In Bristol, object to a new advertising screen proposed for Eastgate

Residents in Bristol have a chance to submit their views on a planning application for a large new advertising screen proposed for the Eastgate area.

Update 13 March 2025: this planning application has been refused by Bristol City Council. Thanks to everyone who submitted your views. In addition to the 157 objections received from local residents and councillors, the council’s planning officer’s report noted that no planning permission for the current paper billboard was found.

[Original blog below]

An application by Wildstone Estates (a company that builds new advertising sites) proposes changing the existing paper billboards to a digital advertising screen – capable of showing 6 adverts per minute (which is highly profitable). The application is for a site near a Tesco and on a former railway line, now a pedestrian walkway, facing Eastgate Road.

How to object in 4 easy steps

1. Go to Bristol Council’s planning website: https://pa.bristol.gov.uk/online-applications/search.do?action=simple
2. Enter planning reference: 25/10065/A
3. Click ‘Make a comment’
4. Fill out your details (your info is not made public) and your reasons for objecting to the screen.

Tips for an impactful objection:

The council can formally only take into consideration to nationally determined factors for approving or refusing advertising. These are “harm to amenity” and “danger to road safety”, so it’s good to include these:

• “amenity” (how will the screen change the look and feel of the area? Will it disrupt views or the experience of green spaces, have an unwelcome commercial influence, or distract from the character of the area?)
• “public safety” (is this a danger to people walking, wheeling, or driving past? Is there a junction nearby, where additional distraction would be unsafe? Would it dazzle drivers or create unnecessary distraction?)

🧐 Remember to make it personal – do you cycle past? drive past? why would it affect you?

Whilst amenity and road safety are the formal grounds that a planning application for new advertisements can be considered, it is worth also adding in your broader reasons for not wanting more ad screens in the city. These might include the climate and nature emergency, public health concerns of unhealthy promotions, mental health pressures of being bombarded by adverts, the commercialisation of our public spaces, etc. This helps to inform the public conversation regarding outdoor advertising in the city.

The deadline for objections is 4th February 2025, but the planning portal often remains open for objections beyond these official dates.