Latest Brighton & Hove news in brief
CLIMBING WALL PROPOSAL TO BE DECIDED BY PLANNERS TOMORROW
Two climbing instructors hope to win planning permission to convert a vacant warehouse into a climbing and bouldering centre. James Gomez and Tom Bauer, who run Pitch 9 Climbing, should learn tomorrow (Wednesday) whether they can go ahead with their plans.
They had hoped to open at the old Metal Finishers premises on the corner of Newtown Road and Goldstone Lane in Hove. They were granted planning permission in March last year but were unable to agree the terms of a lease with the owner of the site.
Instead they have set their sights on a building on the Victoria Road Trading Estate behind Portslade Town Hall, close to the railway line. The property has been empty since Newery and Eyre, the electrical wholesaler, vacated it in January 2009.
More than 400 people have written to Brighton and Hove City Council in support of the Pitch 9 application after a social media campaign. Mr Gomez and Mr Bauer urged people on Facebook and Twitter to show their support. The British Mountaineering Council and Hove MP Mike Weatherley have also given their backing. The council’s planning committee will decide whether to approve the plans at a meeting at Hove Town Hall.
BRIGHTON PROJECT WINS £40K TO HELP LOCAL FATHERS AND CHILDREN
A project to give help and advice to fathers has been awarded a £40,000 grant to support its work over the coming two years. The grant is being given to Dads Connect, a project run by the Brighton charity called the Men’s Network.
The project is expected to work with hundreds of fathers in Brighton and Hove. It has already been providing occasional weekend activities for fathers and their children and an informal support group since 2010.
The grant from the Tudor Trust in London means that the project can be expanded. The aim is to provide a regular calendar of monthly activities and a wider range of support, help and advice for fathers in need.
Glen Poole, the strategic director of the Men’s Network, said, “We’re really pleased to have been given this great opportunity to make a difference for dads in the city. We’d like Brighton and Hove to be the most father friendly city in the world and the Dads Connect project is a big step in the right direction.”
For more information visit www.dadsconnect.org.uk or email dads@dadsconnect.org.uk
BIMM TO OFFER DEGREE COURSES FOR FUTURE SIMON COWELLS
The Brighton Institute of Modern Music (BIMM) is offering two new degree courses for the Simon Cowells of the future. The BA honours degrees in the music business and in event management are also expected to attract potential band managers, festival promoters and music industry executives.
The first intakes of students are expected in April and September next year. The courses have been devised with help from experts such as Shakedown Festival director Matt Priest. Both courses will provide students with the chance to study in a creative community of performers, songwriters and experienced music industry professionals. Students will also gain on-the-job experience.
BIMM said that the events industry in Britain has a worldwide reputation for excellence and is worth an estimated £36 billion. And BIMM principal Vaseema Hamilton said, “Students who join us at BIMM have a unique opportunity to be part of a dynamic creative environment which we have carefully crafted to become a microcosm of the modern music industry.”
