of the Adult Learning Centre – originally Stoke Lodge, the house itself – which contains two infamous ‘overt but discreetly located’ cameras (but that’s another story! One covered by local press at the time).  Data goes directly to school servers from where it is monitored by staff.

We have seen evidence that the long term plan for Stoke Lodge is development – artificial pitches (with more fencing, floodlights and pay-on-entry/ pay-to-play) and hardstanding possibly for coach parking are part of Cotham’s vision for developing and commercialising Stoke Lodge. The claim that Ofsted requires a fence for safeguarding has never been true – and if Cotham was happy with grass pitches, it wouldn’t be spending vast amounts of education money for the right to erect a fence.

It is vitally important that we fight this challenge to take our village green, not just for ourselves but as a matter of principle, it’s not only Stoke Lodge that has been threatened and some former open green spaces have been already developed using these methods.

Cotham School continues to pursue plans to enclose the space with a security fence. While they have stated that the public will still be allowed access when the school is not using it, this assurance is not legally binding and past promises and assurances have, regrettably, not been upheld

We believe this much-loved green space should remain open and accessible to the community and we will keep fighting.

For more information, please visit the We Love Stoke Lodge blog. If you’re able to contribute, we would be incredibly grateful – please see the Donations page.

Please watch our video, it helps explain why we need your help to stop this happening. Thank you.