St Aubyns
The transfer of the former St Aubyns Field, Cricket Pavilion and Chapel is a unique opportunity to retain a large public green space in the centre of the village together with two heritage buildings available for community use.
St Aubyns school helped shape the history of Rottingdean village from the 1830s until its closure in 2013.
- The transformation of the old Grade II school is well underway, with 93 new properties bringing many new residents to Rottingdean.
- The abrupt school closure prompted Rottingdean Parish Council (RPC) to partner with the City Council to put together a Development Brief to ensure a mixed high-quality development to meet local housing needs, respecting its position next to the Conservation Area.
- The strength of local feeling that the playing field should be preserved as far as possible, was evident in the support for the campaign led by SAFE (St Aubyns Field Evergreen).
- This community reaction has been recognised by planning consent including a requirement for the developer (Fairfax Properties) to offer the transfer of 3.5 acres of the former St Aubyns playing field, the cricket pavilion, war memorial and George V water fountain as well as the former St Aubyns Chapel for community use under the stewardship of RPC.
- Before deciding to accept the offer RPC reviewed some of the potential opportunities for community use of the field and buildings, the expected future liabilities such as maintenance costs and considered options for governance and management of the assets on behalf of the community.
- A lump sum maintenance grant of £350000 will be provided on completion which is expected to last between 10 and 15 years based on estimated running costs.
- Therefore ongoing fundraising and/or income generation will be important where possible to extend the grant beyond this timeframe.
- There will also be an Artistic contribution of £54000 for investment in appropriate community art in or around the development.
- Rottingdean Parish Council (RPC) consider this transfer to be a unique opportunity to retain a large public green space in the centre of the village together with two heritage buildings available for community use. RPC accepted this offer in February subject to contract.
- Fairfax will refurbish the Chapel and Pavilion before transfer in autumn 2023 when the development is complete.
- See more details here on the Chapel, Pavilion and Field.
RPC wish to further explore the opportunities to maximize the community use of these assets after transfer. We would welcome your suggestions. Tell us what you think by completing the form below:
Future Lighting of the Twitten
A recent site visit was undertaken by Rottingdean Parish Council and relevant experts to assess the potential to install lighting on the Twitten in parallel with the St Aubyns development completion.
• The Twitten will become an essential pedestrian link for Rottingdean residents including the new residents of the St Aubyns development. Increased pedestrian traffic will use the improved network of paths around the Twitten to particularly access the main bus routes, the High Street, Newlands Rd, Steyning Rd, the seafront, the new open space, the churches and the two primary schools.
• The Twitten will be bordered by high walls on both sides of the southern half of the Twitten and a high wall and high hedge on the northern half. There will be three main entrances into the new field side of the development and two entrances coming from the High Street side of the development.
• The Twitten will be used during dark mornings and evenings as well as daylight but has not had any lighting along its length in the past. Within the new development there is no specific lighting plan for the Twitten but there will be some light overspill from the new houses and some limited street lighting on the development adjacent to the Twitten. There is no lighting planned around the main entrances to the field side of the development at the moment.
• The Parish Council, Ward Councillor Fishleigh and local residents see the future importance of the Twitten for pedestrian traffic and are keen that it will have adequate lighting.
During a recent site visit organized by RPC the following was suggested:
• Providing lighting to the Twitten is complex. Physical placement of power supply and lights is difficult and potentially costly given the narrow area of the footpath.
• The impact of any lighting plan needs to consider not only the light to the path itself but also the overspill onto neighbouring houses, and the impact on the wildlife.
• The Parish Council will request BHCC for a lighting design assessment to consider the options for lighting that will ensure a safe pedestrian route while taking into account the impact on adjoining houses and the environment.
• Relevant BHCC departments will be approached to raise awareness of the issue and gain support for a solution.
The Parish Council vote to accept the transfer of St Aubyns Field, Chapel, Pavillion, War Memorial and Water Fountain
Rottingdean Parish Council are delighted to announce that at their meeting on the 7th of February 2022 they agreed, subject to contract, to accept the transfer of the following land and buildings located on the old St Aubyns school site in the centre of Rottingdean: a three and half acre green space (the former playing field), the former cricket pavilion, the war memorial and the former school chapel. This will bring these important heritage assets in to public ownership for the future use of the community.
This decision by the Parish Council follows some weeks of intensive work to ensure that the financial liability of accepting the transfer was understood, that the land and building being transferred could be bought into community use and that governance arrangements could be put into place to manage these assets and raise funds to cover future costs once the one off maintenance payment of £350,000 from the developer is exhausted.
Work can now start on the contract and transfer deed, between the Parish council and Fairfax properties the company developing the site, which will include details of the restoration and repair work to be carried to the field, sports pavilion and chapel prior to transfer.
Once we are happy with the legal agreement we can start to share ideas coming forward from community organisations as to how these assets could be developed to benefit the village. The transfer is expected to take place in September 2023 when building work on the site is complete.
Temporary Closure of the Twitten. the Twitten will be closed from 7 February for 6 to 8 weeks to enable repair of the flint wall, the cutting of new openings from the campus site to the Field site and some resurfacing
December update
• In accordance with the planning approval granted in 2019 permitting development on the southern 1.1 hectares of the St Aubyn’s playing field, the developers (Fairfax Properties) are obligated under an agreement ( section 106) to provide financial support for local infrastructure including education and transport. These funds will be paid to BHCC who will then allocate them.
• The section 106 agreement also provides that the cricket pavilion, war memorial and historic water fountain situated there, as well as the St Aubyn’s school chapel, should be offered to the Parish Council for community use before the development reaches 50% occupancy. The Section 106 agreement includes a covenant that the Field shall only be used as public open space for formal or informal recreation and restricts the use of the chapel to defined community purposes
• Fairfax Properties made the transfer offer to the Parish Council on December 2nd . The Parish Council have 12 weeks to decide whether to accept or not. The transfer is expected in September 2023 when the development is complete.
• The Parish Councl is currently assessing the use and benefits to the community of accepting the offer, the future financial liability and future managment arrangements.
• A lump sum maintenance grant will be provided by Fairfax Properties as a contribution to future maintenance of the assets should the Parish Council accept the offer.
• If the Parish Council decide not to accept the transfer, Fairfax Properties must transfer the Field, cricket pavilion, war memorial and historic water fountain, as well as the St Aubyns school chapel to a management company of their choice before reaching 85% occupancy of the development.
• A final decision is expected by the February Parish Council meeting.
• Should the Parish Council accept the transfer offer, Rottingdean residents will be consulted about future use of the Field, Chapel and Pavilion before transfer is due in September 2023.
St Aubyns Field: Offer of Transfer to the Parish Council . The Parish Council have now received a formal offer of the transfer of St Aubyns Field and the Chapel, Pavilion, Water Fountain and Memorial from Fairfax Properties, in accordance with the section 106 agreement. The Parish Council have 12 weeks in which to respond. It is envisaged that the transfer will occur in the Summer of 2023. The offer will be discussed at the Parish Council meeting on Monday 6 December.
The Conservation Managment Plans (CMP) that set out the repairs required to restore the old Chapel and Pavilion and future maintenance requirements are now available. See here Chapel CMP. Pavilion CMP. These documents, agreed between the developers and Brighton and Hove City Council, will support and inform consideration of how these buildings will be used in the future.
Planning Brief
St Aubyns Planning Brief passed 15th January 2015
Air Quality Management
Councillors asked to extend Rottingdean Air Quality monitoring
Councillors are being asked to extend a trial scheme aimed at improving air quality in Rottingdean next week.
In partnership with Rottingdean Parish Council changes were made to the road layout in the High Street in October 2019, including a ban on right turns out of West Street, a planter north of Park Road to encourage free flowing traffic northbound and a no stopping (yellow hatched) box in the narrowest part of the lower High Street.
While the first 18 months of the trial have showed some positive results, travel restrictions as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic since March 2020 have significantly impacted how the data can be compared to previous years.
Therefore, recommendations will be put to members of the Environment, Transport and Sustainability (ETS) committee on Tuesday 16 March, that would further the trial for another 18 months. The ban on right turns out of West Street will be made permanent though having received no objections.
Data from the first 18 months of the trial scheme
Information from the air quality monitors set up in Rottingdean High Street and Rottingdean A259 in October 2019 has shown that:
• The first quarter of 2020 (before many travel restrictions were imposed) showed a significant drop in Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) levels
• Monitoring indicates outdoor NO2 levels did not exceed UK standards in 2020
• Relatively high roadside NO2 in July & August is likely to have been influenced by the end of travel restrictions and the release of pent up demand for vehicle journeys and local traffic with increased visitor numbers during established warm weather, without rain, strong winds and fresh air flow.
Analysis of the data needs to take into account the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on traffic movement.
Further information can be found in the report
Next steps
Members of the ETS committee will be asked to extend the trial for another 18 months. It is also hoped that access to real time data will be made publicly available online during the extended trial period of the scheme. Signing and lining will also be enhanced on the High Street and a left turn ban out of Park Road will be considered to address local safety concerns.
Councillor Sue John, Chair of Rottingdean Parish Council said: “Extending the trial is a sensible move and will allow us to better compare the data.
“Air pollution in the High Street has been a concern for many years, but it’s important any long-term decisions are made with the best information available so that we can improve the health and wellbeing of our residents and visitors.”
Chair of the ETS committee Amy Heley said: “It’s encouraging to see that some of the data shows improvements to air quality in Rottingdean, but it’s clear we need more information.
“Reducing toxic emissions and improving air quality are two of our biggest priorities and we’re working hard on expanding our current Ultra Low Emission Zones and exploring a Liveable City Centre.
“The city’s Climate Assembly made it clear that we need to engage with neighbourhoods and communities when looking at the future of transport in Brighton & Hove and Rottingdean is a good example of how we’re doing that.
enquiries@rottingdean-pc.gov.uk