Voting for Trinity in the scheme could mean we secure a grant of up to £4000 (photo @Khali Ackford)

This October and September you can help Trinity secure a grant of up to £4000 in Tesco’s Bags of Help scheme.

To vote, you will need to make a purchase within store of any value. Customers will receive one token per transaction, it's not necessary to purchase a carrier bag in order to receive a token. Add your token to Trinity’s Conservation Project to vote. Voting for Trinity's Conservation Project will mean up to £4000 could be secured for continued investment in Trinity’s future.

Below a list of Bristol stores taking part in the voting on our project.

Axbri Rd Express (BS4 2RU); Bedminster Express (BS3 3NN); Blenheim Court Express (BS1 3LA); Brislington (BS4 5AY); Bristol Metro (BS1 3DW); Bristol Paragon Express (BS1 2HJ); Canons Express (BS1 5TY); Clare St Express (BS1 1XR); College Green Express (BS1 5SP); North St Express (BS3 1HB); Totterdown Express (BS3 4RJ); Whitchurch Express (BS14 9HX); Wine St Express (BS1 2PH).

Voting closes 31 Oct 2018

Students gather in Fyfe Hall for a session professional DJ and Foley sound for film (photo @ Alastair Brookes)

Our Summer Music Sessions are an opportunity for young people of all abilities to come to Trinity and try out different accepts of music making. The sessions are delivered over two days, meaning young people have the opportunity to take part in a variety of workshops and sessions.

Young people perform with the in-house band (photo @ Alastair Brookes)

This year we worked in partnership with Access Creative College who delivered workshops in professional DJ and Foley sound for film, while our own in-house team of awesome tutors, Al, Ed, Matt, Oli and Jack, delivered sessions ranging from live performance to Vocal Recording to Beat Making.

"I love music. More time!! Make it longer, thank you!" Participant, Summer Music Session

Our highlights include a beat boxing shows case from professional performer Jack Salt (The Inexplicables, Ushti Baba) and welcoming Charlie Grier from Access Creative Music who shared his DJ’ing skills to the group.

Students had the opportunity to perform with professional musicians (photo @ Alastair Brookes)

"We should have these sessions more regularly for everyone to mix and share ideas" Participant, Summer Music Session

Some brilliant performances from young people – Sam performed his original songs (from his new EP recorded at Trinity), Collins rapped over live beats provided by Charlie from Access Creative Music, Rob playing Djembe drum as part of the live performance backed by Trinity house band
and the final live performance showcase with support from Oli (on the drums) Matt (on the bass) and Charlie on the decks.

Georgia came along for the Summer Sessions and really enjoyed getting involved and trying out the different music making activities (photo @ Alastair Brookes)

Aged 13 - 25 and want to gain new music making skills? Then get in touch with Dave.

Trinity's Summer Music Sessions are delivered as part of Making Tracks, a collaborative project between Basement Studios, ACE and Trinity. Making tracks is funded by Youth Music.

The Shape of Water, September 15

And.. it is that time of year again where we set up the Outdoor Cinema in Trinity Garden and over two weekends you get to enjoy the late summer heat, listen to some great music, enjoy a nice bit of food (if you like) and watch some classic movies as the sun sets.

This year we’ve curated films around the theme of Fairy Tales for Troubled Times, choosing four films that look at the idea of being another in a world that doesn’t accept you.

We kick off with a "rags to riches fairytale set in the phantasmagorical world of Jamaican dancehall" as we team up with Come The Revolution to present Don Letts' first ever feature film Dancehall Queen (Sep 8).

Someone said get a life… so they did. Hailed as one of the greatest road movies of all time, Ridley Scott’s Thelma and Louise (Sep 9) charters the trail and tribulations of two women’s crime spree across the American Southwest.

Set against the backdrop of Cold War era America circa 1963 Guilermo Del Toro’s, The Shape of Water (Sat Sep 15)  is an other worldly fairy tale about love and the fear of the unknown.

Scarlett Johansson stars in the indie drama, Under The Skin (Sep 16). Part road movie, part science fiction, part real this is a tale of an alien in human form and is all about looking at our world (or, at least Glasgow) through alien eyes.

Our Outdoor Cinema's start a 7pm, and before the films start (at around 8:00pm, when the sun sets) you can grab yourself a drink at the bar, get some movie theme inspired food, and have a bit of a boogie to some music from 7:30pm.

Outdoor Cinema tickets start at £10 standard / £6 conc, click on the links below to reserve yours now.

Dancehall Queen September 8

Thelma and Louise September 9

The Shape of Water September 15

Under The Skin September 16

Clare and Sam's wedding Aug 5 2017

'We got together around New Year and just clicked and ended up living together.' His wake was actually held at the Trinity. It's where we went back to..It was a strange circularness - saying hello and goodbye at Trinity.' (anonymous)

Celebratory, poignant, both weddings, christenings, wakes, funerals, parties - as part of our Heritage Project Heart & Soul we are looking for stories of your big event at Trinity to include in our online archive and celebration event.

It might be that you met a life long friend, a partner, here at an event. If you have a story and pictures to share with us contact Edson@3ca.org.uk or call Trinity on 0117 9351200 and ask to speak to either Edson or Karina.

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Silent Hobo and Mr Riks paint Trinity's reception in 2015

As part of our Heart & Soul project we are looking to commission artists to produce creative responses to key moments in Trinity’s history. The works created will be on semi permanent display in the building and become part of the indoor visual history trail that will be completed in Oct 2018.

Trinity already has a DJ Derek Stencil by artist Stewy, painted in celebration of a generous donation to our Youth Music project by Sweet Memory Sounds - a trust set up by Derek’s family and friends to keep Derek’s musical legacy going. We also have a mural painted by Bristol artists Silent Hobo and Mr Riks in our reception area, painted in 2015 during our last major capital works.

We imagine that the artwork could be a stencil or mural, painted, or sprayed, directly onto the walls:

- inspired by the history of the building

- appropriate to our audiences

- celebrating Trinity’s history

- Tells a story of Trinity

- Celebrates Trinity as the centre of community activity

We will work with artists to decide where the artworks will be and suggest artists come to the the site visit 21st Aug to have a tour of the building.  The total budget for all commissions is £2500 and could be spread across a few artists, or on a larger commission.

Artists can have full access to our archive – an extensive collection of images, flyers, posters, newspaper articles & oral interviews from the 1832 to the current day.

Download the full brief here

Deadline for submissions is Friday 31st August 2018, 12:00pm

Site visit Tuesday 21st August from 12:00pm - 7:00pm

The art work needs to be completed by Sunday 30th September 2018

The total commissioning budget is £2500 to include artists time and materials.

Have any questions? Then click here to send us an email

Fyfe Hall filled up for the penultimate talk in the series @Khali Ackford

There was a lot of excitement within the team about this event as we knew the panel members would be really interesting and bring good insight to Bristol’s current art scene. There was a last minute change so Daniel Balla from Coexist joined us in place of Greg Bond who was unable to attend. Michele Curtis and Doug Francis joined us as planned, and our own Dr Edson Burton chaired the evening.

Coexist’s Daniel started by explaining their approach to serving the community. He spoke about the way that cultural ecology is not fixed, it is constantly recreated. A central concern of gentrification has and always will be the displacement of people from the community that used to occupy that space, physically or spiritually, in society. Some art installations at Hamilton House have expressed this by communicating the unpredictable nature of the facade and behind by having volunteers speak about their lives behind a screen for attendees to listen to. He mentioned that national newspapers such as The Guardian site Stokes Croft as the epitome of gentrification, so Coexist have a big responsibility to critique their own actions and what other organisations do to serve their community.

"Should we be calling this gentrification at all or rather redevelopment? What defines gentrification could simply be the monetisation of the social world."

One of the main subjects of conversation throughout the evening was the need to conform with capitalist needs while making art, in order to succeed. These organisations have rent to pay and therefore have had to learn how to generate capital through a variety of means. In the case of Coexist, they have hosted activist groups such as the Bristol Drugs Project as well as commercial income from artist studios, dance studios, and desk space. The model has to be reactive to the community, for example after engaging with the community to see where the need was, they set up a Somali kitchen.

On the panel from left to right, Coexit's Daniel Balla, Trinity'sDr Edson Burton, ASLS's Doug Francis and visual artist Michele Curtis @Khali Ackford

There were also questions raised about the use of language- should we be calling this gentrification at all or rather redevelopment? What defines gentrification could simply be the monetisation of the social world. In terms of where Coexist sits- the future is uncertain. The organisation always assumed it would be able to buy the building when the time was right, however this year their landlords have quadrupled the rent, throwing all future plans into the air. This has motivated the team to think about Coexist’s future. They critiqued the system and they now want to make a network between arts organisations so that they can support and stand up for one another like a union.

Michele Curtis’s career in visual art began in 2015 in St Paul’s with a mural and walking tour project. She wanted to communicate the local history visually by painting large murals, and proposed this idea to somebody, who strongly advised to act immediately. Michele described how at the time she did not consider why, but that with hindsight she believes he gave this advice because he could see the area was changing and in the near future, people living there would not want massive murals of black people’s portraits. She projected to the audience a feeling of motivation, encouraging artists to act on their ideas and make art happen.

"...the power lies with artists, therefore we must continue to make art, and fight for arts organisations."

Doug Francis comes from a long art background, originally doing events in the Portobello Road area of London before moving to Bristol where there was still opportunity. In this instance, Doug talks about opportunity in terms of buildings that can still be used to hold raves, parties and art events cheaply or for free. He said that he did not look forward to anticipate what would be happening now. With friends, he occupied garages up Cheltenham Road, and what they did differently from other groups of artists was they opened up their squat to invite the local community in. Doug is also the ringmaster of The Invisible Circus, with outrageous costumes, props and staging. When Artspace Lifespace took The Island over from Urban Splash, with enormous pride he described it as the clowns taking over the police station, the lunatics taking over the asylum. Other venues they have around Bristol include the Loco Club under Temple Meads, the Vestibules at the Council House on College Green, and most recently acquired, Ashton Court.

He has made art in many ways and in lots of different places and media. Recently he even had a job in the Somerset council, trying to re-purpose the Tropicana Centre after Banksy’s Dismaland residency. The feeling we were left with was that the power lies with artists, therefore we must continue to make art, and fight for arts organisations.

Questions from the floor created lively debate about gentrification in Bristol. Photo @Khali Ackford

After each panellist had spoken about their work individually, the floor was open to questions. There was a good mixture of debate, and a sense that the audience was in it together, fighting for the same side. The amount of knowledge sharing was inspiring, for example an audience member made us all aware about the Living in Vehicles consultation which is happening at Bristol City Council.

The panel made it a richly interesting, energetic evening of discussion, for which we thank them.  Catch the last talk in our series on the 31st July at 7pm, ‘Reconstructing Trinity: From Disrepair to Glory’. It will be another panel discussion featuring Trinity members past and present, don’t miss out.

These notes are written by Tess Sieling, who is the project intern on the Heart & Soul heritage project. Read more of her notes on our Tuesday talk series - Father Paul, Fidel Meraz, A Million Bricks of Love, and Same Building, Different Meaning. Our talk series explores the challenges and achievements of transforming and preserving historic buildings and is programmed in collaboration with Bristol's Architecture Centre and the University of West England (UWE).

Trinity Summer Music Sessions

Free workshops, performance and fun for young people in Bristol Weds 15th & Thurs 16th Aug, 11am-3pm

* Music Production

* Song & Lyric Writing

* Drum & Vocal Tuition

* Junk Percussion

* Beat Boxing

* ATM music college DJing & Film Sound FX masterclass

Thursday afternoon (1pm - 3pm) will be dedicated to a series of live performances.

All abilities welcome. Limited space. Email: training@3ca.org.uk or call: 0117 935 1200 or pop in to reception to book your space now!

Keisha Thompson teaching a youth music participant vocal looping @Khali Ackford

One of Trinity's charitable aims is to preserve, protect and improve for the public benefit the Trinity Centre - formerly the Holy Trinity Church - and promote the heritage of this building.

As a Grade II* Listed building, the former Holy Trinity Church is one of the most prominent façades in the Old Market Conservation area and a source of local identity and city pride.

Designed by renowned Birmingham architects Thomas Rickman and Henry Hutchinson, it was built 1829-32 as part of a national programme of church building approved by Parliamentary commission. Funds for the programme totalling one and a half million pounds came in part from the spoils of Napoleonic War, hence these churches are variously known as the ‘Waterloo Churches’.

Deconsecrated in 1976, the building was purchased by Bristol Caribbean Community Enterprise Limited and has since served as a community arts centre for East Bristol.

In 2009 Trinity was placed on Historic England’s ‘At Risk’ Register, due to significant dilapidation of the building’s stonework, roofs and structure.

Since then, Trinity Community Arts have been working to carry out a phased repair programme, which saw the building removed from the At Risk Register in 2014, followed by a full structural repair programme 2017-18.

Roots of Rumba is coming to Trinity on July the 6th! The Afro-Latin dance festival, curated by fomer IGNiTE artist in resident Ella Mesma features shows that stand for representing the diversity of dances of the African Diaspora.

The line-up includes performances by Sandra Passirani, Latisha Cesar, RJC, Franck Arnaud-Lusbec, Iris de Brito and Myriam Gadri. In “Mine Or Theirs”, Sandra Passirani reflects on her own identity and body as a queer woman of colour. The performance invites the audience to realise how social constructs smother and bend the beauty and sacredness of womanhood.

Franck Arnaud-Lusbec’s “Di-Osmosis” celebrates his Martiniquan roots and how these have shaped and still shape who he is today. Through his performance, he explores how his origins harmoniously blend with his eagerness to discover other cultures to form a perfect osmosis. “Uprooting”, performed by Iris De Brito, is a work in progress centred around the family bonds severed through migration and immigration. The show sheds light on how forced movement creates new identities and trauma that reflect through generations.

Myriam Gadri’s dance piece “The Lost Goddess” depicts the unexpected awakening of the Lady of the River, after a hundred years of ceremonial attempts to break her sleep, Further unexpected events follow and lead two women to eventually discover they are stronger and more in tune with the elements when they coexist.

For further information about the different performances and artists, and to book tickets click here.

Music student plays at the Garden Part at Trinty

Young musicians from Trinity, Basement Studios & Aspiration Creation Elevation (ACE@Docklands) set to take the stage at this years St Paul’s Carnival.

Performing on the Unity Stage, hosted by ACE, young musicians will be given a chance to shine in this years Carnival – performing alongside some of Bristol’s most popular artists. On these experience Cherelle Grant, Music Tutor at ACE said, "these talented young people have been working hard each week to create, prepare, and rehearse songs for St Pauls Carnival. Making Tracks has provided a focused environment, with skilled tutors to help them set objectives that will see them elevate their creativity and confidence."

The young people are supported by the Making Tracks project – a two year collaborative project between Trinity, Basement and ACE. Making Tracks offers young people the chance to take part in a wide range of life changing music making activities alongside 121 and group tutoring young people benefit from mentoring, peer learning and joint-project activity.

Catch the performances through out the day at the Unity Stage at St Paul’s Carnival, Bristol Saturday July 8.

July 2 Trinity will be closed to the public all day as team Trinity pack up our buckets and spades and head to the seaside for an away day.

The centre will be open from 5pm for Bristol Samba and Gerry's Attic and will re-open as normal July 3.

People gather outside Trinity at the start of the walks

This year we have four free guided walks around Trinity and Old Market. The walks are part of Heat & Soul  – a year long programme of heritage events, talks, and workshops. The guided walks, led by Dr Edson Burton are an opportunity for people to find out more about the history, and present of Trinity and Old Market.  Tess, our excellent heritage intern – joined Edson on the second instalment of the walks.

People gather in Trinity's main hall photo@Khali Ackford

The walk began inside Trinity’s main hall. Edson talked us through the history of Trinity from when it was a Church, through to desconscreation and first transformation as community arts venue  managed by the Caribbean Community Association  through to its current custodians, since 2004 Trinity Community Arts.

A visual timeline of Trinity past, present and future hangs in the main hall photo @Khali Ackford

Trinity has a covenant on it stating its purpose must be for social good whether that is education or community. Therefore a thread which has run through Trinity’s history is its use as a vocational skills education centre. Alongside this, Trinity is known for its music history – and has been host to the likes of Public Enemy, The Prodigy, U2, Madness, the Specials and the home of the Bristol Sound.

Funded was secured to transform Ffye Hall into a performance space  photo @Khali Ackford

We then headed upstairs to Fyfe Hall, named after one of its founder members of TCA Nick Fyfe. As part of TCA’s commitment to repairing and conserving the building funding was secured that built on earlier renovation work. The second floor was transformed into a beautiful dance/theatre/wedding space with sprung floor and underfloor heating.

Learning about the not so pleasant Amelia Dyer... photo @Khali Ackford

Before leaving Trinity's gates Edson told us a little of the story of Trinity Road. Some of the local history isn’t particularly pleasant such as Amelia Dyer who lived a stone’s throw from Trinity. Over thirty years during the 1800s she took money to re-home babies unwanted babies. To  ‘make an angel’ to use the expression. She was found to have killed an estimated 200-400 baby deaths caused by many babies across the UK. Amelia was hanged in 1896.

Even over grown gardens have a story to tell in Old Market photo @Khali Ackford

Edson started the walk down Braggs Lane so that we would begin the tour at the bottom of the Old Market. Edson pointed out various places of that were part of the meat trade a major industry in the Old Market area. This area used to be home to an abattoir, tannery and lard factory. We emerged at the Old Market roundabout where Edson spoke about the Empire Theater. Hollywood star Bristol born Cary Grant started his career working at the Empire. His friends remembered him having a broad Bristolian accent, not the transatlantic one he became famous for.

Building Temple Way changed the look of Old Market forever photo @Khali Ackford

We continued walking down Old Market Street and West Street, with fascinating snippets about the history of Kings Cinema, the Stag and Hounds pub and John Barstaple's almshouses, the Drill Hall and Kingsley Hall. As well as explaining passing on dates that the buildings were built Edson explained the changing fortunes of the street for example the decision to knock down a third of Old Market in order to create Temple Way. These explanations helped us to understand why some of the most iconic spaces in the street closed and how the Gay Quarter developed during the street's decline. The attendees added memories and family anecdotes of weddings, relations, working and socialising.

Our next heritage walk is July 31, places are free but you need to book online. We also have an online interactive archive of Trinity and Old Market, have an explore.

Heart & Soul: celebrating major life events at Trinity is a year long project running alongside our current works to repair and protect the Trinity building. You can find out more about the project here or find out about the building works, including how to support our current fundraising campaign, raising funds to secure Trinity's past, future and present.

Help secure Trinity's past, present & future

Stonemason Jim shows us the new stoneworks, replacing the damaged stone caused by corroded iron

“When they built this building, they just never expected it to last nearly 200 years” says Jim, who has been a stonemason for 10 years. He is using traditional skills to hand carve new stonework – mainly to replace rusted metal cramps and critically damaged stonework.

I am being taken on a tour of the building site by Shane, Trinity’s man for all things facilities. I am grateful for my hard hat as there is a lot of climbing the scaffolding. We climb right to the top and look to the farthest corner of the roof and see the pinnacle that Jim restored by hand.

The hand carved stonework is visible on the furthest pinnacle

As we go up hard not to notice the stained glass windows, many are buckled and bowed; a few put in upside down (possibly in the 1980’s restoration work); some cracked and others in a need of a deep clean.

The windows in the Graffiti Room are mid repair.

A boxing glove lost around the 80's is one of the many items found behind the windows come time capsules

Kerry, resident stained glass window expert, is carefully removing broken glass from a window on the north side of Trinity. By eye he manually cuts out a shape from some glass he has and skilfully places the glass between the lead, seals it and moves onto the next piece. He stands back and on the left is a window yet to do, and on the right is a window that is done. The contrast is quiet impressive.

Shane and I walk past an antenna that is attached to one of the towers (an echo back to the days when Trinity was host to its own community radio station) and head towards the West side of Trinity. Jim and his team have been busy up here, and you can see the repairs to the stoneworks, cracks that have been filled and hand carved stone replacing some of the most critically damaged stone.

I slowly edge towards the edge of the scaffolding and can see Old Market and further beyond, is central Bristol. It is a marvellous view, if not incredibly high. Going down is much easier than going up. Shane and I clamber down the ladders, past the stonemasons, the glaziers and site workers. I am grateful for my feet being back on the ground.

Walking to the edge of the scaffolding was really rather scary. But Bristol looked great

Back in January, with the scaffolding up, experts where able to do a full investigation that revealed the extensive critical historic damage to Trinity. These unexpected costs meant we launched our fundraising campaign to help us raise the much needed funds to undertake the critical repairs and have been overwhelmed by the support from funders and the public.

With only a few months left until the scaffolding comes down we need help to raise the much needed funds to undertake the critical repairs to Trinity. The public can help secure Trinity's past, present and future by donating directly to the campaign here.

What is clear is the commitment by the public, by us, by the craftsmen, the site workers, supporters and communities to renovating the Trinity Centre, ensuring that Trinity’s doors stay open for ours and for future generations.

Sarah Bentley (who really doesn't like heights ) Marketing Officer at Trinity

Help secure Trinity's past, present & future

People enjoying the sunshine photo @Jessica Bartolini

We want to say the biggest and most huge thank you to everyone who donated during garden party– we raised over £2800 in donations and that is just incredible. The funds raised will go directly into our Trinity Conservation Campaign , helping to secure Trinty’s past, future and present.

So to everyone who popped a few quid in the buckets or donated to the campaign directly online, we are very grateful.

An early afternoon performance by Bristol Samba photo credit @Jessica Bartolini

And, this year the sun really did hold out for Garden Party - didn't it.

Families and children enjoyed the circus skills workshops photo @Jessica Bartolini

Throughout the afternoon the garden was host to family workshops, with circus skills workshop from Invisible Youth and a beautiful puppetry performance by Bunraku Puppetry, followed by puppet making. Dancers from HYPE Dance, a weekly dance group based at Trinity, took over the Main Hall and Fyfe Hall for two flash performances and we welcomed back the ever popular drumming workshops.

Family friendly activities ran until mid afternoon and included a puppetry performance @Jessica Bartolini

Hype Dance performed two very high energy dances to crowds at Garden Party @Jessica Bartolini

On the Main Stage the line up included Baraka,Gardna x Kreed, Sunun with a great headlining set from Om Unit (who started a Roofs not Walls chant!) photo @Jessica Bartolini

Area of Effect opened up Garden Party with a punk set @Jessica Bartolini

Young performers from our collaborative Making Tracks project opened up Garden Party on the Main Stage with a set from Basement Studio’s Area of Effect and later on, Trinity Music Student Sam Neal played new songs from his EP (that he is recording here at Trinity). The Inside Stage saw performances from Trinity’s Louis Stone, Basements Ziggy Thewin and a very fun DJ set from Dj Lee Baker.

Students from our Making Tracks project played throughout the day @Jessica Bartolini

Headliner Om Unit playing to a packed crowd as the day draws to a close photo @Khali Ackford

An array of stall holders brought a great selection of handmade and bespoke goods, complemented by the world cuisines offered by the selection of food stalls and Dr Bike was on hand for everyones bike based needs.

Resident historian Dr Edson Burton teamed up with Lottie Story and took control of the MC’ing, introducing some great Trinity based history and introducing the talented artists and bands to the stage.

Lottie and Edson say a very good night and thank you to the crowd at Garden Party @Khali Ackford

Big up to the all the volunteers who helped out this year – and all the staff members, security, stall holders and artists who helped make the day happen. We had over 2000 people come to our annual free Garden Party, it was very busy!

For more pics of this years Garden Party head over to our Trinity Facebook page or follow us on Instagram.

See you all next year, and thanks everyone for your donations. We couldn't do this without you.

We aim to use resuable cups at all events to reduce waste and the impact plastic waste has on the environment

Having trialled our brand new reusable Trinity Cups at this year's Garden Party we're now rolling these out across all events. We want to make sure that Trinity does its bit to be green and what better way than introducing a system or reusable cups. We've already seen a reduction of of our waste by 80% after just one event.

In order to make sure that people don't take our cups home (they are pretty lovely so you might be tempted) we will be asking you for a £1 deposit when you place your first order at the bar. We will then return this at the end of the night when you bring your cup back.

If you decide you want one of our lovely cups for your own home (who wouldn't, perfect for camping and using for those long summer BBQs in your own Garden) you can choose to not get your deposit back. You can even swap your used cup on your way out at bar for a lovely fresh one. All proceeds from this are then fed back in to our fundraising efforts so it is a win win all round.

Many people attending the dance had connections with Trinity and Old Market

On Friday 20th April we opened up Trinity’s doors for "A Waltz Down Memory Lane" – an afternoon of dancing, cakes, memory sharing and good company.

Over 40 people came – amongst them many regulars from Gentle Dance, a weekly dance session for people over 55 at Trinity.  It was a great to see that many people who came had a connection with Trinity or the Old Market area.

Throughout the afternoon many, if not everyone, took their turn on the dance floor

A lovely time was had by all –  Dr Edson Burton was in attendance and spoke to many people at the dance about their memories of Old Market and Trinity.  Mark - who has lived around the area for half his life, shared his earliest memory – of bombing and fires and shared with Edson how he remembers using horses as transport!

We loved the many memories of major life events.  From Tony and Val’s memories of their first date in Old Market to Lynda sharing how her grandparents were married at Trinity.  Marilyn shared with us her memories of attending mass at Trinity, getting married here and also having her children Christened here.

Local band - Norma's Groovers entertained guests throughout the event

It was an absolutely lush afternoon and we are certainly excited about the next Waltz Down Memory Lane on Friday 8th June.  The event is open to anyone over 55 who likes to socialise, dance, meet new people and would like to share their memories of Trinity and Old Market. No need to book, just turn up!

A Waltz to Down Memory Lane is part of  Heart & Soul: celebrating major life events at Trinity Bristol. Throughout 2018 there will workshops, talks and heritage activities for all ages. The project runs along side our most recent capital works and has been made possible with the help of these funders.

Help us secure Trinity's past, present and future

Cultivating fruit trees  - just one of the many tasks in Trinity's thriving garden

After a long winter we are super happy to be welcoming back our weekly garden activities.  Wednesday's Community Day (12 - 4) is an opportunity to learn various gardening skills while enjoying the urban outdoors. The sessions are a mix of ideas and hands-on work in the thriving community garden - from helping plant seedlings in the poly-tunnel to preparing beds for growing veg, there is lots for people to enjoy. At the end of each session enjoy a shared meal with other volunteers. No need to book, just show up! All welcome, including families

Stay & Play (Fridays 10-12 up until May 25, then 10.30 - 12) is a nature based play group for 0-5 year olds, nature play, arts & crafts, story time and sing-a-longs with a ukulele! No need to book, just turn up and enjoy the garden with your little ones. Suggested donation up to £5.

For more information about garden activities contact: garden@3ca.org.uk

Crowd throwing the Trinity T's 2017 Photo credit Khali Ackford

This year's Garden Party is on Sunday 13 May, we have a packed schedule of family-friendly activities and workshops running alongside a fantastic mix of local artists and bands.

Throughout the day we have lots of family and kids activities. From learning circus skills with Invisible youth to making a traditional Japanese puppet in the Bunraku Puppetry Workshop. Don't forget to head to the main hall and take part in a drumming workshop.

This year's main stage highlights include some of the most exciting music coming from Bristol & the South West right now. Headliner, Om Unit brings his unique take on sound-system culture, inspired by hip-hop, dubstep, ambient, jungle and footwork. Big party vibes coming from heavyweight live performance, UK Bass scene leader and lyricist Gardna whose taking the stage with DJ and producer, Kreed.

Bristol musician Sam Neal plays at garden party 2017 Photo credit @ Jessica Bartolini

We’re welcoming back Baraka, featuring musicians from Ghana, Senegal, Dominica, Trinidad and Southern Ireland to bring a sound influenced by Calypso baselines, Blues Harmonica, Soca with Balafon and Flute. Sam Neal who is just one of the talents we have seen grow from our Youth Music Scheme, will be performing songs from his up coming EP. It makes us very proud to see him doing so well. Nice one Sam.  Head to our main hall during the afternoon and catch  some of the young people attending music sessons at Trinity, Basement Studio and ACE.

We’ve got a great selection of stalls from Bristol makers, including women and men’s clothing stall Ashanti Empress , art work by Cosmic Soul Collective and cruelty free feather jewellery from Phat Feathers.

Volunteering: Trinity's Garden Party relies on volunteers to ensure that the 3k people who come every year have a great time (and, are is are also kept safe). We have a variety of stewarding roles and shifts across the day. If you fancy meeting new people, gaining new skills and getting 2 free gig tickets, then head over here to find out how to offer your time and sign up.

This year we are going to be shaking our buckets hard and asking everyone for a donation of £3 (or what you can afford). We recently launched the Trinity Conservation Campaign to raise the vital funds needed to repair historic damage to the building. Your donations will go directlytowards our campaign, ensuring we secure Trinity’s past, present & future.

Full line up:

Om Unit

Gardna x Kreed

Sunun

Baraka

The Brackish

Soma

Baast

Rhain

Sam Neal

Youth Music Showcase

Help us secure Trinity's past, present & future

Jabu x Neek x Manonmars plays at Young Echo Album Launch, photo credit Khali Ackford

Trinity is known for it’s boundry pushing music events, so it is really exciting to be able to bring you a programme of live music & club nights inspired by the musical heritage of the building. This year you'll see established and new artists both local and national who are all about pushing new ideas in music.

We’ve partnered with established promoters to bring you underground music that we know you are going to love. First up we had Bristol collective Young Echo who took over Fyfe Hall for their album launch back in February. Followed by Dubstep artist and promoter Pinch’s club night Subloaded celebrating the 100th release on his Tectonic label.

In May Trinity & Teaching in Dub will bring you Grime & Dubstep collective Bandulu Records with a massive line up ft Commodo, Rizla Teef, Kahn & Neek, Boofy, Hi5ghost. Plus the next generation of producers coming through, Drone, Lucy, Sir Hiss, Bengal Sound, with the big bad SGT Pokes on mic duties.  With more exciting artists coming in the Autumn (keep your eyes peeled for updates).

If you like high energy new reggae music with a heavy dub twist, definitely grab tickets to see Resonators on 19th May. This is going be a get up and dance vibe all night.

It is really important to Trinity that we showcase Bristol talent as much as we can in our in house music programme so we are pleased Resonators will be supported by Bristol artists, Roots Factory featuring YT (worked with the likes of Mungos Hifi and Solo Banton) plus Papa Steve and his mighty Downbeat Melody Soundsystem and Numesa.

Tickets: Bandulu / Resonators

We’ll be announcing more gigs. To know first sign up to our mailing list.

Collective Bandulu head to Trinity x Teachings in Dub presents in May phot credit Khali Ackford