Sustainable Pill & District (SPAD)
North Somerset Council's Local Plan Consultation:
North Somerset Council have produced a Local Plan that includes recommendations to build 1,100 dwellings
on 5 areas of Green Belt around Pill, Ham Green and Easton-in-Gordano.
This will increase the population of our village by around 44%!
A Public Consultation into the North Somerset Council Local Plan closed at 5pm on 12 December 2025
Click on the button below to see the group response we submitted to the public consultation.
More about Sustainable Pill and District (SPAD)
SPAD started in 2007 when a group of local people got together to think about the Environment and Climate Change and what could be done in our village community to protect the natural world. Initially it was the Community Forum Environment group thinking together about litter, local food and plastic waste and a cloth shopping bag with local shop logos was produced to replace plastic carrier bags. A “Greening our Village” party was held in the Community Centre with stalls from village groups, a fashion show from the charity shop, environmental films shown and music and dancing with village musicians. We changed our name to Sustainable Pill and District and since then there have been many people and groups and events in our village to promote the ideas of sustainability.
More details on the history of SPAD can be found here.
For more information about climate change and the chance to see some videos explaining it then click here
- With colleagues from Transition Portishead, SPAD set up Low Carbon Gordano, a Co-operative for the benefit of the Community. It raised over £3.5 million in shares since then to install solar systems across the local area and supported the installation of LED lights.
- A SPAD supported candidate, Don Davies, was first elected to North Somerset Council(NSC) in 2011 and has been the Leader of the Council since 2019.
- Along with NSC, Pill and Easton-in-Gordano Parish Council, have declared a Climate Emergency and SPAD is working with a number of their Environment and Climate Working Groups to implement environmentally friendly policies at local and regional level.
- SPAD food group works to encourage local people to grow their own food and now has inherited a community allotment from Chilie Davies, volunteers are welcome to come and help grow fruit and vegetables every 1st Saturday of the month.
- Every Saturday SPAD runs a surplus food table at the Pill Precinct from 10am - 11am, with a stall at the Community Market every 4th Saturday of the month.
- SPAD is helping plant native trees linked to Parish Council tree re-homing project and are involved with the Blue Hearts re-wilding project to help increase carbon capture and biodiversity.
- The Parish Council and Food Group are running a Pill and District Community Fridge - it is located in the Resource Centre and contains produce donated by local Supermarkets. In addition there is a surplus food table in Pill precinct, outside the Resource Centre, 10am - 11am every Saturday - this is stocked with surplus produce from local supermarkets plus extra food grown in people's gardens and allotments. It is all free and everyone is welcome.
- Continue to campaign to maintain and improve public transport and library services.
- It’s official! Pill Library saved from closure!
North Somerset Council has now formally approved Option B of the Libraries Consultation, meaning Pill Library will remain open and council-managed. We are delighted with this decision and would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who responded to the consultation, attended meetings, volunteered their time, and spoke up for our library. Your support has been key to this fantastic outcome for our community.
The work of Friends of Pill Library does not cease here. We can now enter a new phase, working closely with North Somerset Library staff to ensure Pill Library goes from strength to strength at the heart of our community.
If you would like to find out more or get involved, please contact us at [email protected] – we would love to welcome new members and supporters in this exciting new stage of our organisation. - Organise regular litter picks every 3rd Saturday of the month - check out our Facebook group or the Events page for more details.
- The Pill Repair Cafe is on the 2nd Saturday of the month (apart from August, December and April), 10.30am - 12.30pm at the Community Centre, Church Place, Pill, BS20 0AE. Click on the link above for more details.
More details on the history of SPAD can be found here.
For more information about climate change and the chance to see some videos explaining it then click here
For the latest information join our Facebook group by clicking on the Facebook icon at the top of the page or on the button below:
