Homes to be built inside old packaging firm

Hundreds of homes are set to be built at a former industrial site which used to be home to a global packaging firm.

The site in Filwood Road in Fishponds, Bristol, used to be owned by Graphic Packaging International before the company moved to Yate in 2023.

A Bristol City Council committee has approved a planning application for 252 homes on the site, which it has said will play "an important role in addressing the city's housing crisis".

But councillors raised concerns about its impact on traffic and said the area needed more GP surgeries before the homes could be built.

Construction is due to begin in the summer, with the first homes expected to be ready in 2027.

The new Fishponds neighbourhood will have a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom houses and apartments, and will include 56 affordable homes.

Councillors Kelvin Blake and Ellie King, who represent the Hillfields area, said they welcomed the planning approval.

In a combined statement, they thanked developers for "not trying to shoehorn in as many flats and homes as possible".

"That said, there are still concerns of neighbours relating to traffic and the impact on doctors surgeries," they added.

"We secured a unit for healthcare facilities on this site which we hope will be taken up."

Independent housebuilder Dandara has said the development will create "vital" construction jobs for the area, and added it would open apprenticeships by working with the council.

It also said it planned to plant more than 150 trees across the development, as well as green spaces for the wider community, and an orbital cycle route connecting to Bristol and Bath Railway Path.

Under the planning agreement, Dandara must contribute £430,000 towards local highway and public transport improvements.

William Bishop, head of land at Dandara, said the development aimed to "significantly enhance" the Fishponds area.

"This development will appeal to a diverse range of buyers while making a meaningful contribution to tackling the housing shortage in the city," he said.

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