City nightclub bans phones on the dance floor

Filming and photography will not be permitted on the Moon Club's dance floor from 6 September

One of Bristol's biggest nightclubs will become the first in the city to ban phones on the dance floor to "create a space where people can really be present".

Lakota, in the St Paul's area of the city, said anyone who repeatedly flouts the policy in its new Moon Club room will be asked to leave.

The new rules will come into force on 6 September when the room opens to clubgoers and does not apply to the rest of the nightclub.

Hywel Gregory, head of events and marketing at Lakota, said: "We're confident Bristol will respond positively. People are looking for spaces where they can switch off and enjoy the music without distraction."

Lakota will join other major nightclubs in the UK to have banned filming on phones, including Fabric in London and Warehouse Project in Manchester. The approach is also popular in Berlin and some nightclubs in Ibiza.

Mr Gregory said the move will not see "hard policing" or "restrictive measures like other nightclubs in the UK", and instead will see "de-escalation and conversation".

"We'd like people to be adults and be responsible and try and respect those boundaries themselves," Mr Gregory said.

"Obviously, if people are persistent, they may be asked to leave the venue if they repeatedly flaunt the rules."

Lakota will be the first nightclub in the city to bring in the ban

He said nightclubs have lost "connecting with their audience a bit over the last 10 years with an invasion of phones".

"It's not about policing, it's about building a culture," he said.

The Moon Club will have a 220 person capacity and is an expanded and refurbished version of its "room two".

The club's bosses want to use it as a venue focusing on local artists who are considered up and coming.