Better Bristol Magazine

Better Bristol is the Bristol Civic Society magazine, funded from members’ subscriptions. The Spring-Summer issue is the latest to be published:

Contents of the Spring-Summer 2020 Issue

  • Chairman’s Piece. Bristol Civic Society is facing up to the challenge of succession planning, writes Simon Birch.
  • Should Bristol become a high rise city?. Tall buildings are bad for the environment, and bad for happiness. Matthew Montague Pollock reports.
  • Planning Applications. John Payne, from Bristol Civic Society’s Planning Applications Group, highlights some recent issues.
  • Major Developments in Bristol. John Frenkel, convenor of Bristol Civic Society’s Major Sites Group, gives an overview.
  • The Bristol Arena. A tale of two Bristol Civic Society events by Simon Birch.
  • St Michael’s on the Mount Without. Restoration is underway and requires a range of specialist skills, writes Simon Birch.
  • Preserving our architectural heritage. Claudia Feher and Callum Sinclair photograph two buildings at risk.
  • Innovate and collaborate for a carbon neutral Bristol. Samantha Nicol, Head of Innovation at Bristol Energy, describes three city-wide initiatives.
  • The Council decides on a Clean Air Plan. Alan Morris asks is it worth having?
  • Roll up for the circus! Nic Billane takes a look at the history of the traditional circus and how the format is evolving.
  • Bristol night life and venues under threat. We must be vigilant, says Annie McGann.
  • SS Great Britain. Eugene Byrne looks back at an epic adventure, and at the role the ship plays in Bristol today.
  • Climate Crisis. Maggie Moss highlights the conflict between traditional growth economics and the realities of tackling the Climate Crisis.
  • Emerging plans for Temple Meads station. There now seems to be some momentum towards specific plans for Temple Meads station, writes Alan Morris.
  • A blue plaque for Iris Murdoch. Gordon Young describes how the typeface used on blue plaques is designed for the job.
  • Obituary. We celebrate the life of John Sansom.

Previous Issues

Use these links to view or download earlier issues of Better Bristol (PDF files)