Police were called to the scene of an “unlicensed music event” near Bradley Stoke in the early hours of Sunday morning (30th October 2022).
A member of the public called police shortly after midnight to report seeing cars arriving at the site of a disused warehouse just off Old Gloucester Road (on the section between Winterbourne Road and Bristol Road, Hambrook).
The warehouse sits on a parcel of land earmarked for new housing and is reached via a track on the right-hand side of the road, shortly before the railway bridge (when heading away from Bradley Stoke).
The first officers arrived at the scene at approximately 12.17am and reported that an unlicensed music event was underway at a disused building. They estimated 400-500 people were in attendance.
Complaints about noise from the event were posted on Facebook by people living across a wide area that included Stoke Gifford, Winterbourne and Frampton Cotterell.
A police spokesperson said:
“Road closures were put in place to prevent more people from accessing the site. Throughout the night the number of people gathered at the site has subsequently reduced.”
“Public safety is our absolute priority when responding to these events.”
“We continue to engage with organisers at the site to bring this event to a safe conclusion, while trying to keep the impact on the wider community as low as possible.”
A video and photos from the scene were posted on Twitter at 9.34am by Chris Kelly, who reported that police were present but seemed to be letting the event “carry on and fizzle out”.
Scene of an illegal rave currently going on close to the new Stoke Gifford bypass.
Police are here but seem to be letting it carry on and fizzle out. pic.twitter.com/MsRGwvv8xV
— Chris Kelly (@westdigitaled) October 30, 2022
A statement posted on Twitter by Avon and Somerset police a couple of hours later, at 12.25pm, read:
“The unauthorised music event in South Gloucestershire has been brought to a safe conclusion.”
“Approx 100 people were on site at about 10am but have now left. Officers remain in the area.”
“Thanks to the public for their patience while we dealt with this.”
A report that appeared later on the BBC News website noted that this was the second unlicensed music event at the location in recent weeks and said police would be contacting the landowner to try to prevent it from happening again.
A police officer explained that for safety reasons, officers did not shut down the gathering immediately but kept a presence throughout the night and moved in to close it down in daylight hours.
Development site
The parcel of land on which the disused warehouse (known locally as the “Crocker land”) lies within the East of Harry Stoke New Neighbourhood, an area designated in South Gloucestershire Council’s approved Core Strategy for the provision of up to 2,000 new homes.
There is extant outline planning permission, granted in 2020, for the construction of up to 158 dwellings on the site.
More information: East of Harry Stoke New Neighbourhood (Stoke Gifford Journal)
