Brighton pitch and putt course to become nature reserve

A disused pitch and putt course in Brighton looks likely to be absorbed into a neighbouring nature reserve.

A proposal has been put forward to include the Rottingdean Pitch and Putt as part of the Beacon Hill Nature Reserve.

The Friends of Beacon Hill Nature Reserve submitted a proposal to Brighton and Hove City Council to set up a learning centre on the council-owned site.

The community group wants to extend the existing nature reserve and use a small kiosk building on the golf course as a hub for classes for school children, community events and refreshments.

The group also hopes that the site could become a gateway to the South Downs National Park.

The proposal is due to be discussed when the council’s Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee meets at Hove Town Hall next Tuesday (1 July).

The councillors who sit on the committee are being asked to grant a seven-year lease to the group for a peppercorn rent.

The council said: “The lease on the golf course expired in March 2012 and marketing by the council to find a viable commercial use for the site has been unsuccessful.

“There is already another pitch and putt course around a mile away at Roedean.”

A report to the committee said that the Friends of Beacon Hill have secured £25,000 of private funding to help establish the project.

The funding is subject to a minimum lease of seven years and the proposals will need further grant funding and planning permission to convert the kiosk into an educational space.

Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee chairman Councillor Pete West said: “The Friends of Beacon Hill have come up with a proposal to put the site to good use for local people and the wider community.

“It is a real community effort which will rely on local volunteers and fundraising for grants and fits really well within the newly created Brighton and Lewes Downs Biosphere.

“We are keen to get the kiosk building back into use. While it has been empty it has become a target for vandals and squatters which means we are currently paying for security on the site.”

To read the report, click here.