St Christopher's School in Bristol gets legal protection

Julie Owen, whose daughter Angharad spent nine years at St Christopher's, said it was "brilliant news"

A group of parents are celebrating after successfully campaigning to protect the site of a former special needs school in Bristol.

St Christopher's School in Westbury Park closed in 2020 after 70 years as it was deemed economically unviable.

The site has now been declared an asset of community value (ACV), so it cannot be sold without the local community getting a chance to buy it first.

The parents' campaign was backed by Aardman Animations founder Peter Lord.

The new legal status will help protect the site for Special Educational Needs (SEND) as any future development has to take the existence of the ACV into account as part of the plans

St Christopher's School closed in 2020 after 70 years as it was deemed economically unviable

A spokesperson for the SEND Alliance for St Christopher's, the group who put together the bid, said: "We are over the moon that the legacy of St Christopher's school has been officially recognised.

"ACV status means that we now have a real chance to ensure this wonderful site returns to being a community asset so it can serve SEND families again in the future."

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Julie Owen, whose daughter Angharad Owen spent nine years at St Christopher's, was part of the long campaign with other SEND campaigners, former school staff, cross-party city councillors and Bristol North West MP Darren Jones.

"It's brilliant news. St Christopher's School was a very special place and helped so many families, like ours, over so many years," she said.

"It's really important for us that Bristol City Council has acknowledged the unique education it provided, especially for children with severe autism.

"I really hope this means the community will be able to buy the site and do something amazing there in the future because there's so much need among SEND families in Bristol," she added.

Currently no plans for the site, owned by a London-based investment firm, have been submitted to the council.

A proposal to turn the buildings into luxury retirement flats was turned down by councillors in August 2023.

The site now cannot be sold without the local community being given a chance to buy it first