Gloucester docks seen from City Council's offices

I was offered a job as a presiding officer at one of the polling stations being organised by Gloucester City Council for their local elections on 2nd May. One of several preparatory tasks is the collection of the ballot boxes and mass of assorted paperwork. I then had to set up the layout of the polling station according to the official election rules. Luckily the polling station is in a large community centre where there is also another polling station with both set up side by side as mirror images. Mark, the other presiding officer is very experienced and helpful as formalities of the whole thing, and the responsibility, is quite daunting.

Before I went to set up the polling station I drove to the City Council offices to pick up the ballot boxes, voting papers and the related documents. The offices are in the converted North Warehouse on the wharf at Gloucester Docks, which was built in 1846 as one of several industrial buildings to service the important inland port built beside the River Severn, and only a couple of hundred yards from the ancient and magnificent Gloucester Cathedral.

It was raining when I arrived and it took about forty-five minutes to double check that I had picked up all the correct equipment. Once I was ready to leave it was about 6pm, and it occurred to me that I could take a picture of the docks from this unique vantage point, not available to many. I got permission from Tanya, the senior manager in charge of organising these democratic process which all councils must deliver. The 3rd floor warehouse windows were tiny and only opened a short way because of safety issues at such a height. I managed to poke my mobile out and took a few snaps of the docks.

The big boats are being repaired at the famous Tommi Neilsen boatyard which specialises in repairing old boats especially those with wooden hulls and multiple masts for large sails. I gather that the big boat in the scene, whose deck is covered by a tarpaulin, had recently arrived from the Severn Estuary to travel up the Sharpness to Gloucester canal to undergo repairs. When it neared the dock entrance the modern vertical swing bridge, which you can just see in the far distance, broke down so that it couldn’t pass through. As a result the mast had to be taken down and the deck covered over.

I really like visiting these docks and will hopefully be back soon as there is a Gloucester Tall Ships Festival assembling here between 25th and 27th May 2024.