Recent updates

Opinion: The Art of Transforming Municipal Buildings

Nov 11 2024

At Trinity, we are committed to protecting public buildings and spaces and keeping them in the service of the local community.

As part of our mission to restore and reopen Jacobs Wells, a former public swimming baths and dance centre, into a vibrant community arts space, we have been gathering opinions from individuals with experience of breathing new life into former public buildings.

We recently caught up with Kathryn Chiswell Jones of Artspace Lifespace, to share their experiences of occupying public spaces and the opportunities this affords the local community.

Click the link below to read more:

https://www.trinitybristol.org.uk/about/news/opinion-transforming-buildings

Funding target reached!

An update for Camouflage helmet covers for Ukraine

Sep 20 2024

We are delighted that we have reached our target of £300. In total, we have now made over 100 helmet covers and have materials in stock for another 50 to 100. For this reason, we have closed the donations for the time being. Thank you to all our wonderful supporters who have made this happen.

The helmet covers are being used by Ukrainian defenders to protect them in the field. They use different colours in the different season. Our first batch were spring colours - greens and browns. We then purchased material direct from Lviv, which is for summer - more browns and neutral beigey colours. For the winter season, they need white, but are not requesting any of these at the moment.

This is one of the helmet covers in summer colours.

Final Total Raised - 3 Peaks 4 Ukraine!

An update for Yorkshire Dales Three Peaks - Hike for Ukraine

Jul 14 2024

Dear Backers,

You have each helped to raise a grand total of £722 (£455 online and £267 in cash donations) for the camouflage helmet net project organised by the Settle Area Refugee Support Network in North Yorkshire.

This will facilitate the purchase of materials that will be used to make the helmet nets that will be sent to Ukraine for the soldiers defending their country on the Eastern Front.

You are all potential life savers and I am deeply grateful for your support.

Thank you once again,

Tony and Daniel Walker

Miriam Margolyes Visits Jacobs Wells

An update for Jacobs Wells Baths

Jul 12 2024

Miriam Margolyes - Image Credit: Alastair Brookes

Acclaimed actress Miriam Margolyes took time out of her busy tour schedule to visit Jacobs Wells Baths, showing her support for the ongoing recovery efforts of this historic building. As an early supporter of the campaign, and a patron of Trinity Community Arts, Miriam's visit highlights the importance of restoring Jacobs Wells as a vital community and cultural heritage hub.

“I’m thrilled to have a chance to visit Jacob’s Wells Baths and encourage the Council and my fellow-supporters with their exciting plans to return this listed building to the service of the local Community. This will help so many to have a go - opportunity knocks at last.” Miriam Margolyes

During her visit, Miriam Margolyes met with our team and some of the professional team from PH3 Design who have developed the recently approved planning scheme to restore the space. Planned works include a street-facing main entrance and modernisation of the previously unused ground floor Pump Room, transforming it into a new cafe-bar and studio.

Miriam's visit comes as we complete key milestones for the project, including securing planning and lease completion. This means we can now begin crucial Phase 1 Repairs including works to the main hall roof, funded by £1.6 million secured from the DLUHC Community Ownership Fund and match funders.

We are excited to now be able to move forward with our efforts to bring the building back into use as a multidisciplinary venue for arts, heritage, youth, community and educational use.

We want to give thanks to everyone who has so far shared in our journey to make this vision possible, including our Patron Miriam, Bristol City Council, local stakeholders and the Hotwells & Harbourside Community Association, who led campaign efforts to save the building from disposal.

Completion of the 35-year leasehold is still to be confirmed by asset owners, Bristol City Council.

3 Peaks 4 Ukraine!

An update for Yorkshire Dales Three Peaks - Hike for Ukraine

Jul 10 2024

Dear Backers,

Thank you a million times for supporting this project.

In this uncertain world, your donations will give practical and psychological help to young men and women fighting for the survival of Ukraine as a sovereign nation.

So, far we have raised £455 through fundsurfer.

Some pledges are still in the pipeline.

Recent events at the hospital in Kyiv demonstrate that Ukraine must defend itself against Russian aggression.

I hope that our camouflage helmet nets will provide some help on the front lines?

Thank you all very much for helping with this worthwhile project.

Your acts of kindness could save lives in the war raging in Europe!

Take care,

Tony and Daniel Walker

Jacobs Wells Community Meeting July 15 2024

An update for Jacobs Wells Baths

Jun 26 2024

Come along to a public meeting to find out more about Trinity's mission to restore and reopen Jacobs Wells

As part of a series of public community meetings, we're hosting an informal session at The Commonwealth Society for anyone to come and find out more about the construction works we've carried out at Jacobs Wells so far, and our proposed plans to re-open the building for community use.

Don't miss the chance to have your say as we progress our plans to transform Jacobs Wells into a dynamic space for youth, arts, community and learning.

Come along and find out more.

Meeting details:

Date: 15 July 2024

Time: 3:00 - 4:00pm

Address: Common Wealth House, Whiteladies Road, BS8 1PD

First shipment reaches Lviv

An update for Camouflage helmet covers for Ukraine

Mar 22 2024

Today we heard from Lexa in Lviv, who co-ordinates the international project to make helmet covers. Our first shipment of 14 helmet covers has arrived! It was sent by Parcelforce over 5 weeks ago - both Lexa and I have been nervoursly checking the parcel tracking apps for updates, becoming frustrated as we watched it languishing in limbo, sent a long way out of its way via Kyiv, then to the wrong post office in Lviv! Finally it arrived and Lexa collected it. This is our package being unpacked in Lviv. Today the covers were checked by Svitlana, the head of the Lviv netmaking centre, and they meet specifications.

We took Historic England on a tour of Jacobs Wells

An update for Jacobs Wells Baths

Mar 13 2024

Historic England and Jacobs Wells - Image Credit: Alastair Brookes

We invited Historic England to join Corinne Fitzpatrick, Conservation Architect for the project on a tour of Grade II Listed Jacobs Wells Baths to inspect the current emergency works taking place.

These works are in preparation for a phased repair scheme to begin later in the year as part of the mission to restore Jacobs Wells as a community arts space.

The tour uncovered the rich social and architectural history of the building; from the lantern roof, side blocks, boiler house, large chimney to its exterior and ornate features of terracotta dressings. The tour also showed glimpses of the former pump room - a space that has never been open to the public.

The first phase of repairs, set to start later this year, is supported by £1m from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities’ (DLUHC) Community Ownership Fund, and £400,000 in match funding from local trusts including Nisbet Trust, the John James Foundation and other funders keen to support recovery efforts and revive the building.

The vision for Jacobs Wells is to develop and deliver a £4m regeneration scheme in keeping with the building's dance heritage, which will see the centre reopening as a vibrant community arts hub that will include much-needed youth provision and services.

Watch the full tour:

Find out more about our missions to restore and reopen Jacobs Wells:

https://www.trinitybristol.org.uk/activities/jacobs-wells

Album launch concert

An update for Echo Vocal Ensemble Debut Album

Mar 6 2024

Dear all,

We hope all is well with you! We wanted to get in touch with some exciting news about our debut recording - we’re launching the album with a special concert this July at Wigmore Hall in London.

It’s on Wednesday 3 July at 1pm, and tickets are on sale here: https://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/whats-on/202407031300 We’ll be singing music from the album, including the wonderful and virtuosic Trois Chansons by Ravel, alongside music by Mouton, Monk and Palestrina. We’d love to see you there!

We’d also like to invite you to a special post-concert party / celebration event for our supporters, which will take place near the concert venue, starting just after 2pm. Details of that will be available soon - for now, please just save the date if you can.

We’ve put all Fundsurfer backers on our main mailing list as well, which goes out every 2 months for more general Echo concert updates. If you’d rather not receive that, just let us know.

Many thanks again for your support and we’ll be in touch again a bit closer to the time.

Best wishes,

Sarah and the Echo team

2024 plans

An update for Funding Ukrainian Emergency Aid & Supplies

Feb 15 2024

Thanks everyone, for all of your support, by 2024 we had really hoped we would not be in a situation where Ukrainians are still at war with Russia and dealing with the most difficult of circumstances.

This year we are continuing to work closely with our partners in Ukraine, US, UK and Europe to help fund aid and supplies.

We are in discussion with a number of funders and private donors, the help you provide is incredibly important, thanks for sharing and pledging to our campaign.

We will be in touch with more regular updates this year as we expand our efforts and work in Ukraine.