What is the Story House?

The Story House is a community-driven initiative envisioned as a safe space for storytelling, reflection, and action. It will highlight Bristol’s role in the Transatlantic Trade in Enslaved Africans (TTEA) while showcasing narratives of resilience, triumph, and excellence from African and Caribbean communities.

This groundbreaking project is more than just a museum—it’s a hub for connection, education, and empowerment, designed to celebrate the rich tapestry of African and Caribbean heritage while fostering a brighter, more inclusive future.

The proposed site for the Storyhouse is the B Bond Warehouse on Smeaton Road. B Bond was built in 1908 as a store for tobacco products, which came from the USA and the Caribbean. B Bond is currently home to Bristol Archives and the Create Centre.

The Western Harbour Development.

Community Engagement

Engagement with local African Heritage Communities sits at the heart of the BLF’s ethos. On the 27th of November, we hosted a community consultation at Malcolm x Community Centre asking our communities what they would envisage from the storyhouse.

The B Bond Warehouse.

The B Bond Warehouse sits within the Western Harbour Development. The masterplan will set out in detail where the new homes, community spaces, businesses and green spaces will be while also planning for modern transport and flooding infrastructure.

We have been working with the Bristol City Council Regeneration Team and Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands (LDS), who are the architects creating the Master Plan for the Western Harbour Project. LDS will convene three workshops with the BLF on the following:

• Formulate a brief that BLF can use to find an architect/team of our choosing to design and develop the BLF Story House.

• Review potential locations for the Story House within the emerging Western Harbour Masterplan, or consider a new build.

• Assist/advise on the procedure for selecting a team (architects/designers/ exhibition designers/ artists, etc) to take the proposals forward