Event duration: Permanent

This Spring, Baby Bank Network Bristol is making its first baby steps into the community, opening their first charity shop in Sparks!

Head to the Department of Fashion to shop for preloved maternity wear and preloved children’s clothes, shoes, fancy dress, toys and books for ages 0-5 years.

Reuse and redistribution of preloved items for babies and children up to five years is the essence of Baby Bank’s core work. Each year they redistribute thousands of donated items to families in Bristol who are experiencing poverty or crisis. Profits from the Baby Bank charity shop will go towards their work supporting families in Bristol who are experiencing poverty or crisis.

Opening hours:

• Wednesday to Saturday 11am – 6pm
• Sunday 11am – 5pm

Handcrafted leather goods made in Bristol.

Pop down to the Department of Fashion to shop for handcrafter leather goods made in Bristol.

Jess Grey Leather was selected to trade with us because of her excellent craftsmanship, providing long-lasting goods, made of sustainable, locally sourced materials that are a waste product of the meat and dairy industries. Jess explains more about her products and their sustainability below:

Durability: 

In contrast to the highly unsustainable ‘fast fashion’ industry, I use techniques and materials that allow me to produce items designed to last a lifetime and be passed to the next generation. My products are easily repairable and do not have elements that are likely to fail over time like zips or fabric linings. I use solid brass or stainless-steel fittings that are less likely to break than cheaper alternatives and hand saddle-stitch my bags using beeswax linen thread, which is far more durable than machine stitching. I also offer a lifetime repairs warranty on most products. 

Leather alternatives:

I don’t claim that leather is perfect, and I respect those who do not wish to use animal-based products. However, leather is hugely misunderstood by many consumers and the conversation around its sustainability is often shut down in favour of non-animal-based alternatives. While there are many materials being developed that could offer sustainable alternatives, most of these are not yet affordable or widely available and many of leather substitutes currently available are made of or contain plastics which make them very difficult or even impossible to recycle.

Materials and processing:

I use British vegetable tanned leather for all my products. All the hides (animal skins) used are a waste product from the UK dairy and meat industry and a cow is never raised and killed for its hide. At least half (UK stats vary from 40%-90%) of the hides produced by the dairy and meat industry in the UK go straight to landfill or bio incineration. I minimise the environmental impact of transporting my raw materials by sourcing my leather from Bristol’s two nearest tanneries, both of which have quality and sustainability at their core (Thomas Ware and Son: www.thomasware.co.uk and J&FJ Bakers: www.jfjbaker.co.uk). Vegetable tanned leather (as opposed to chrome or chemically tanned leather) is tanned with organic matter, often tree bark. This is a slow process that traditionally must be done for at least ‘a year and a day’ and results in leather that is incredibly durable and long-lasting but is ultimately biodegradable. I only use traditional hand tools, many of which are well over 100 years old, and use no electric or power tools.

If you have any queries around this, please email Will on sparksfashionbristol@gmail.com.

About the workshop:

Come follow the journey of cotton – from plant to t-shirt. Explore who made your clothes through a visit to our Fashion Department. Consider where garments are made and from what materials. Learn about the impact of fast fashion on people and planet and engage in practical sewing activities to extend the life of a loved piece of clothing.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (trade links, economic activity, distribution of natural resources, biodiversity, human impact, climate change, sustainability, biomes),
• Science (plants, pollution, properties of materials, climate change),
• PSHE/Citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement) and art and design (textiles).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre.

How to book:

Workshops are available Monday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 students per workshop, and require a minimum of 20 students. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

Radical china, hand-pulled screen prints & other gifts!

Since 2007, the People’s Republic of Stokes Croft (PRSC) has championed arts & activism in Bristol’s Stokes Croft. Stokes Croft China, an integral part of PRSC, creates unique china pieces blending historic salvaged print with local artists’ designs, while the People’s Printshop produces hand pulled screen prints. All sales directly fund their community activities.

About the workshop:

Why are plants so important? Come and discover how and why plants are used throughout our sustainable department store. Choose whether you want to focus on palm oil or psychoactive plants that have changed the world and the challenges of using them that are good for people and planet. Make your own seed bomb and take away practical solutions to restore and improve biodiversity in your local area.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (contextual knowledge of local and global places, biodiversity, biomes, vegetation belts, trade, human impact, rainforests, deforestation, change over time, sustainability, climate change, weather), 
• Science (plants, pollution, properties of materials, climate change),
• PSHE/Citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre. 

How to book:

Workshops are available Monday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 students per workshop, and require a minimum of 20 students. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

About the workshop:

Come and join us on the Sparks Bus to explore how sustainable transport can help mitigate climate change and keep us healthy. Hop on the Sparks bike and show us how much pedal power you can generate. Clip on a Sparks heart monitor and find out how much exercise you get from walking. Leave with an action plan to support a shift to greener, healthier travel to your school.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (transport, biodiversity, human impact, pollution, cities, planning), science (the human body, heart, properties of materials, plants, climate change),
• History (chronology, technology, cause and consequence, making connections, analysing trends, framing historically valid questions and changes in Britain and beyond), 
• PSHE/citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre.

How to book:

Workshops are available Wednesday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 children per workshop, a require a minimum of 20 children. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

About the workshop:

Have you ever thought of having less meat, shifting to plant based diets or trying edible insects? Come and savour some tasty insights into what sustainable diets might look like. Complete your visit with a mock discussion at the House of Parliments and share your visions for the future of food.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (contextual knowledge of local and global places, biodiversity, biomes, vegetation belts, trade, human impact, rainforests, deforestation, sustainability and climate change), 
• Science (plants, pollution, properties of materials, climate change),
• PSHE/citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre.

How to book:

Workshops are available Monday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 students per workshop, and require a minimum of 20 students. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

About the workshop:

Come and discover the world of migration through the lives and art of artists who have migrated here. Listen to inspiring stories of refugees and migrants who found refuge in creative practices. Create your own art. Deepen your understanding of how all of humanity is connected and how migration has changed the way we speak, eat, create the beauty around us, relate to each other. Students will leave inspired to find the role that art can play in their own wellbeing as well as with a deeper empathy for those who leave their homes to find refuge.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is versatile and suitable for all students at KS2 level and above. It has specific curriculum links to:

• Geography (contextual knowledge of local and global places, human impact, sustainability, climate change),
• PSHE/Citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement),
• Art.

Your hosts: 

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre.

How to book:

Workshops are available Monday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 students per workshop, and require a minimum of 20 students. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

Book a FREE school workshop at the Re-Fuse hub in Sparks!

Sustainable Hive bring you free e-waste workshops where children from years 5-6 can consider and experience the local and global issues surrounding electronic waste. Class-sized groups will have the opportunity to learn hands-on, practical skills in our interactive, ‘Electronic Repair Shop’ classroom, whilst taking time think about what happens to unused or unwanted technological items, through a range of bespoke activities. 

Sustainable Hive are proud to offer schools the opportunity to book a free two hour workshops for Term 6 and the start of the new school year in September. They can also provide support with sustainable travel options if needed.

Click here to register your interest in a free school workshop: https://bit.ly/3ohe6SG.

Hire a space with a difference in the Sparks Department of Imagination! We have two large spaces available on the first floor which can be hired for events and rehearsals or as a workshops space for making large works of art, offering endless possibilities for creative expression.

About the spaces:

The partitioned hireable space can be split into two sections or hired together, and is available between 9.30am to 10pm Mon-Sat and 11am to 5pm on Sundays.

Sparks 1A: 368 sqm (length 21.31m, width 17.27m, height 3.36m to lights or 3.78m to ceiling), with windows and dressing rooms.

Sparks 1B: 235 sqm (length 17.27m, width 13.59m, height 3.36m to lights or 3.78m to ceiling), no windows.

How to book:

We are now taking bookings for 1st June 2023 onwards!

Please contact our Sparks booking team to enquire about hiring a space: bookings@sparksbristol.co.uk.

Birds connect us with nature. Let’s listen to them.

A dynamic soundscape composition of the migratory birds, habitats and behaviours found on the East Atlantic Flyway during the Wings Across Continents expedition by Sounding Wild, to bring you closer to these incredible birds and the challenges they undertake every year.

Pop by the Department of Nature to experience it for yourself!

Artspace Lifespace bring affordable creative desk and studio space to the second floor of Sparks in our Department of Imagination, a place where entrepreneurs, freelancers and creatives can thrive in a supportive and collaborative environment.

Available spaces:

• Second-Floor Creative Desk Space: 18 desk spaces within a coworking space of 56m2 at £70 per person per calendar month (wheelchair accessible)
• Second-Floor Purple Studio (wheelchair accessible)
• Second-Floor White Studio (wheelchair accessible)
• Third-Floor Studio 11 (not wheelchair accessible)

What is Sparks?

Sparks is a unique new sustainability and arts hub in Bristol bringing together organisations and individuals from across the city to pilot new ways to better serve our community and address the climate, ecological and cost of living crisis. We want to explore how the heart of our city could change to help create a greener, fairer future. What makes it unique is the mixture of ethical traders (over 100 represented), artists and educators in the heart of Bristol’s shopping area.

Sparks is co-created by Global Goals Centre and Artspace Lifespace, both charities, with the ground floor retail designed by legendary creatives, Invisible Circus.

The second and third floor form the Department of Imagination ‘Imagineering’ which provides creative desk and studio space for artists. We are interested in supporting the development of talent who work at the intersection of creative arts, technology and sustainability.

What the space looks like:

Opening hours and access:

• Monday to Saturday: 9.30am to 10pm
• Sunday: 10am to 10pm

Imagineering is located on the second floor of Sparks Bristol. The artists’ entrance is via Horsefair. Each desk is a permanent desk and artists get their own locker and access to breakout space on the second floor plus access to the Department of Imagination common area on the first floor. Imagineers can also avail of a 50% discount on space hire in the Department of Imagination.

Is the second floor accessible to wheelchairs? The normal entrance to the artists studios is via stairs only. However we can arrange for access to the 2nd floor via the passenger lift on the ground floor shop or the goods lift which we have brought back into use so that it can carry passengers. Please note however that Duty Manager support will be required to gain entry to the ground floor. We are currently waiting on water to be restored to the accessible toilet. We apologise that due to the fact that we do not have a lease of 10-15 years + we are unable to access capital works funding that would enable to make the building fully accessible. 

How much is desk space:

Desk space is priced from £70 to £120 (beside windows) per calendar month for creatives with a limited number of ‘hot desks’ available at £10 per day. 

Bursary desk space:

We now have 10 free desk spaces available from September-December 2023 for people in the creative industry who otherwise would not be able to afford to join our community. We are particularly interested in supporting talent from excluded or marginalised groups.

Enquiries: 

To enquire about availability of creative desk space please email meg@sparksbristol.co.uk with the subject header Imagineering Desk at Sparks.

Want to shop and reduce waste all at the same time? Emmaus Bristol is setting up a treasure trove of retro, vintage and upcycled furniture, electricals and homewares, providing you with the chance to find a one off piece and support people out of homelessness.

Browse a range of homeware and electrical items and pre-loved and quirky furniture, most of it expertly upcycled by two people we support at our homelessness charity. We offer delivery at a small additional cost for shoppers who are purchasing large items, so there’s no need to worry about how you will get your new upcycled piece home on your bike! Ask in store for delivery charges to your area of Bristol.

Twinkle Leo was created in Ukraine when Tetyana’s son, Leo, was born in 2019. She makes a range of blankets, pyjamas, children’s clothes and accessories. She has been supported to develop her business by ACH, a social enterprise supporting refugees and migrants.

“When I first arrived into Bristol, it was very cold. I only brought with me summer clothes, one pair of jeans and a jumper. I was not thinking about my business, only how my son and I would survive here. Everything here was new to me; the nursery, the hills, all the walking!”

Tetyana, Founder of Twinkle Leo

This free exhibition explores how civil engineers can help us achieve a net zero world.

Time is running out – help us engineer a net zero world. This free exhibition explores the role of civil engineers in developing sustainable infrastructure solutions, covering water, waste, flooding, transport, energy, and cities. The experience is perfect for young people, families, and anyone with an interest in shaping the world around us to reduce carbon and protect the environment.

Recycle your old or broken cables, kettles, headphones, or any other small electricals… in Recycle Your Electricals’ giant toaster! 

This giant toaster doesn’t make giant slices of toast (sorry to disappoint!) but will give your old, unwanted electricals a new lease of life.

Simply bag up anything with a plug, battery or cable, bring them down to Sparks, and pop them into the toaster to be reused or recycled.

Can’t get to Sparks? Use Recycle Your Electricals’ postcode locator to find all your nearest donation and recycling points. With over 7,000 drop-off points, there’s one closer than you think! 

Electrical waste is the fastest growing waste stream in the world, and the UK. Recycle Your Electricals is a UK-wide not-for-profit campaign, motivating and making it easier for everyone to reuse and recycle unwanted electricals.

Sloth shop is a female owned, small vintage & second-hand clothing shop with a huge focus on slowing down fashion.

I try to specially select secondhand and vintage gems to place back on the style circuit to be loved again and again! Sloth shop encourages circulating quality clothes and making well-informed choices. I try to use social to provide tips on how to enjoy fashion in the most sustainable ways possible, by providing tips on mending and caring for existing wardrobes, as well as fast fashion vs secondhand shopping stats.

This Spring, Baby Bank Network Bristol is making its first baby steps into the community, opening their first charity shop in Sparks!

Head to the Department of Fashion to shop for preloved maternity wear and preloved children’s clothes, shoes, fancy dress, toys and books for ages 0-5 years.

Reuse and redistribution of preloved items for babies and children up to five years is the essence of Baby Bank’s core work. Each year they redistribute thousands of donated items to families in Bristol who are experiencing poverty or crisis. Profits from the Baby Bank charity shop will go towards their work supporting families in Bristol who are experiencing poverty or crisis.

Opening hours:

• Wednesday to Saturday 11am – 6pm
• Sunday 11am – 5pm

Handcrafted leather goods made in Bristol.

Pop down to the Department of Fashion to shop for handcrafter leather goods made in Bristol.

Jess Grey Leather was selected to trade with us because of her excellent craftsmanship, providing long-lasting goods, made of sustainable, locally sourced materials that are a waste product of the meat and dairy industries. Jess explains more about her products and their sustainability below:

Durability: 

In contrast to the highly unsustainable ‘fast fashion’ industry, I use techniques and materials that allow me to produce items designed to last a lifetime and be passed to the next generation. My products are easily repairable and do not have elements that are likely to fail over time like zips or fabric linings. I use solid brass or stainless-steel fittings that are less likely to break than cheaper alternatives and hand saddle-stitch my bags using beeswax linen thread, which is far more durable than machine stitching. I also offer a lifetime repairs warranty on most products. 

Leather alternatives:

I don’t claim that leather is perfect, and I respect those who do not wish to use animal-based products. However, leather is hugely misunderstood by many consumers and the conversation around its sustainability is often shut down in favour of non-animal-based alternatives. While there are many materials being developed that could offer sustainable alternatives, most of these are not yet affordable or widely available and many of leather substitutes currently available are made of or contain plastics which make them very difficult or even impossible to recycle.

Materials and processing:

I use British vegetable tanned leather for all my products. All the hides (animal skins) used are a waste product from the UK dairy and meat industry and a cow is never raised and killed for its hide. At least half (UK stats vary from 40%-90%) of the hides produced by the dairy and meat industry in the UK go straight to landfill or bio incineration. I minimise the environmental impact of transporting my raw materials by sourcing my leather from Bristol’s two nearest tanneries, both of which have quality and sustainability at their core (Thomas Ware and Son: www.thomasware.co.uk and J&FJ Bakers: www.jfjbaker.co.uk). Vegetable tanned leather (as opposed to chrome or chemically tanned leather) is tanned with organic matter, often tree bark. This is a slow process that traditionally must be done for at least ‘a year and a day’ and results in leather that is incredibly durable and long-lasting but is ultimately biodegradable. I only use traditional hand tools, many of which are well over 100 years old, and use no electric or power tools.

If you have any queries around this, please email Will on sparksfashionbristol@gmail.com.

About the workshop:

Come follow the journey of cotton – from plant to t-shirt. Explore who made your clothes through a visit to our Fashion Department. Consider where garments are made and from what materials. Learn about the impact of fast fashion on people and planet and engage in practical sewing activities to extend the life of a loved piece of clothing.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (trade links, economic activity, distribution of natural resources, biodiversity, human impact, climate change, sustainability, biomes),
• Science (plants, pollution, properties of materials, climate change),
• PSHE/Citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement) and art and design (textiles).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre.

How to book:

Workshops are available Monday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 students per workshop, and require a minimum of 20 students. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

Radical china, hand-pulled screen prints & other gifts!

Since 2007, the People’s Republic of Stokes Croft (PRSC) has championed arts & activism in Bristol’s Stokes Croft. Stokes Croft China, an integral part of PRSC, creates unique china pieces blending historic salvaged print with local artists’ designs, while the People’s Printshop produces hand pulled screen prints. All sales directly fund their community activities.

About the workshop:

Why are plants so important? Come and discover how and why plants are used throughout our sustainable department store. Choose whether you want to focus on palm oil or psychoactive plants that have changed the world and the challenges of using them that are good for people and planet. Make your own seed bomb and take away practical solutions to restore and improve biodiversity in your local area.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (contextual knowledge of local and global places, biodiversity, biomes, vegetation belts, trade, human impact, rainforests, deforestation, change over time, sustainability, climate change, weather), 
• Science (plants, pollution, properties of materials, climate change),
• PSHE/Citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre. 

How to book:

Workshops are available Monday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 students per workshop, and require a minimum of 20 students. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

About the workshop:

Come and join us on the Sparks Bus to explore how sustainable transport can help mitigate climate change and keep us healthy. Hop on the Sparks bike and show us how much pedal power you can generate. Clip on a Sparks heart monitor and find out how much exercise you get from walking. Leave with an action plan to support a shift to greener, healthier travel to your school.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (transport, biodiversity, human impact, pollution, cities, planning), science (the human body, heart, properties of materials, plants, climate change),
• History (chronology, technology, cause and consequence, making connections, analysing trends, framing historically valid questions and changes in Britain and beyond), 
• PSHE/citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre.

How to book:

Workshops are available Wednesday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 children per workshop, a require a minimum of 20 children. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.

About the workshop:

Have you ever thought of having less meat, shifting to plant based diets or trying edible insects? Come and savour some tasty insights into what sustainable diets might look like. Complete your visit with a mock discussion at the House of Parliments and share your visions for the future of food.

Curriculum links:

This workshop is designed for students 7 years old to Higher Education and has curriculum links including:

• Geography (contextual knowledge of local and global places, biodiversity, biomes, vegetation belts, trade, human impact, rainforests, deforestation, sustainability and climate change), 
• Science (plants, pollution, properties of materials, climate change),
• PSHE/citizenship (roles of a citizen, ethics, morals, social and environmental justice, community improvement).

Your hosts:

This workshop has been designed by Manu Maunganidze and Verity Jones from the education charity, Global Goals Centre.

How to book:

Workshops are available Monday to Friday in term-time, we can host a maximum 35 students per workshop, and require a minimum of 20 students. For prices and to book your workshop, please email us at info@globalgoalscentre.org.