The future of a Bristol boxing club is under threat after plans to sell the building, which still has some of Banksy’s earliest artwork on its walls, were revealed. The Dug Out youth club in Barton Hill, where the likes of Banksy, Inkie and Cheo all started out, has since become home to an amateur boxing club. But the club could be forced to relocate if the building is sold.
Plans to sell the building were revealed during a meeting last month, attended by local councillors in Lawrence Hill. Wellspring Settlement, which owns the building, announced during the meeting that it was looking to sell the site which it referred to as a ‘financial liability’.
In a statement sent to Bristol Live, Wellspring CEO, Beth Wilson said: “Wellspring Settlement is considering selling the Dug Out building. Unfortunately, the building has been a financial liability for us for many years and in the current financial climate Wellspring Settlement can’t continue to carry this burden.
“We have supported the tenants of the Dug Out, Barton Hill Boxing Club, to use the site for many years including supporting with grant fundraising and significantly reduced rent. We have offered to work with Barton Hill Boxing Club to secure them a new home in Barton Hill.
“Wellspring Settlement has a long-standing commitment to the community of Barton Hill and have recently brought the Swan pub back into community use through the creation of a new youth facility funded through capital grants. We are also working closely with others to secure the Netham pavilion as a community facility and bring it back into community use.
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“We wrote to the community in the summer outlining the significant financial challenges the organisation is facing. Unfortunately, these challenges have forced us to make difficult decisions, including reducing staff hours and considering this sale of the Dug Out building.
“These choices are to protect the long term future of the organisation so we can continue to be here for the people of Barton Hill in years to come. “
Stuart Phelps from Lawrence Hill neighbourhood forum has called for any sale to be delayed to give the community time to potentially purchase the building and get it registered as an asset of community value. In his recent email to Wellspring CEO Beth Wilson, which he shared with Bristol Live, he called the potential sale of the building “a backward step for a struggling community at a time when it faces severe pressures” and added that its sale “will not be popular.”
Those hoping to save the boxing club from relocation have organised an emergency meeting for this Thursday (October 10) at the building in Barton Hill Road at 6.30pm.
Lawrence Hill ward councillor Shona Jemphey added: “Cllr Yassin Mohamud and I are keen to preserve the boxing club and have held a meeting with the club and with Wellspring Settlement to discuss the current situation and what options there might be.
“The club does a lot of good in the community and we want it to be able to remain in its current home if possible, and if not, for it to find a new home nearby so it can continue to serve the young people of Barton Hill.”
The iconic wall of the building developed over the years from the moment youth worker John Nation started a graffiti project at what was then the Barton Hill Youth Club in 1984. The project was broken up by a series of police raids in the early 90s, but the Dug Out continued to be a place for street art, and the youngsters who learned their craft there went on to – in some cases – world fame.