Bristol Drugs Project
Sober Spaces, Image by Ania Shrimpton
Since April 2025, Trinity has partnered with Bristol Drugs Project (BDP) through its Creative Communities programme, bringing a number of BDP’s established creative groups into Trinity.
The partnership provides a regular home for activities that use creativity, music and community connection to support people affected by drug and alcohol use. BDP’s Creative Communities programme recognises the role that creative activity can play in building confidence, developing skills, strengthening relationships and supporting recovery.
Through the partnership, Trinity has become a regular base for several of BDP’s long-running groups, including the Bristol Recovery Orchestra, delivered in partnership with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. The partnership has also enabled us to develop new provision together. Following BDP’s Beginner’s Music sessions, Trinity and BDP launched an intermediate music group for people ready to take the next step in their musical journey.
The sessions provide an opportunity to build on existing skills, develop confidence with beginner instruments and make music alongside others who may have had similar experiences, all within the relaxed, supportive and judgement-free environment of Trinity’s venue and recording studio spaces. The progression is important: people can start by simply trying music for the first time, develop skills through the Beginner’s Music sessions and then move into an intermediate group when they are ready. It creates a pathway that is led by participants’ own interests and confidence, making use of professional creative facilities to grow and develop their creative practice.
As part of the partnership, Trinity is also one of BDP’s Bristol Sober Spaces venues, supporting the development of inclusive cultural experiences where people can enjoy music and socialise in an alcohol-free environment. This has included a D&B Legends event headlined by Roni Size (pic, above) and Nicky Blackmarket.
Through Creative Communities and Sober Spaces, Trinity and Bristol Drugs Project are working together to make creativity, music and cultural participation part of a broader ecosystem of connection, confidence and recovery. The partnership is a shared commitment to making culture and community spaces more accessible, helps the sector to think differently about what an inclusive cultural venue can look like.
