Quite simply; my favourite charity shop in Clifton. The quality of the donations is very high, and…read moreit's ideal for local students as a lot of the offerings are old texts books on a variety of subjects from graduates gone by. If you're looking for something specific, just ask the friendly staff who tend to know what they've got in stock. The volunteers are quite savvy to what to price their books at so don't be surprised to pay a fair price for the stock here. But remember what the cause is, and how every penny you spend here is going towards the greater good. Also remember that anything you donate here will be greatly appreciated.

It would appear that having done so well as a regular shop selling clothes and such like this…read morecharity megalith has turned to shops focussing on specifically book and music. The move has gone well with this number of Cotham Hill feeling more like a regular book store than a charity one. The range is incredible, and it's hard to believe all these books have come from donations alone. From fiction to non-fiction pretty much all topics and ideas are given at least a light sprinkling of attention. There's even a section on esoteric studies! This is a well stocked music and literature outlet that's quite rightly always busy.

Stokes Croft is a sliver of land between the suburbs Kingsdown and Bishopston and inner city St…read more Pauls. It's definitely not the prettiest of areas. In fact it's pretty grey and depressing, with a fair few boarded up shops and a constant stream of cars roaring through on their way home or into the centre of Bristol. Possibly because people want to counter the dullness of the place some amazing grafitti has popped up here, which the grandly named People's Republic of Stokes Croft have claimed responsibility for. Some of the murals are beautiful (which of course are liable to change or get wiped out by the council without any notice) and I think it's a brave attempt to bring a little colour to what is a drab part of Bristol. There isn't yet a walking tour, but I can imagine one popping up - Bristol's urban art has been attracting a lot of interest recently. It's easy enough to see the sites by one's self though - a wonder along Jamaica Street and the road Stokes Croft itself should mean you see a few interesting sites. Their website reveals them as a fairly serious bunch. They have maps, ambitions to be some sort of official community group, and a mission statement that says they want to promote Stokes Croft as a 'cultural quarter'. I hope they go from strength to strength and continue to brighten up Stokes Croft. That their chairman Chris Chalkley was arrested for painting a 'Welcome to Stokes Croft' sign shows they've got a way to go before everyone comes round to this view.

Stokes Croft: a gift and a curse to Bristol's culture. On one hand, this area of town is dodgy as…read morethey come, with antisocial behaviour and crime, this is a threatening place to be if you're alone and feeling vulnerable, especially towards the St James Roundabout. On the other hand, Stokes Croft is a gem. Full of artists and musicians, businesses like venues, cafes and arts centres are rapidly growing, what with Hamilton House, the Left Bank Centre, Metropolis and Cafe Kino all newly developing. When I miss Bristol, I miss places like Stokes Croft, but also can feel a little unsafe walking around there. It's definitely worth a visit. This is Bristol as much as Clifton is.

This is St James Priory, the home of Benedictine monks in the early 12th century to 1540. This…read morechurch was used as a place of worship for 900 years and Robert Earl of Gloucester (illegitimate grandson of William the Conqueror) found the Priory of St James in 1129. The church was then closed down till the 20th century and being the oldest building in Bristol, it was all alone until a woman called Susan restored it in order to help get homeless addicts off the street. I got the privilege of meeting Susan today and I could see how passionate she is and was about the project. She's a lovely person to be around and told me the history of the church and of her journey and project. Susan decided to raise £4m for the building and £1m to build the rehab centre in the church which unfortunately has shut down. Susan had 80 volunteers including 3 paid day workers and 1 paid night worker. She helped 1400 people who now work as officers within the community and office workers get off the street. Susan had to cut down on her good work because the government came in and set rules that only professionals or certified workers could be part of the project which meant that she had to let her people go and continue looking after it on her own. Although she can't help as many people now as she did, she touched over 1000 lives with the help of the Heritage Lottery Fund which she won for her passion in helping people get their lives back. I just wanted to express how inspired I was about her story and passion to help others. This is not only a church, it's a survival ground and it's a ground in which people who had no faith in their lives, had faith and belief restored again. Now, that's religion.

St James's Priory claims to be the oldest building in Bristol. Recently restored, it has well…read morepreserved Norman arcades and an early rose window. It is now part of a charitable project offering support to vulnerable people, especially those struggling with addiction. The church has regular services led by a priest from the nearby Roman Catholic church of St Mary on the Quay. History The Priory was founded as a Benedictine house by Robert, Earl of Gloucester (1100-1147), in 1129. Robert was the illegitimate son of Henry I and a key player in the conflict between King Stephen and the Empress Matilda. He is buried in the church. The church was made parochial in 1374 and the bell tower was erected in 1375, paid for by the parishioners. The priory continued until the dissolution of the monasteries in the reign of Henry VIII, after which the west end of the Priory Church became the parish church. Alterations included the rebuilding of the south aisle in 1698 and the north aisle in 1864. The church was declared redundant and closed in 1984. In 1993 it was reopened by the Little Brothers of Nazareth, and a project for people in need established. The church was substantially restored in 2009-11. The church The west front is in many ways the most interesting: above a rubble wall (now rendered), are a row of Norman interlaced rounded blind arches, surmounted with an unusual (and very early) example of an oculus, or rose window. This consists of a circle surrounded by eight outer circles, with inter-twined rope decoration. At te east end, the rather plain tower forms a prominent landmark from the Haymarket. The south porch (towards the west) has a short tower and is an 18th century addition. Inside, the nave has arcades of five bays of rounded arches on round columns with attached shafts and cushion capitals, dating from the 12th century, albeit much restored. The roof corbels are in the form of mediaeval heads, brightly painted. The neo-Norman west wall is 19th century as is the inner north aisle of polished pink granite columns (the outer aisle has been separated off to provide exhibition and seminar rooms). The south aisle is more interesting and contains most of the monuments, beneath a row of large 4-light windows and more colourful corbels. The church has some interesting monuments: pride of place goes to that of Sir Charles Somerset (d. 1598), found through a modern door at the west end of the north aisle. There is a late 12th or early 13th century mediaeval effigy on the south wall under a large moulded arch. Well preserved, it is not clear whether this is in fact the tomb of its founder, as claimed on a wall plaque: his tomb of polished jasper was at the east end, which makes it unlikely. Among numerous 18th and 19th century wall memorials, there is an interesting brass on the east wall, surrounded by strap-work, commemorating Henry Gibbes (d. 1636) and his family. The church is open during weekdays for private prayer and there are regular masses.

Much gratitude to the Salvation Army who performed minor miracles in their efforts to help me after…read moremy car was towed by the council last night in Bristol. If it hadn't been for the extreme generosity of spirit of the people at The Salvation Army in providing me with all sorts of assistance, (use of their office computer, the printing of my insurance certificate and ultimately taking me to Avonmouth to retrieve my car etc.) I would have faced the prospect of, as a female, sleeping rough in Bristol in sub-zero conditions as I could not have afforded a hotel or a taxi to North Somerset where I live. I consider myself extremely lucky to have been so well supported by people who had no obligation to assist me whatsoever. I have emailed them today to offer my voluntary support as a way of saying thank you for their kindness. Tracey, the Minister on duty at the Salvation Army Citadel, dropped me off at the pound, making a considerable trip in icy conditions, despite having a young child with her, who obviously would have preferred to go home for her tea. Matt, one of the lovely people who works in the offices at the Bristol Salvation Army HQ had previously supported all of my efforts to find out what had happened to my car, (I thought it had been stolen), by surfing the internet and making calls etc. He then printed documents that were essential in order to get my car released. I cannot say thank you enough!

This shop stocks good range of second-hand clothes for men and women at prices that are cheap even…read moreby the standards of most charity shops. I bought an as-new pair of high quality trousers for 2.50 recently. The selection of books, CDs and other items is generally much more limited, though this fluctuates. Remember to try clothes on in the changing room, as they are often incorrectly labelled!

This is the largest branch of the St Peter's Hospice charity shops in the Bristol area. Located…read morenear Debenhams and the old location of House of Fraser, it attracts a good amount of customers due to it's proximity to major shops and the amount of items it has on offer for sale every week. There is parking available in the Broadmead area, busses stop by the front doors and it's easy to get to by foot. The shop doubled in size over a year ago, and has twice as many rails and shelves of new and used items for sale in support of the 2 St Peter's Hospices. This is the busiest of the shops and well worth a look for all sorts of bargains: clothing & accessories, shoes, books, music, film, toys & games and bric-a-brac.

This is quite a bizarre shop located in Old Market, close to the Lawrence Hill roundabout/underpass…read moreon your way to Redfield. It's packed (and I mean actually full to brim, up over your head and everywhere you look, with little space to manoeuvre other than a couple of feet from the door) with vintage and modern guitar/bass cabinets, amplifiers and PA speakers. There is also a smattering of second-hand guitars, basses and stompboxes available, too, but it's the amplifiers that you'll want to check out here. Need a rare Marshall stack that was covered in limited-edition green leather, or something of that nature? This is the place to go. The ageing hippy-rocker who runs the place is a fountain of knowledge on amplifiers and cabinets, plus how to repair them if you ever run into problems, so you can be sure that every second-hand item is fully serviced and ready to rock. This shop is a Bristol gem.