Key Points
- Parents in Easton say they are still waiting for Bristol City Council to restore the play area at Bellevue Road Park nearly a year after the main equipment was removed on safety grounds.
- The climbing frame was taken away in September 2025 without prior warning, which prompted a community campaign and a petition that gathered almost 1,000 signatures.
- Bristol City Council said replacement equipment, safer surfacing and wider improvements would be delivered using Community Infrastructure Levy funding.
- Campaigners now say there has been no work on site, no confirmed timetable and limited communication from the council.
- Easton ward councillor Jenny Bartle confirmed £70,000 of CIL funding had been awarded for resurfacing, more informal play opportunities and the reinstatement of the climbing frame.
Easton (Bristol Express News) 9 July 2026 – Parents and campaigners in uk/local/easton/">Easton are pressing Bristol City Council for clear updates on the future of Bellevue Road Park after the main play equipment was removed almost a year ago and the promised replacement scheme has still not started. The dispute has become a wider issue about trust, communication and the pace of local delivery, according to the community figures quoted by Bristol24/7.
Why was the play equipment removed?
The main climbing frame at Bellevue Road Park was removed in September 2025 because the council said it was no longer safe.
Bristol24/7 reported that the removal happened with no prior warning, which quickly upset local families and prompted a residents’ campaign.
The loss of swings, a slide and a roundabout left the park with no remaining play equipment at that time, according to the earlier Bristol24/7 report.
What have parents and campaigners said?
Andrew Walls, one of the local parents involved in the campaign, said community feeling had shifted from frustration to anger because of the lack of communication and visible progress.
He said families valued the park not only as a play space but also as a place where children and parents met and formed community links.
Walls also argued that people understood the need to remove unsafe equipment, but not the delay that followed.
What has the council said?
According to the April response quoted by Bristol24/7, Easton ward councillor Jenny Bartle apologised for the lack of information and said she had asked the council’s head of parks, Richard Fletcher, for an update.
Bartle confirmed that £70,000 of Community Infrastructure Levy funding had been allocated for resurfacing work, more natural and informal play opportunities, and the reinstatement of the climbing frame.
She said she hoped to provide more information within a couple of weeks, but campaigners say no substantive update has followed.
What did the petition achieve?
The removal of the equipment triggered a community campaign and a petition that gathered almost 1,000 signatures calling for investment in the park.
That public response showed the scale of local concern about the loss of the playground and the condition of the space.
Bristol24/7 also reported earlier that more than 160 people had signed a petition to save the play park at Fox Road in Easton, highlighting broader concern across the area about local play provision.
How does this fit the wider pattern?
The Bellevue Road Park case sits within a wider discussion in Bristol about how Community Infrastructure Levy money is used for parks and local improvements.
Bristol City Council says CIL is split between administration, local schemes, equity funding and strategic infrastructure, and some of that money can be directed to area-level projects.
Bristol24/7’s reporting suggests campaigners want to see that funding translate into visible delivery rather than long delays.
Background to the development
Bellevue Road Park in Easton became a source of local anger after the main play structure was removed in September 2025 on safety grounds.
The council later said the park would be upgraded with replacement equipment and safer surfacing, funded through CIL.
The issue has since become tied to concerns about accountability, especially after parents said months passed without work beginning or a clear timetable being shared.
Prediction for local families
If the council moves ahead quickly, the project could restore a much-used neighbourhood play space and reduce the pressure on families who have lost a local meeting point.
If delays continue, campaigners are likely to keep pushing for answers, and the dispute may deepen the gap between residents and the council over how local park funding is handled.
For families in Easton, the practical impact will be simple: the longer the delay, the longer children go without a safe, nearby place to play.
