The Central Police Station, also known as the

Bridewell Bridewell Palace in London was built as a residence of King Henry VIII and was one of his homes early in his reign for eight years. Given to the City of London Corporation by his son King Edward VI for use as an orphanage and place of corre ...

is a historic building on Nelson Street, Broadmead,

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It was opened in 1828 and finally closed in 2005. It is a grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

Prior to the construction of the present building, the Central Police Station had been located in Bridewell Street. In 1880, the

watch committee In England and Wales, watch committees were the local government bodies which oversaw policing from 1835 until, in some areas, 1968. Establishment The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 required each borough to establish a "watch committee" and to ...

were involved in the setting up of an independent fire brigade and a site was chosen adjacent to the police station. A steam fire engine was purchased and arrangements were made to stable the horses needed to pull the fire engine in the yard of the police station. The Nelson Street building was built in 1928 by Ivor Jones and

Percy Thomas Sir Percy Edward Thomas OBE (13 September 1883 – 19 August 1969) was an Anglo-Welsh architect who worked in Wales for the majority of his life. He was twice RIBA president (1935–37 and 1943–46). Biography Percy Edward Thomas was born on ...

and opened as a

police station A police station (sometimes called a "station house" or just "house") is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, ...

in November 1930 near the site of a previous station. Neighbouring buildings housed law courts and a fire station. It closed as a working police station in August 2005. The building has been designated by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

as a grade II

. English Heritage describes it as having an "axial plan with wings at each end. Stripped Neo-Georgian style with Mannerist detail. 2 storeys; 12-window range. A near-symmetrical front has curved ends and short returns, with a fluted frieze and parapet."

Current and future uses

In December 2007 a graffiti exhibition was held in the Old Bridewell Police Station building to raise funds for

Bristol Children's Hospital Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, also known as the Bristol Children's Hospital, is a Children's hospital, paediatric hospital in Bristol and the only paediatric major trauma centre in South West England. The hospital is part of the Universit ...

. 70 artists took part and an artwork was donated by

Banksy Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive epigram ...

to the cause. Currently the building is known as The Island. It became home to Artspace Lifespace by agreement the property developers

Urban Splash Urban Splash was founded in 1993 by Chairman Tom Bloxham MBE and Creative Director Jonathan Falkingham MBE; the company has spent more than two decades working with architects and designers to restore old buildings and create new, sustainable c ...

whilst a new use for the site was found. The current owners of the building are the Creative Youth Network, who also run The Station from the complex.

References

{{reflist Grade II listed buildings in Bristol Grade II listed government buildings Police stations in England Government buildings completed in 1928 Percy Thomas buildings 1928 establishments in England