Erm, a warning has been issued after students caught a couple having sex on Bristol Downs

A class of Bristol students saw more than just wildlife this week after stumbling across a couple having sex.

First year students witnessed the incident during a university field trip to the Downs, which took place in broad daylight.  

Bristol City Council has issued a warning at the time of the ordeal, reminding people how some use the area “to do things that you might not ordinarily do.” 

The field trip was led by Anna Stevens, biodiversity engagement and learning manager for the Avon Gorge and Downs Wildlife Team. Regularly taking groups out in the area, she spotted the couple in a vehicle parked next to the pavement and next to a line of other cars.

Anna recounted her experience to the Downs committee. 

“When I was out with a group of first year university students, we had an incident where we were walking on the Circular Road, right next to the vehicles that are parked on the side. Right in between two of the big vans, we had a small car. 

“As we walked past, we realised that there were two people having sex in the car. And I obviously have 17 students with me, by the time we realise that it’s too late. They weren’t young; I could have been with 10-year-olds, but I wasn’t, thank goodness. 

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“It’s just something that people need to be aware of, if they don’t go up on the site a lot. When you have people living in a place where they feel that’s a place where it’s their home, it gives the idea that you can do things that you might not ordinarily do. They were in a public place, in broad daylight, right next to a pavement.” 

The location of the incident hasn’t been released, however Bristol City Council issued warnings about safety in the area as a result. Evidence of sites being used as organised toilet facilities and containing human waste has been highlighted, suggesting the area poses more than just an aesthetic risk.  

The Downs has been an area of contention for some time, due to the number of caravans and settlements that have appeared in the past couple of years. Residents have held protests against the area’s alleged misuse, with the issue gaining national attention. Luckily, this case seems more like content for Overheard@UoB than the BBC.