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Category: Guest Blogger

Growing in a changing climate: an Eastbourne Food Summit presentation

Guest blog by Robert McGowan from the Eastbourne Eco Action Network CIC, based on his presentation at the Eastbourne Food Summit in October 2024:

We at Eastbourne Eco Action Network are helping the town become carbon neutral by 2030, which means working with communities, businesses and the local councils on the many environmental challenges we face. One of the things we can do is bring people together and give people the chance to tell their stories and discuss openly the most effective ways to take action.

Two years ago, we organised the Sustainable Business & Solar Summit next door at the Welcome Building – and one of the key questions we wanted to ask was: we live in officially the sunniest town in the UK – so why is there so little solar energy generation? Particularly on the large flat roofs of the industrial and retail units – and the enormous car parks that surround them.

Last year we convened the Sustainable Transport & Active Travel Summit at the Welcome Building, which also brought together lots of experts and brilliant people. The leading question I wanted to ask was why Eastbourne is practically the only seaside town in the country without a safe, traffic-free way of riding a bicycle or scooter along the seafront. I’m not sure if we have the answer to that – but at least we publicly asked the question! Fast forward to this year – and the theme of the conference is sustainable food production and distribution in the local area – brilliantly organised by the Eastbourne Food Partnership. I’m not sure if they have a key question to frame the theme this year – but can I suggest one: how is it that the sunniest town in the UK can also seem to be one of the wettest?

Illustrated map of the Eastbourne area

Helen Cann, 2024

And it’s the impact of a changing climate on local food production – growing – that I’m going to talk about today. We’re currently working on a project with Blue Heart, which is looking at innovative ways to predict and mitigate the impact of flooding in Eastbourne and southern Wealden for the benefit of local people, businesses and the environment.

Learning about the real experiences of growing is the heart of our project – as such we have developed a survey that’ll go out to everyone involved in the Eastbourne Food Partnership in the next few days.

So the theme is change. But perhaps I should start with something that hasn’t changed very much at all: the rock and soil that lies beneath us. This is one of William Smith’s famous – and beautiful – geological maps of Sussex, from 1819. It shows the green of the chalk South Downs that of
course meets the sea at Beachy Head. The light blue is Wealden clay, and the greyish bit in the middle is Hastings Greensand – which is often more substantial than the word sand suggests and forms the blocks from which St Mary’s Church in Old Town is made.

Geological map of Sussex

William Smith, 1819. The Geological Society.

The open, treeless downland was created thousands of years ago by Neolithic farmers, who built imposing, fortified villages on hilltops. Much of the East Sussex downs continued to be farmed and grazed through the Iron age and Roman times. The great forests of the Weald were sometimes cleared for hunting estates in the Saxon period that would have included livestock and crops. The Sussex iron industry was built on the iron-bearing clays and sandstones that were scorched in blast furnaces fuelled by charcoal made from the surrounding woodland.

 A Delineation of the Strata of England and Wales and Part of Scotland

William Smith, 1815. The Geological Society.

And of course, the different underlying rocks and clays and their varying character and chemical composition had implications for what could be grown where – and the growing community here will be far more knowledgeable about that than I am. But, as George Monbiot points out in his brilliant book Regenesis, much about soil does remain mysterious:

“Soil is this thin cushion between rock and air on which the entirety of human society and civilization is built. 99% of our calories come from it. It’s an extraordinarily complex ecosystem.

It’s more than that – it’s a biological structure, like a coral reef. It’s built by the organisms that inhabit it. If it weren’t for those organisms, there would be no soil. But it’s also got properties, unlike any other ecosystem or biological structure that we know.

In fact, there’s quite a heated debate among some soil scientists as to what soil even is. It’s got some characteristics which make it seem almost like a super organism, in that they get these extra-ordinary synchronized events taking place right across the soil. It is incredible that this system upon which we totally depend is almost unknown to us.”

Eastbourne remained an area of small rural settlements until the 19th century. Four hamlets occupied the site of the modern town. By the middle of the 1800s most of the area had fallen into the hands of two landowning families: the Gilberts (who had inherited land from the Gildredge family) and the Cavendish family. William Cavendish, the Duke of Devonshire, hired Henry Currey in 1859 to prepare plans for an entirely new resort town – and the rest is history.

Perhaps slightly less well known, is the story of Mary Ann Gilbert. Born in Lewes in 1776, she had a relatively poor childhood after her father died. In 1814 she inherited swathes of land and property in Sussex from her uncle. She was married to Davies Giddy, who took on the Gilbert name: they lived at Gildredge Manor and had eight children together.

Mary Ann Gilbert

Ozias Humphrey, 1796

Shocked by the extent of hardship and poverty in Sussex in the 1820s, which led to the Swing Riots, Mary Ann set up a scheme to cultivate land at Whitbread Hollow, beyond Meads and on the way to Beachy Head, which is now a sports field belonging to Bede’s School. She hired 27 labourers to shift fertile clays from nearby marshland and transport it to the allotment site – and remove flints and pebbles. They managed to produce a healthy crop of potatoes.

By 1832 Mary Ann had nearly 200 people renting allotments, growing mangelwurzels, turnips and potatoes and the occasional pig. She kept detailed reports and calculations and encouraged good practice such as using seaweed as fertilizer and introducing water butts. The number of allotment holders had doubled to over 400 by 1844. She also founded agricultural schools at Willingdon and East Dean that were staffed by teachers from the local workhouse.

Mary Ann Gilbert’s experiment reduced poverty in Sussex by almost half. It was an agricultural revolution that was the foundation of the allotments we see across the country. I think you’ll agree, it’s a really inspiring story of a local woman and one I didn’t know until very recently – I must thank Sally Lee from Rooted Community Food for enlightening me – it’s a shame she can’t be here today.

Mary Ann Gilbert died in 1845, but her legacy is still felt. Eastbourne Allotments & Garden Society, has overseen the town’s 14 allotment sites for many years. The society currently rent out over 1,200 plots, all of which are in high demand, with hundreds of people on a three-year waiting list for a plot.

Whitbread Hollow

Robert McGowan, 2017

Could it be that allotments are actually becoming fashionable? I’m beginning to think so. And why not? We seem to be in an age of anxiety – be it technology overload or concerns about pollution or the reliability of exports and imports from neighbouring countries. And this seems to be a time when lots of people want high quality, healthy, affordable local fruit and veg – plus social contact with like-minded people, exercise and a general warm glow and sense of wellbeing. That’s certainly what I’ve picked up from my visits to the Gather and Rooted community gardens. They’ve kindly agreed to fill in our survey about growing in a changing climate – and hopefully many of the other local growers will too.

Gather Community Garden

Robert McGowan, 2024

We will analyse the results and report back in a few weeks’ time. Perhaps not surprisingly, given the very wet weather over the last couple of years – rainfall around 30% above average this year – and the fact that many allotments and gardens are located on the floodplain – the feedback so far has centred on designing ways of improving drainage on plots. French drains and wicking beds have been mentioned, along with more water butts and ponds.

In recent weeks we’ve been talking about fundraising for a community cargo bike that can help with deliveries to community fridges, food banks and retailers. We might be better off with a community cargo boat!

Rooted Community Food

Robert McGowan, 2004

 

A video of Robert McGowan’s presentation at the Eastbourne Food Summit is available here:

https://youtu.be/XuAlNry3k-w?si=Zgl4k51JTGrDRXcg

New Bus User Group for South Wealden and Eastbourne

Guest Blog by David Everson

The importance of bus services in and around Eastbourne was a major topic at the initial meeting of the Eastbourne Area Bus Users Group (EABUG). This event took place in Eastbourne Town Hall on 16th October 2024. The group is an initiative of the Eastbourne Eco Action Network (EEAN). It aims to provide an interface between bus users, bus companies and local authorities. EABUG plans to meet three times a year.

Prominent among those present were representatives of local bus companies, Stagecoach, Brighton & Hove and Cuckmere buses. Also present were representatives of local disability groups, local and county councillors plus members of the public.

Jill Shacklock and David Everson (EEAN) both highlighted the need for good bus services. This was for those who could not drive or afford to drive, school children, those with disabilities or the elderly. They also emphasised the need to develop good sustainable transport systems.

East Sussex CC

A member of the East Sussex  Bus Team, Donnalyn Morris, gave an update on a variety of infrastructure projects that had been taking place in Eastbourne and Friston. Work on the Hailsham Mobility Hub was yet to start, with discussions currently taking place with Tesco about the project. The consultation about the proposed Bus Priority measures along Seaside and St Anthony’s in Eastbourne had now completed and a decision would be made in November.

Stagecoach

Matthew Arnold, Commercial Director, Stagecoach South East expressed concern over the detrimental effect that congestion had on bus punctuality and highlighted problems in Eastbourne. He described  these as the worst in the south east. He stated that car traffic was up 15% on pre Covid levels whilst bus passenger numbers had only risen to 94% of pre-Covid usage.

In addition, he also stated that buses were hindered by lack of co-ordination in the planning of roadworks. There needed to be more advance information sharing between ESCC and utility companies.

Brighton & Hove

Ben Garcia, from Brighton and Hove Buses, informed the meeting of recent improvements to their bus services. They are now a UK lead when it comes to inclusivity on their buses. They have dementia friendly seating and their drivers are trained to be ‘Dementia Friends’. All their buses are ‘talking buses’.

Cuckmere

Nick Price from Cuckmere Buses informed the meeting that their operation of eight, 16 seater buses were all driven by volunteers and that their new timetables would be published soon.

The main body of the meeting involved presentations, discussions and workshops about ‘Accessible Information’ on buses. New legislation requires most buses to provide information to passengers about the bus number and route and next stop information. Importantly the information must be given both visually and aurally. The new legislation came into force on 1st October 2024 for buses registered after October 2019. Older buses that need to be retrofitted with display boards and sound systems must be accessible by October 2026.

Using Apps

During the meeting there was a short presentation on how to use both Stagecoach and Brighton & Hove Bus Apps. QR codes were also highlighted as a quick means of accessing information at bus stops. A limiting factor for both of these sources of information is the necessity to have a Smart phone to access it.

Next Meeting

The next meeting of EABUG is planned for February 2025.

For further details please visit – Eastbourne ECO Action Network.

https://ecoactioneb.co.uk/about/eastbourne-area-bus-user-group

Email : bususereastbourne@gmail.com

David Everson

(Chair EEAN Transport Group)

Making business a force for good

At our recent Carbon Neutrality Symposium held at Eastbourne Town hall on 20th April, our keynote speaker, Richard Garland, a prominent local business owner, gave an inspirational talk about how local businesses can make a very significant contribution towards Eastbourne becoming a truly Carbon Neutral town by 2030. Below is an abridged version of his speech:

 Good afternoon, everyone. I am Richard Garland, and amongst other things I am co-founder of Gradient Consultants. We are chartered surveyors, project managers and compliance consultants, based here in town since 2004. Some of our projects you may be familiar with include the Fishing Quay development on Sovereign Harbour, Costa Drive-thru on Hampden Retail Park and the affordable rental flats in Southfields Road. In 2020 we certified as a B-Corp, the first independent company in Eastbourne and one of the first UK built environment professional firms to do so. B-Corp is a global movement transforming the economy to benefit ALL – people, communities and the planet. We still have to make a profit but the way we go about it isn’t about making profit at any cost – everyone has to benefit along the way. 

Our purpose is our commitment to making a positive impact on the world. As a certified B-Corp, our values are deeply rooted in sustainability, social responsibility, and ethical business practices. We believe what we do in the next 7 years leading up to 2030 really matters and now is the time to act, with our industry being responsible for over 40% of the UK’s carbon emissions. We consider ourselves carbon neutral through our support of Ecologi. Ecologi®  have achieved the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and have been our offsetting partner for a number of years. We currently offset the business and personal emissions for all our people . We support tree planting and ecological schemes across the world. In the last 3 years we have offset 138 tonnes of carbon, planting over 2000 trees, and supported global sustainable projects. Our goal is to retain this off- setting, regardless of emissions reduction , but bring it closer to home, which we have already started to do by supporting planting on the Eastbourne escarpment. But we want to go further…

In 2022 we decided to set our ambitions on Net-Zero by 2030. We recognised that at some point in the not too distant future Net Zero will be the new carbon neutrality, so we wanted to be ahead of that journey. We started looking at data collection. I cannot begin to tell you how many articles on how to measure, what to measure, and when to measure from, we read – and at one point we got analysis paralysis – just stuck! And it took a friend to simply say stop thinking and just do something, anything – even if it is simply to walk to work and then make that your first action! This was a bit of a light bulb moment and as long as we could evidence a robust source of data it was worth doing something positive, rather than worrying over the how! We looked and celebrated what we were already doing, which included recycling pretty much everything, making sure our unwanted IT equipment and furniture goes into the circular economy, and pushing our clients to install bee bricks, swift boxes and fruit trees onto their development sites. 

Calculating our Scope 1 and 2 emissions was relatively straightforward for us as a professional services business so I won’t dwell too much on it- the biggest change is the utility companies will help you with this so it is much easier to deal with. In conjunction with our landlord we now have an office that has solar panels, LED lighting, infra-red heating panels, additional roof insulation and film on the windows to reduce solar gain. As for the dreaded Scope 3 emissions, for a firm such as ours this is where the majority of our emissions lurk and a challenging area for organisations in terms of data collection and carbon reduction initiatives. From travel to water to the things we buy, the list was long but eventually we agreed a more manageable list of priority measures, assisted by Small99. Our Pathway to Net Zero covers short and longer term planned activities to reduce our business ‘and personal’ GHG emissions, as well as push for a greater reduction in the emissions of the projects and services we advise on and can influence. At the last count there were 50 + ideas and actions. The priority ones get a champion, an estimated date for achievement and the emission saving impact. As a result we now use local suppliers as a priority. Local sourcing helps us reduce our carbon footprint and supports our community and local economy. We specify nature based materials, including hemp, lime and we now specify Graphenstone paint for all our projects. This paint absorbs CO2, removes pollutants to purify the air and as a mineral based paint it contains no microplastics. We hold our business event at venues close to a train station to encourage guests to make sustainable travel choices.

And we waved goodbye to our computer server in October last year, which was no longer needed since moving to the cloud as one of our reduction actions. The server had been running continuously for 6 years and by retiring the server we are saving 118 kgCO2e per year. The biggest impact on the list we are currently addressing is banking and pensions. Moving these financial instruments has the potential to have the greatest impact of all – a sustainable pension is 21 times more powerful than giving up flying, becoming vegetarian and switching to renewable energy.  Our goal is to make a 10% CO2e reduction year on year from 2024 to 2030. This will have reduced our overall emissions by 70% by 2030. With the Scope 1 and 2 emissions reduction prior to 2023 we believe we can achieve the necessary reduction in emissions to at least try and hit Net Zero by 2030.

So why do this, what and who benefits? B-Corp gave us ‘a legal high, we started to see ourselves as activists and ethical leaders. For us it is a climate justice choice . As a business we are de-risking the need to meet current and future compliance requirements within our industry , and we are acknowledging the opportunities of the low carbon transition – the green economy. For example, retrofitting the UK’s existing building stocks, measuring the Whole Life Carbon costs on construction projects, and the impact of Net Zero building standards, are all opportunities for sustainable growth and meeting future Department for Energy Security and Net Zero targets. Clients need us to have taken action because their funders (banks, pension funds, government) will be demanding it of them. We are influencing our supply chain to take action before they require it of us and we are offering to assist them with that change – openness, sharing ideas and transparency will make the journey go quicker! And to close, my advice to anyone at the beginning or on this journey is: do not over-strategise and get stuck in the data. Imagine if we did nothing and just talked about it? Look at what you have done so far, celebrate it and then take another step on your journey – be a force for good whatever you do!

We are grateful to Richard for kindly making available a full transcript of his speech, as well as the slideshow to accompany it.

An Eastbourne summer buzzing with hope: a personal perspective

The CEO of the Eastbourne Eco Action Network CIC, Andrew Durling, presents here his personal take on the local eco events of this eventful summer:

This summer has seen some dramatic developments in the Eastbourne Carbon Neutral 2030 campaign. The Eastbourne Eco Action Network CIC collaborated with its partners in the Eastbourne Climate Coalition and with Eastbourne Borough Council to put on a 3-day programme of community-led events in the E-Hive marquee in Princes Park during the first ever E-Festival that ran from July 29th to 31st.

This E-Hive was, in effect, a pop-up Climate Emergency Centre, and hopefully it will be a regular feature of the E-Festival in years to come, as well as contributing towards the establishment of a permanent home for such a centre somewhere in central Eastbourne. I pay tribute to the enormous effort put in by a fantastic group of local volunteers to organise and deliver such a varied programme that certainly created a buzz of excitement. Special thanks go to the High Sheriff of East Sussex, Jane King, for kindly officiating at the formal opening of the E-Hive. The feedback I received about the E-Hive indicated that it was a great success and that it drew in many local people to engage with a wide range of perspectives on the big environmental issues of our time.

 

A particular highlight of the E-Hive programme for me was the talk by Ben Cross of the British Flowers Rock campaign about the need to grow flowers locally and sustainably for the floristry industry rather than incurring the huge carbon footprint from importing flowers by air from far-flung parts of the world.

Ben Cross of Crosslands Flower Nursery with his crop of British alstroemeria in Sussex Thursday Nov. 04 2021. Picture by Christopher Pledger

Another highlight for me was listening to marine biologist Gonzalo Alvarez from the United Nations Climate and Oceans team, who gave a very detailed and sobering presentation about the current state of climate science research and the climate negotiations based on it. He also talked about the newly established United Nations Ecosystem Restoration and #GenerationRestoration campaign and explained how we can all be part of it.

But the greatest spectacle for me was seeing so many local people participating in, and watching, the Eco Fashion Show put on by Eco Fashion Eastbourne, a real testament to how  clothes and fabrics that are recycled/upcycled/repurposed can be very beautiful and how necessary sustainable fashion is given the huge carbon and water footprint of the fashion industry worldwide.

 

Earlier in July I had gone to Westminster to represent the Eastbourne Food Partnership (which my colleagues and I in the Eastbourne Eco Action Network work closely with) at a Sustainable Food Places Day of Action and Celebration at Parliament (a recording of some of the day is here). It was a wonderful chance to meet up with representatives from many other local food partnerships around the UK and share learnings and inspiration.

SFP Day of Celebration and Action

It was also a chance for me to meet up with Caroline Ansell, MP for Eastbourne, to discuss in depth some of the local food issues that impact the town and to explore how important it is to create a local food system that is sustainable and resilient enough to ensure food security for all local residents and which can withstand the many damaging impacts of climate change.

SFP Day of Celebration and Action

The Eastbourne Food Partnership is now recruiting for a part-time co-ordinator to scale up its work in developing this urgently needed local food system.

 

Now the work of the Eastbourne Eco Action Network CIC is currently focussed on collaborating with Eastbourne Borough Council to deliver a Solar and Sustainable Business Summit in October at the Welcome Building.

This gathering is intended to help kickstart a drive to massively scale up the installation of solar and other forms of renewable energy, as well as energy efficiency measures, in Eastbourne, particularly for local businesses, many of which are very exposed to the rising costs of energy, driven mainly by the massive rise in gas prices due primarily to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Eastbourne – one of the sunniest places in the UK – has an especially huge potential for more solar energy installations as there is so much roof space available on large warehouses, retail units, etc, as well as so many large car parks. A particular piece of good news is that Eastbourne DGH has recently submitted plans for a large solar car park on its premises, together with charging points for EVs. This would provide much needed renewable energy for the hospital and help stop the DGH from any longer being the biggest single point source of CO2 in the town.

 

Winter may be coming, and it may be hard for all of us in many ways, but this summer has given me some hope that the transition to a zero carbon society may be unstoppable, locally as well as globally, and that we’ll all be the better for it, especially if we can move away as quickly as possible from the increasingly expensive fossil fuels we have been overdependent on for far too long.

 

Will Eastbourne get a share of a £3bn bus fund?

We all know that East Sussex County Council hold the future of the Eastbourne bus service in their hands.

We all know that East Sussex County Council hold the future of the Eastbourne bus service in their hands.

A new report indicates that bus usage in the United Kingdom has decreased over the past decade as more people take journeys in their cars. The Annual Bus Statistics Report shows that over half a billion less bus journeys were made per year between 2010 and 2020, a fall of some 11.8 per cent compared to previous decades.

The decline in bus passengers across the country, particularly in England, has caused significant concern among local authorities. In March 2021, the Government announced Bus Back Better, a £3bn fund to help Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) make English bus services more appealing to people who live outside of London.

In June 2021, East Sussex County Council, which is the LTA for Eastbourne, declared the Council would pursue an Enhanced Bus Partnership in partnership with Stagecoach. The Council and Stagecoach must submit a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) to the Government, who will then choose whether or not to reward the funding to Eastbourne.

Why does Eastbourne need a Bus Service Improvement Plan?

Investing in a better bus service could reduce the rush hour traffic on key Eastbourne routes, such as Lottbridge Drove

One of the Bus Back Better scheme’s aims is to move England towards net zero carbon emissions by 2050. By stimulating the greater use of buses, the hope is that there will be fewer private car journeys. As a result, traffic congestion will decrease, which in turn will cut down the release of harmful greenhouse gases into the earth’s atmosphere.

The next deadline for all LTAs to submit their proposals is the end of October 2021.  East Sussex County Council are required to publish their Bus Service Improvement Plan, which is highly anticipated by many Eastbourne residents.

A large part of the £3bn funding is dedicated to buying zero emission buses. However, East Sussex County Council will only receive funding if their bid is approved. The Government is clear that the funding will be allocated on the basis of the ’overall quality of the BSIP’. If East Sussex County Council submit a poor plan, Eastbourne could receive less funding than expected.

If the bid is successful, what can Eastbourne residents expect to see?

A better bus service is in reach…but only if East Sussex County Council can win over the Government

Because the government funding is spread thin across England, it is likely that local bus services will only receive enough money to make a few minor changes. As for spending the money, East Sussex County Council have several possible options. These “leveling up” plans could include the following:

  • More frequent buses.
  • Bus priority measure to speed up buses (e.g. limiting some road side parking).
  • Lower fares.
  • More comprehensive coverage by bus services.
  • Sections of bus lanes on roads.

What do Eastbourne residents want from a modern bus service?

A fleet of Stagecoach buses waiting for someone to invest in their wheels

Between August and September, the Eastbourne Eco Action Network CIC created a survey to find out what Eastbourne actually wanted from a modern bus service. Almost 300 people responded and their thoughts were inspiring.  The EEAN’s Bus Survey Report is now available to view. We recommend it highly.

David Everson

EEAN Transport Group

Allotments: Eastbourne’s Secret History

To most holidaymakers, Eastbourne is best known as the Sunshine Coast, a seaside resort where grand Victorian hotels and stout Napoleonic forts keep watch over busy shingle beaches. That’s what the tourists come to see, of course. Eastbourne has a secret; the town is home to a thriving culture of allotments dating back to the 19th century.

There are over fourteen separate allotment sites in Eastbourne

How one woman changed Eastbourne forever

In the early 1800s, poverty and hunger were endemic in Sussex. Many parishes dismissed the struggling poor as witless. However, one landowner disagreed. Mary Ann Gilbert was born into a wealthy landowning family in 1776. Despite her comfortable upbringing, Gilbert was an outspoken social reformer who created projects to help the working classes grow their own food instead of depending on relief. 

In 1830, Gilbert began redeveloping land on Beachy Head, hiring 27 paupers to remove waste and cultivate the soil. By 1835, Gilbert’s project had 235 allotment tenants, with over 400 allotment holders by 1844. Gilbert’s experiment reduced poverty in Sussex by almost half. It was an agricultural revolution that laid the groundwork for modern allotment management as we know it today.

Why are Eastbourne’s allotments so popular?

Gilbert died in 1845, but her legacy is still felt all over the town. Eastbourne Allotments & Garden Society, a non-profit organisation, has looked after the town’s fourteen allotment sites for many years. The society currently rent out over 1,200 plots, all of which are in high demand; presently, there are 500 people on a three-year waiting list for a plot.

A beautiful and green sight!
Audio Interview with Louise Elms, allotments manager
Louise Elms, allotments manager, speaks to Aaron Loose about her everyday experience running the Eastbourne allotments group. Listen to her thoughts here.

Sue Dixon, Co-Chair for the Eastbourne Green Party, says the allotments are popular because the routine makes people feel more connected to others. She explains “allotments contribute hugely to wellbeing in terms of exercise and being outdoors of course, but also relaxation and a break from the pressures of the modern world. Everyone speaks of the sense of community.”

Almost everyone on the allotments mentions a profound sense of community. Louise Elms, the allotment manager, says “one of the best things about allotments we get people from all walks of life” The society estimates their diverse membership includes over twenty different nationalities. Many tenants belong to the town’s thriving Portuguese community, and several Syrian refugees also rent out plots.

Elms speaks warmly about how the allotments became a haven for many people during 2020’s gruelling series of COVID-19 lockdowns. “It was amazing for people”, she tells me over the phone. “So many people have told us that the allotments were a lifesaver, because it was the only place they could go and speak to people. It’s great for people, physically and mentally.”

Are Allotments a form of Self-Care?

One notable example of a genuine allotment community is Gather Community Garden, a diverse group of amateur gardeners and seasoned planters who meet weekly at the Churchdale road allotment to chat. Dave Roberts, who serves as Gather’s spokesperson, views their work as a ministry of wellbeing. Gather grew from a church, but their outlook is diverse and inclusive. “It was quite important for us to create the social space that wasn’t totally utilitarian,” Roberts says. “People can join the network, relax, and even take a few potatoes. If people are coming from real anxiety of loneliness, then small group interactions are often the best way to find their way back.” 

The Gather Community Garden overs five plots and is often visited by officers working in the nearby police station

For many, the thought of looking after an allotment feels daunting. It is a big responsibility, but the workload is manageable. According to Elms, the average renter can expect to spend between 5 and 12 hours a week working a basic plot, although their workload may depend on what produce they grow. “If you’re growing a lot of fruits,” Elms says, “you probably require less time than if you’re doing vegetables.  And it’s not just vegetables you can have. You can have chickens and rabbits and bees.”

Allotments are a central pillar of Eastbourne’s rich history, as iconic as the Bandstand and Beachy Head. Working on an allotment is an opportunity to enrich not only nature, but one’s own wellbeing. If you want to know why that’s such a big deal, listen to Dave. “There’s a verse in Jeremiah”, he remarks, “where it says seek the prosperity as a place where you live. Plant gardens. Do good stuff.”

Aaron Loose

Are we Solving Eastbourne’s Transport Crisis?

Derrick Coffee writes to the Eastbourne Herald and explains the dangers of ignoring Eastbourne’s transport crisis

Derrick Coffee, County Officer for Transport Futures East Sussex, has written an open letter to Eastbourne Herald, explaining the dangers of ignoring Eastbourne’s developing transport crisis – and what we can do to fix it.

Dear Editor,

Lots of transport issues and some opportunities are discussed in your edition of 20th August. These topics included the Bus Service Improvement Plan, five proposed cycle routes, ‘paid for parking’, and £250,000 funding for ‘traffic signal controlled junctions’.

With the transport sector being the largest emitter of carbon in the UK, and the international Climate Change ‘Conference of the Parties’ (COP26) only weeks away, all of the topics mentioned should have a part to play in securing measures to bring UK carbon emissions down. If successful, the biggest winners will be all children – and babies born after any successful commitments coming out of the COP26 gathering: but, we’ll all be winners!

Planning for Better Buses

A young Black woman sits in a bus, wearing a mask.

First, the buses. The Government’s own advisers warn against the simple notion that swapping petrol and diesel for electric vehicles is the answer. Congestion, casualties, sprawling ‘land hungry’ car based developments, ugly streets, habitat destruction and unhealthy inactive lifestyles would continue. Eastbourne and Wealden councils should collaborate on creating more forward-thinking solutions.

If successful, the biggest winners will be all children

Competition between richer nations for precious resources in vehicle and battery manufacture will cause conflict and environmental degradation. The  answers have to include shared transport, active travel and efficient and well designed urban development. (Current developments don’t have those characteristics!).

Shared transport means buses, trains and car clubs. The BSIP should include a whole range of incentives to increase bus usage including expanded services and new routes. Above all, the buses need priority measures such as bus lanes to speed up services and beat congestion. These already remove thousands of cars daily from the A259 through Peacehaven.

Transport Futures: Safe Cycle Routes

Cycling routes offer a solution to transport problems, but only if the routes are kept safe.

Cycle routes – yes please. But these must be measured against their ability to allow children to cycle to school and for the rest of us to access our daily needs. The 5 routes will help but more routes are needed with default 20mph limits in residential areas and on some sections of main roads.

However, without speed restrictions, parents will not allow their children to cycle. Frequent poor and threatening driving styles depress levels of cycling and walking, and must be eliminated. Acoustic cameras should be installed to remove aggressive and illegally loud vehicles. Furthermore, walking routes are also crucial and flared junctions should be narrowed, roundabouts redesigned to reduce entry/exit speeds, and pedestrian/cycle priority across junctions in residential areas should be adopted town wide. 

The Real Cost of Free Parking in the Transport Debate

Free parking may seem like a great idea, but the policy can cause increased pollution and congestion.

Parking? Too much cheap or free parking causes congestion and makes all other more sustainable forms of transport unpleasant or inefficient. Politicians love to promise freedom to park anywhere for free but they all know it will lead to gridlock. It’s not a very inefficient use of the precious resource: land. No-one wants more traffic. The £250,000 for ‘signal controlled junctions’ could be used to speed up the buses and to give pedestrians and cyclists priority. Prioritising sustainable transport locally is also shown to reduce longer car journeys, reducing the need for damaging road projects such as an off-line A27.

Leaders at all levels of government should be loudly proclaiming support for the objectives of COP26 (reducing carbon emissions; restoring habitats and increasing biodiversity) and measures to deliver them. The Herald could publish articles featuring transport and planning proposals and rate them out of 10 for eco friendliness!

Did this article interest you? Find out more about Eastbourne transport issues by joining our Transport Group!

Derrick Coffee

County Officer, Transport Futures East Sussex

Images: PA Media & Pxhere

Environment is a low priority for commuters

People do not consider the environment when making travel plans, according to a new study published by Decarbonising Transport Deliberative Research.

When commuters choose between travelling by car or a more eco-friendly alternative, they do not consider the environmental impacts of their decision. Instead, people are likely to choose whichever vehicle they are most comfortable using.

For example, people who drive to work are also likely to drive to attend hospital appointments, take part in leisure activities, and to see family and friends. They choose to travel by car because driving is a habit. It is rare for a habitual driver to use a bus or a train.

The research shows a clear hierarchy in making travel choices, with habit being the most significant. People also preferred transport modes with shorter travel times and higher reliability. The remaining key factors are summarised here.

  • Flexibility: several respondents preferred having immediate access to transport, instead of waiting for a bus to become available. 
  • Family Friendly: people want the ability to carry luggage, entertain children, and have easier access to toilets.
  • Convenience: people preferred ‘door to door’ modes of transport with a minimal interchange between different transport types.
  • Least Important Factors: comfort, hygiene, and personal safety were not considered as important.

Cost was also a key factor. Although car owners were satisfied with their vehicle’s low ‘on the day costs’, they did not consider the ongoing financial commitment of owning and maintaining a car.

It is clear that the behavioural change required to increase the use of public transport and reduce greenhouse gas emissions will not be easily won.

David Everson

EEAN Transport Group

Image credits: PA Media & Clive G

This Summer – Food Project with Ambition

Nutrition, hydration and sleep are the cornerstone foundations to our health and well-being. They are the building blocks with which everything in life works from. Without them, a human being cannot thrive. Yet the principles such as ‘food as medicine’, the importance of microbiome and gut health are topics that are not well understood by most people.

The problems connected to poor nutrition are global, but perhaps the most urgent need is to help people below the poverty line to nourish themselves and their children. All those who through no lack of worth ethic find themselves one of this year’s many first-time food bank users, asking ‘Do I pay my rent, or feed myself’, all those parents going hungry to feed their children.

One Potential Solution

This Summer sparked an idea. Inspired by my own gut health awakening, the works of anti-hunger activist Jack Monroe, working on recruitment for the Trussell Trust, John Vincent and Henry Dimbleby’s imaginative 2013 UK School Food Plan and nursing my own mother’s poor gut health, I began putting together a project. A new UK School Food Foundation. A public private partnership that would ease the burden on the government with free school meals, raising private capital, and working collaboratively with the government on the matter to fix policy and curriculums. Bring in venture capitalists and businessmen to the SMT and run it with their mindset and efficiencies. A pipe dream of course, but one that might get me into working in an area about which I was increasingly passionate.

So I made case studies of my two previous schools and reached out to national private catering company bosses to understand the situation seven years after the school food plan. Talking to my old schools it was obvious just how far we’ve come, but there was of course still room to improve. The main feedback was that the food and nutrition-based standards introduced in 2014 are still not policed in practice, Ofsted has to enforce them, schools make ‘tweaks’ at their own discretion and vulnerable children, in particular, are still unaware of the consequences of bad food choices.

Why is this necessary?

And that fact is hardly surprising because where would they get that information from? When even the comfortable families are more overworked and disconnected than ever before – parents work all hours, children out – we’re not teaching younger generations how to cook. How many of us went off unprepared to university and came out with pancreatitis, IBS, or ulcerative colitis? Even GPs have little training on food as medicine and are more likely to question alcoholism and prescribe drugs than any considered analysis of diet. Surely this would go a huge way to reducing the crippling burden on the NHS?

School wise, we’ve heard a lot about the introduction of compulsory cooking classes for all students up to the age of Key Stage 3. Just talking to my two old schools they seem to be doing brilliantly with state of the art facilities and really attractive lesson plans. But they’re the good end of the scale and those cooking classes are still once a fortnight for year nines. GCSE cooking is more about comparisons between different types of food packaging than it is about cooking skills.

Having lived across the continent as a languages student in France, Germany and Russia, it’s clear we’re a laughing stock internationally. Before lockdown forced us to take up home cooking, we spent a smaller proportion of our income on meals at home than any other European country. We tend to rush our meals, spending almost half as much time eating as the French. We eat out more, cook less, and are much keener on ready meals. (Our household spend on pre-cooked food is 28% higher than in France, 64% higher than Spain, 101% higher than Germany and a whopping 178% higher than Italy.) When I wanted to cure my mother’s gut health at the start of the Summer it was the Polish section I turned to in the supermarket as well as the best of Gousto’s anti-inflammatory range (fish, vegan and vegetarian meals). Eastern Europeans are champions of seasonality and fermented foods, the friendly bacteria that we all need to fill ourselves with in order to boost our immune systems and fight disease. Their biggest well-kept secret within that is Kefir, cultured milk which repaired my misused gut many times whilst living away from home. It’s now a regular in well-stocked shops here thanks to Eastern European immigration.

So how did we fall so far behind everyone else?

The History of Free School Meals

As far as school food culture is concerned the story goes back probably to the end of the 19th century.

After the introduction of compulsory education in the 1870s, the city of Manchester became the first to feed impoverished students. In 1906 the Education Bill attempted to combat the shocking state of national and infant health and placed the responsibility under the remit of local authorities. Unfortunately, despite multiple worrying reports compliance remained low until 1944, when laws were passed to ensure all children had access to free nutritious meals. Free milk burst onto the scene two years later. School children over the next two decades are widely believed to be the best nourished of the twentieth century.

Policy first turned against state involvement in 1968 when the Conservative government withdrew free school milk from all secondary schools. Margaret Thatcher launched her infamous extension of this scheme for the over sevens in 1971 followed by the Competitive Tendering Act in 1980. The responsibility of the government was, as they considered, to provide the parts parents could not, the buildings and books. Not the peripheral services. The move towards parental and consumer choice was predictably accompanied by a move towards meals that were cheap rather than nutritious and the rise of powerful food and drink companies.

Worse was to come. The 1986 Social Security Act cut the numbers of children who were eligible for free school meals at a time when unemployment and inflation were rising. Aggressive advertising of unhealthy foods continued. This changing food pattern, towards fatty, sugary, and highly processed foods – has become known as the “nutrition transition”.

It was not until April 2001 that school meals were again called to adhere to standards. But by this time the impact of so many years of aggressive low cost food advertising had taken its toll.

Then came the establishment of the Food Standards Agency in 2000 to promote healthy eating practices. This was bolstered by new regulations on healthy food in schools, in part as a response to a campaign by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.

But fewer children were entitled to free school meals, while unhealthy food was cheaper and more readily available than ever before. Fast forward to the present day and fast food after ten years of austerity the extent and causes of child poverty are, according to some commentators, remarkably similar to those at the start of the twentieth century. Enter Marcus Rashford’s much-needed campaign.

So that’s how we got here.

Results of that Decline

The resulting crisis in our habits has arguably now led us to the staggering number of obesity-related covid deaths. It’s also worth noting that lots of them will have absolutely nothing to do with wealth and being too well-fed, but rather due to poverty and food insecurity and malnutrition.

There is a lot to say about the hidden scale of poverty in the UK today, but probably something that more people are confronting post Brexit. The one point I would like to raise awareness of from a nourishment perspective is the emergence of food swamps inside already barren food deserts.

More than a million people in the UK live in so-called “food deserts” – neighbourhoods where poverty, poor public transport and a dearth of big supermarkets severely limit access to affordable fresh fruit and vegetables, a study has claimed. Nearly one in 10 of the country’s most economically deprived areas are food deserts, it says – typically large out-of-town housing estates and deprived inner-city wards served by a handful of small, relatively expensive corner shops.

Public health experts are concerned that these neighbourhoods – which are often also “food swamps” with high densities of fast-food outlets – are helping to fuel a rise in diet-related conditions, as well as driving food insecurity.

The most deprived areas include Marfleet in Hull, Hartcliffe in Bristol, Hattersley in Greater Manchester, Everton in Liverpool and Sparkbrook in Birmingham. Eight of Scotland’s 10 most deprived food deserts are in Glasgow, and three of Wales’s nine worst are in Cardiff. The question I’d love to investigate is what is food education and school canteens like in these deserts? Disadvantaged kids will have to fight twice as hard as it is in life to break into better education, be accepted, taken seriously and paid the same in top tier firms. Can we not at least ensure the foundations for social mobility are secure?

Pitch to the Sector

So, to come back to my project. Having made case studies of my schools and spoken to catering company bosses I began putting together a presentation. One catering company I had reached out to offered to discuss the idea to see if they could help push it forwards.

My argument was that the scandal in free school meals comes amidst a much wider crisis in our food system, exacerbated by growing levels of poverty. And the issues loom like a perfect storm over the heads of the most vulnerable facing Brexit. There were seven key problems, as I saw it, which could be alleviated by the Foundation and more hard-hitting education. Yes we’ve had plenty of healthy eating campaigns, but the information definitely hasn’t reached many in my corner of rural Northamptonshire and I suspect that’s the same in many places outside the wealthy home counties.

The issues were:

  1. Rising inequality where people at the bottom have less money to feed themselves
  2. Poor public understanding of basic food education and good gut health.
  3. The school food system is overcrowded, fragmented and heavily subsidised.
  4. Obesity and eating extremes are at their highest ever levels ever, placing a crippling burden on the NHS.
  5. Agriculture and food production in this country are unsustainable. Yes, we will adapt, but not with a heavy toll on the most vulnerable.
  6. Needlessly high levels of food waste
  7. Disjointed political will and accountability. No one government department takes responsibility for hunger or free school meals

At the start of the Summer I wanted to fight them all, to set up a body like Nutrition England which would offer education outreach to schools, businesses, hospitals, prisons, and charities. How many of us know we actually have control to reduce anxiety, slow down ageing and fight the big avoidable killers linked to chronic gut inflammation: arthritis, dementia, cancer, autoimmune disease? But the problem seemed too broad, many people in the most need don’t have cooking facilities and education will probably only scratch the surface. The Food Standards Agency of course does a lot of good work already. So my thinking evolved and it seemed clear that schools were one environment we could control, influence and fund, irrespective of division in social classes.

So, in the middle of November I pitched my plan to the senior management of one wholesale company and the feedback was that’s it a very worthy idea, the link between mental health and gut health is definitely under-reported, but the business case still wasn’t there. There was still nothing to differentiate the Foundation from all the other well meaning outlets in the over crowded school meal industry. Holiday hunger is by far the most burning issue to solve.

Conclusion

Ultimately most of my best intentions to launch a nation-wide food revolution and fund a nutritious safety net for all school children have already been implemented and gone full circle in the course of the twentieth century.  But as well as getting into the sector to work on the business case, I hate to give up especially when there is such momentum. What else can we do differently this time? How do we engage four-year-olds to care about nutrition? How do we police standards? How to create national leadership on the issue? Were my pipe dream ever to materialise I’d love to make cooking as important as Maths and English, for all schools to have an in-house nutritionist and push for a Minister to be responsible for the new UK School Food Foundation. That would underline just how important the task is and ensure policy never again fell victim to changes in administration. Boris’ u-turn provides vulnerable children with an extension of the holiday activities and food programme until Christmas next year. There’s also work to be done around extending the scheme to all children whose parents are in receipt of universal credit.

So if any more seasoned business people reading this have ideas on how to solve the problem and impose structure in the fragmented school meal industry, I would love to hear from them. The need is there and the momentum is clear to see from the countless local councils and businesses which stepped up to feed children over October half term: Nestle UK & Ireland, Burberry, Frankie & Benny’s, the University of Reading, Queen Mary in London, Kensington & Chelsea Borough Council, TESCO, COOP, Manchester United, the UEFA Foundation.

Rebecca Emerick

Guest blogger

Rebecca Emerick is an independent campaigner. Her background has been in executive search working on high profile headhunts for the UK not-for-profit and creative industries. She developed the idea of This Summer inspired by her own gut health awakening, the works of anti-hunger activist Jack Monroe, working on recruitment for the Trussell Trust, John Vincent and Henry Dimbleby’s imaginative 2013 UK School Food Plan, nursing her own mother’s poor gut health and then Marcus Rashford’s campaign.

One Small Step Toward Big Change

By now we are all versed in the evils of single-use plastic products and their impact on the environment, yet not enough is being done to tackle this issue. Like many, I am disheartened when I walk into a supermarket and see shelves lined with plastic packaging. It’s a big problem, which is why it might seem counterintuitive when I ask you to turn your attention to one small segment of this big problem: packaging of citrus fruits in polypropylene mesh bags. 

Hear me out.

Polypropylene mesh bags are harmful for the environment and for wildlife. Polypropylene is a plastic that has a high rate of degradation when exposed to UV light, leading to the release of dangerous microplastics in our land and oceans. Additionally, prior to and during degradation, these bags are hazardous to wildlife which can become tangled and trapped in their mesh. They also often contain one or more mouldy fruits, leading to both customer dissatisfaction and to increased food waste.

The practice of packaging citrus fruits is completely unnecessary. Citrus fruits have a sturdy rind that makes them ideal for selling and storing loose. There would be no need for a supermarket to invest in more expensive biodegradable packaging as a replacement for the mesh bags, as the fruits could instead be sold individually.   

I am therefore campaigning Morrisons Supermarkets to stop packaging their citrus fruits in polypropylene mesh bags and to sell them loose instead.

While this might seem like a small goal, Morrisons is the fourth largest supermarket chain in the UK with 494 stores in the country. Imagine the impact if 494 stores ceased using these bags to package their lemons, limes, and oranges, and instead sold them loose – it adds up.

Many people have asked why this campaign does not target all supermarkets and all of their produce packaging. I believe that by targeting one supermarket and one unsustainable practice, we are more likely to affect change than asking for a sweeping change across the entire industry. Once we have achieved this one small change, we can use it to leverage Morrisons and other supermarkets to further improve their sustainable practices.

I hope that you will consider joining me by signing the petition and sharing it with your friends, family, and networks in the UK. Together we can achieve this change for the planet and all her creatures.

Sign the Petition

Amber Erwin

Northampton

A message from the guest blogger:

This campaign started two weeks ago when I was doing the shopping at my local Morrisons in Northampton. My usual frustration at seeing the amount of plastic packaging tipped into action when I reflected on how unnecessary it is to package citrus fruits. I went home and began developing a plan of action, starting with this petition.

Although I don’t live in Eastbourne, I am so inspired by the strides made toward carbon neutrality and the community effort that has gone into bringing about change. I believe that it’s exactly the type of effort needed to make this campaign a success. I hope that everyone will spend the 2 minutes it takes to sign and share!

Are Consultations Blocking Progress?

I think everyone is aware that traffic levels appear higher than last year and with all the new housing this will only get worse. At the same time, Eastbourne is committed to a shift towards more walking, cycling and bus journeys. So why is this change not happening?

ESCC Hailsham to Eastbourne Sustainability Corridor

It has been increasingly apparent that consultations and public engagement can result in no change at all.  You may think they are the best example of the democratic decision on the local matters but let us look at the evidence. There are more car users than any other group and many of them will want what they already have. The share of car trips has gone up by 40% since 1981 whilst bus and cycle trips have more than halved.

One of the key reasons that progress is not being made is that even with Covid-19, there is built-in inertia. The car-centric view is simply entrenched across all of East Sussex. So out of all the county’s funded Covid-19 schemes only 2 pedestrian schemes were built. Locally in Eastbourne, everything was eventually dropped “following public consultation”.

Eastbourne Draft Local Plan

There are probably four ways that consultations can be used to reinforce the status quo:

1) Only some key stakeholders are consulted

2) The questions are adapted to fit the agenda

3) The comments are simply counted as for and against.

4) Weightings are used to prioritise certain groups

The Government has said that they want to double cycling numbers by 2025, link future transport funding to current performance and set higher design standards. So for routes, away from the roads, such as Horsey Sewer or Shinewater it is possible to build reasonable shared paths. However, because space is limited in town, and cycling is marginal, either the routes are removed – such as around Terminus Road – or designed to make the least change to the road layout. Currently, there is no cycle route in Eastbourne town centre of sufficient quality to appear on either Google maps or Cyclestreets.

The same issue is true for buses. One of the reasons that there is no local Quality Bus Partnership, which would mean better and greener buses, might be that the road network would need to be re-allocated in favour of buses. That would once again face some resistance through a consultation process. There are indeed some bus lanes being added on the route from Polegate to Eastbourne but they are short and may not make enough difference to get the bus companies to invest.

With the County Council elections coming up,  now is the time to question the candidates. Do not ask if they are in favour of cycling or bus lanes, as nearly everyone says yes. Instead, ask about a specific route that you want and where there are consequences and hard choices to be made.

Paul Humphreys

Bespoke & Cycle East Sussex

Photo: Eastbourne Bespoke cycling group 

Are Local Traffic Neighbourhoods Possible in Eastbourne?

Perhaps the most contentious debate in transport, at the moment, is Local Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs). They are a hot topic across the UK, especially in London, and even more so during Covid-19.

Perhaps the most contentious debate in transport at the moment is Local Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs). They are a hot topic across the UK, especially in London, and even more so during Covid-19. LTNs are usually a relatively cheap and quick way to change the dynamics of the streets in an area. During Covid-19 they are being funded by the Government as emergency measures to provide safer walking and cycling whilst discouraging car use as public transport is operating with limited capacity apart from school buses.  LTNs are linked to the wider ideas of 15-minutes cities and 20-minute neighbourhoods.  Where most things people need are nearby and so there is less need for a car. This builds up the idea of community and increases residents’ exercise which reduces chronic illness in future years.

LTNs are areas where most through traffic has been removed from local residential streets. This might involve barriers, bollards, planters or other street furniture that blocks the roads for through traffic, whilst allowing pedestrians and cyclists. Often there are solutions using keys or barriers that allow emergency vehicles and buses access. If you are interested, Waltham Forest is a multi-award winner with various LTNs. There although most people are in favour there is a smaller vociferous group against. Just take a look at Social Media to follow the conversation. 

So why is the subject so contentious.

  1. Some opponents believe that they should be allowed to drive in any street to complete their journey in the shortest time. They do not agree with the phrase rat running where traffic will use residential roads when main roads are blocked. This is a problem that will grow with more congestion in Eastbourne.
  2. Opponents believe there is a fixed amount of traffic and if you prevent through traffic in LTNs, it will simply get to the main roads. However, supporters will say how LTNs often show that after a while residents have 20% fewer cars, 20% fewer trips and 20% less time in the car. Since cars are the least efficient use of road space when driven or parked this is a big saving.  This 20% saving can also be partly linked to other initiatives such as safer cycling routes or more local shops in the pedestrianised streets.
  3. Opponents say that where there are Residential Main Roads (RMRs) the pollution and congestion will be worse. These roads often have the poorest housing, so these residents are then further disadvantaged. However, evidence from London shows that within LTNs are large blocks of social housing so it is not always so clear cut. Opponents make the point that in LTNs, if these streets are now more pleasant, they will be gentrified and the working classes will be squeezed out. This would be much less of an issue in Eastbourne.
  4. Within any LTN there is often an increase in cycling and children walking to school as the risk from injury from motor vehicles is reduced. Where school streets are closed then some parents who drive and want to drop off their children are frustrated from doing so.

So what could this mean in Eastbourne?  Normally these could be implemented in the more deprived areas. So for example the area around Seaside, St Philips Avenue, and St Anthony’s is a matrix of streets that can be used as rat runs.  One simple improvement would be 20mph zones but so would modal filters, such as signs and bollards, that limit access by certain modes of transport, normally motor vehicles,  and would deter through traffic.

In more affluent areas such as Sovereign Harbour, they are already similar to an LTN. Meandering cul-de-sacs that are not interconnected apart from by cycle or foot. Very slow traffic, local shops and any traffic displaced from main roads have no way through these estates. Rather they will go through Langney, Seaside or along the seafront.

In conclusion, now is the time to look at the idea of LTNs within the town. Let us see if we can improve the quality of life in these local neighbourhoods.

Paul Humphreys

Bespoke & Cycle East Sussex

Photo credit: Paul Gillett

Cycle Lanes along the Seafront

Compromise, conciliation, and consultation, all seem such reasonable words, and opponents to cycling often use them against Bespoke Cycle Group. They are perhaps partly the reason that active travel (buses, cycling and walking) in Eastbourne is in decline.

Compromise, conciliation, and consultation, all seem such reasonable words, and opponents to cycling often use them against Bespoke Cycle Group. They are perhaps partly the reason that active travel (buses, cycling and walking) in Eastbourne is in decline.

The Eastbourne Cycling Plan makes reference to the need for a strategy, reducing congestion, pollution and improved public health, along with a network of cycle routes that includes the controversial one along the seafront from Fisherman’s Green to the Pier.

It all sounds familiar, until you realise that this is the 1994 version. Quite usefully it shows the data from 1981. The share of trips by car was 40%, bus 14% and cycle 4%. Now the shares are 70%, 5% and 2%. The current scheme that requires Bespoke to “compromise” is the Covid-19 seafront cycle lane. East Sussex County Council decided this week it wants further consultation. It is a difficult choice for Bespoke to make. The seaward side was bid through Covid-19 funds, and was a segregated, safe and secure route. In fact, probably the one specified over 25 years ago. The landward option, not shared with Bespoke, is mainly paint on the road. In its favour are a 20mph speed limit and some signage. Unfortunately, it will be like the rest of the cycle infrastructure in town and hardly fit for purpose.

Contact Us

But for Bespoke it may be “take it or leave it”. It is the type of poor solution that compromise, conciliation and consultation create. It looks like not all the Covid-19 money will be spent and there has been the suggestion that ESCC’s new bid for Tranche2 will partly fail. ESCC acknowledge that “whilst emphasis [from the national guidance expects] schemes which enable the reallocation of road space for pedestrians and cyclists” their bid is around “footway surfacing and kerbs”.

Because 70% of trips are undertaken by car, this dominates the whole approach to transport within the county. Even to the extent that councillors, businesses and shops overestimate the number of people using cars and their relative spend. Considering this it took a certain strength, perhaps against the views of some of the residents, for Councillor Tutt to support the seaward side, as he did at the Transport committee.

For all the ESCC investment, the gold standard test is the actual cycle numbers. The new DfT statistics by Local Authority show no improvement across the county in the last 4 years. For those who cycle once a month, East Sussex, as one of the 25 similar shire counties, has only one county that performs worse.

In conclusion, there is no evidence that the current approach, via consultation and compromise, with the most powerful groups getting their way, will achieve any significant changes in road congestion, public health, pollution and CO2. The requirement is still for a limited number of safe, segregated and secure routes into town. This would be in line with the new DfT guidance, where they clearly state that paint on the road is no longer enough.

Paul Humphreys

Bespoke & Cycle East Sussex

Photo credit: Paul Gillett

Eastbourne Businesses – What Can You Do?

The two biggest uses of carbon are buildings and transport. Energy used in buildings emits 63% of the carbon used in our town. Buildings use energy for electricity for powering lights, computers etc and for heating. Gas heating is in a large percentage of buildings for hot water and heating.

The two biggest uses of carbon are buildings and transport.  

Energy used in buildings emits 63% of the carbon used in our town.  Buildings use energy for electricity for powering lights, computers etc and for heating.  Gas heating is in a large percentage of buildings for hot water and heating.  Gas is a major emitter of carbon in Eastbourne.  By looking at how you use these it is possible to cut energy use.  Your business will be cutting its energy bill and saving money.

In rush hour and other busy times of the day Eastbourne has many traffic jams.  Not only do these waste time, emit a large amount of carbon but stationary cars with engines running emit dangerous compounds which cause air pollution.  Air pollution is a problem in Eastbourne and it causes many people health problems, and premature deaths.  It is in everyone’s interests that traffic pollution is tackled. 

There are three things you can do as a business.

Switch energy supplier

Switch your energy supply to one which provides 100% renewable energy to the national grid.  The price of producing renewable energy has come down considerably in the last few years.  There are some really good deals around at the moment.

Click here to compare companies for renewable electricity contracts for business.

Get an energy audit on your building

Get an energy audit on your building. You can order one for free from East Sussex County Council. There is also a limited amount of money available in the form of a grant to help you reduce your energy costs.  This is available on a first-come-first-served basis.

You can then start to make a plan of how to cut your carbon footprint at your workplace building.  Get some quotes and make a plan. Actions may be something small and inexpensive like replacing all your electric bulbs to LEDs to something which requires more capital such as insulating your building.

Remote Working

Recent recent research by the Herman Miller Insight Group indicates that when asked about where employees want to work:

  • 5% want to be back in the office;
  • 19% love working from home;
  • 53% want to work from home and their normal workplace.

Since the COVID crisis, we have already had many people working from home.  This isn’t practical for all of the time but allowing staff to work at home for some of the time allows staff to achieve a better work/life balance and less stress.  Less people commuting also has environmental impacts. Working flexibly where possible reduces the CO2 emissions from commuting. We recognise this needs an intelligent approach, and to ensure the well being of staff. Read the Home Working Guidance developed by the University of Bristol.

Using Active Transport

For journeys travelling to and from the workplace with a distance of 5 km or less than active transport should be encouraged. Walking or cycling to work not only has great health benefits for the person but fewer cars on the road mean fewer traffic jams for everyone and this in term improves air quality and everyone in Eastbourne benefits.

Take a look at the government’s bike to work scheme.

Or have a look at the Green Commute Initiative which allows for the cost of more expensive e-bikes.

There have been a lot of new ways of transport developed in recent years as alternatives to car transport.  

Learn more about the e-bikes

Here is some really useful information about ebikes

Electric cargo bikes for business

Electric scooters

We are working towards a carbon neutral Eastbourne by 2030.

Miles Berkley

Executive Director, EEAN

Rachel Norris

Workplace Group, EEAN

Cleaning Eastbourne Beach – all 93, actually

Well, who would have expected so many people turning out for this event during a seriously concerning period! Not only did people come out in force to clean every single one of the 93 beaches alongside our seafront – volunteers also chose to clean our promenade, the coastline beyond our main beach eastwards beyond the Marina and westward towards Beachy Head. Others went into our parks and carried out park cleans.

Well, who would have expected so many people turning out for this event during a seriously concerning period! Not only did people come out in force to clean every single one of the 93 beaches alongside our seafront – volunteers also chose to clean our promenade, the coastline beyond our main beach eastwards beyond the Marina and westward towards Beachy Head. Others went into our parks and carried out park cleans.

This was a unique event, made possible by the fact that our beach is divided into 93 separate beaches by groynes. Each volunteer group was able to be completely socially distanced by cleaning just their own allocated beach.

Every group was asked to complete a Marine Conservation Society survey of the itemised debris collected. This is being collated and will form an invaluable database to help monitor our coastline.

This event has had a knock-on effect of groups wanting to get involved in cleaning on the Downs, more of our local parks and continuing with beach cleaning. One group, Catch22, is planning a further beach clean event next month. Well done all of you! What a great weekend it was too with the weather.

This event had two objectives: firstly, our beach was cleared of debris; secondly,  our self-confidence and our sense of being able to work creatively and positively during this worrying era as a community was achieved. Eastbourne has a well-deserved reputation for rising to challenges and bringing about improvement to our town and to our surroundings.

Ways you can support us and find out more:

  • visit BHASSEXPLORE website where you will learn about the efforts to remove beach debris from a most inhospitable stretch of coastline where the iconic Beachy Head Lighthouse is standing.
  • offer to volunteer to help especially if you have relevant skills or interests.
  • lookout for the results of the photo competition using the photo record of our beach clean – the photos with this blog are just a small flavour of the excellent entry list. There are prizes too!

We are working towards a carbon neutral town by 2030.

Oliver Sterno

Community Leader, Plastic Free Eastbourne
Co-ordinator, Refill Eastbourne

Government Announces UK is Failing on CO2 Emissions

Eastbourne Borough Council, like many other local authorities, has committed to do all it can to reduce carbon emissions in the town to net-zero by 2030 and has declared a climate emergency. However, much of this cannot be achieved without Government initiatives. Their advisers this week are warning that the UK is falling behind on its own target to cut greenhouse gas emissions and risks an increase in CO2 emissions now that the COVID-19 lockdown is easing.

Eastbourne Borough Council,  like many other local authorities,  has committed to do all it can to reduce carbon emissions in the town to net-zero by 2030 and has declared a climate emergency. However, much of this cannot be achieved without Government initiatives. Their advisers this week are warning that the UK is falling behind on its own target to cut greenhouse gas emissions and risks an increase in CO2 emissions now that the COVID-19 lockdown is easing.

Lord Deben, chair of the committee on climate change (CCC), published its progress report to parliament this week and it states that ministers must act fast to avoid a carbon rebound. Chris Stark, chief executive of the CCC, said: “Without central and integrated leadership we will fail in our task”.

These initiatives would include more active travel, new schemes to insulate homes, raising carbon taxes, switching to electric vehicles and ensuring reliable broadband to allow working from home.

Much of this can be supported by the local authorities. Taken from the best examples in the UK is the Friends of the Earth, Ashden,  31 climate actions for councils. This outlines practical suggestions to reduce carbon at a local level in areas that local authorities have either direct control of or could influence.

So how much progress is being made?  This week the latest CO2 statistics for Local Authorities were published by the Government. Eastbourne, for geographic and industrial reasons, tends to have a lower than average carbon footprint.

The latest data is for 2018 and shows a 1.4% decline from 2017. The carbon footprint for Eastbourne is now 293,000 tonnes per annum or around 3 tonnes per person. This reflects the steady improvement across the UK, over the last 10 years, with less coal and more renewables.  So for example, one challenge for the town is natural gas, which is over 40% of all our carbon emissions.

Locally, as across the rest of the UK, commercial and residential sectors have shown significant reductions with only transport remaining stubbornly at around 80,000 tonnes p.a. The report also states that nearly all of Eastbourne’s footprint is within “the scope of influence of the local authority”.

With 2030 only 10 years away there will need to be a major change in strategy to even begin to approach the net-zero carbon target.

Read Delivering a Better Eastbourne by EEAN Transport Group outlining some suggestions for improving our town’s carbon emissions.

Paul Humphreys

EEAN, Transport Group

Img Veeterzy, Unsplash.

Big Summer Beach Clean

Plastic Free Eastbourne wants to encourage everyone to join our whole-town Summer Beach Clean in July. The event will be fully COVID-19 aware.

Now the lockdown is being gradually eased and people can gather in small groups in their gardens and public places, we can begin to regain the momentum and actions to make Eastbourne cleaner and more sustainable.

Plastic Free Eastbourne wants to encourage everyone to join our whole-town Summer Beach Clean. The event will be fully COVID-aware.

Dates of the Summer Beach Clean

  • Friday 10 July
  • Saturday 11 July
  • Sunday 12 July

The time would be individualised and it will be up to you when you take part.

What you need to do

To comply with the current regulations, your volunteering group should not include more than 6 participants.

Check the map below and decide how many beaches you and your group want to clean. Select the stretch of beach by identifying the groyne numbers at each end of your choice. See the detailed map here.

Groynes are the wooden walls dividing our beach into sections. They have been set up to reduce the shingle beach material from being washed away by wave action.

Groynes with numbers.

Register your attendance by emailing your names, ages if under 18, time and date you wish to participate along with your chosen groyne numbers. Send this all to plasticfreeeastbourne@gmail.com. or phone for further details 07971 909454.

You will be sent a confirmation email along with a Risk Assessment and Safety Briefing, as well as a list of items you should bring. This will include protective gloves, which you can order for free, face-covering (COVID-19 regulation), suitable clothing, refillable water bottles, sun protection, hand sanitiser.

On the day and before the start of your chosen time, sufficient debris bags will be left on top of the lowest numbered groyne you have chosen for you to collect.

We hope you will be able to record the amount and type of debris you have collected and perhaps take a photo or two for sharing. You might also like to write a short piece to tell us about your experience.

If you want to purchase litter pickers at £5 each, please order them in your email. They will be awaiting your arrival at your chosen groyne. Payments will be accepted online.

When you finish collecting, please tie up your bag of debris and leave it next to (not in) the nearest waste bin. The local council will collect the bags afterwards.

Overall, this event is intended to make our beach clear of debris. Equally, it is intended to provide a whole-town experience to raise our self-confidence and our sense of being able to work creatively and positively during this worrying era.

Eastbourne has a well-deserved reputation for rising to challenges and bringing about improvement to our town and to our surroundings. Join us!

Oliver Sterno

Plastic Free Eastbourne , SEA~SurvivalEqualsAction

Everybody’s Business

When you think about it, there is so much you can do which will not add any time or effort to your day. If you go out on a walk, there is nothing stopping you from putting some gloves on and picking up as much litter as you can. There are no excuses. COVID-19 had to grind the Earth to a halt, and now it is the best time to reform the Earth into a state where future generations will not have to suffer from an irreversible hell. This is our home; this is everybody’s business.

My name is Oliver, I am 12, and although I don’t have to do it, I pick up litter.

Midway through April, I started the account @uklitterpickers on Instagram. I was generally eco-aware before, but there is a difference between awareness and activism. I didn’t quite know how bad the situation with litter was on our planet, but by learning from other people and following various social media accounts I realised that the reality was much worse than I ever thought. I started picking up litter on walks from time to time and I got a good reception from my friends. This motivated me to launch my account – I feel I need to do something about the current climate crisis we are in.

Whenever I go on a litter picking walk, I always count my litter and take a photo at the end of it helping me to keep track of how much litter has been picked up in my area. At the beginning of May, I joined a group called the 1 PIECE Army (@1piecearmy on Instagram) uniting people from different countries across the world who pick up litter. Their mission is to collect 1 million pieces by the end of 2020. At the time of writing, we have just surpassed 100k pieces across 15 weeks and over 20 countries.

The group is amazing and is growing at an incredible rate, and an all-round pleasure to be in. I also volunteer making a graph and a map every week for their impact report, as well as working closely with the director of the group giving ideas and helping out generally. I have also designed their group logo.

This journey has taught me communication skills, social media management and different ways to help the environment. I want to take this opportunity to talk about some accounts that I have interacted with who helped me along my journey.

@ecoplanetpedia is a group which posts environmental news and motivates me to post more. I have talked with them many times about issues and discussed environmental problems. @cleansomethingfornothing is an amazing account which reposts people’s litter picking using their hashtags. I have also worked closely with this account. Finally, @thebethechangecommunity who has been close to the 1 PIECE Army and are celebrating their one year of litter-picking. If you are interested to support these guys’ work, you might like to check out and follow their accounts.

One noticeable difference is that before this work seeing a piece of litter on the ground didn’t bother me. I would look at a bottle on the floor and not take notice of it and think that it’s just another piece of litter and it’s not my business. Now, I realise that each plastic bottle has a story behind it. One bottle can tell you what kind of person has dropped it, when they dropped it, and why they dropped it. That is why I can feel a pain inside when I see a bottle on the floor, and an even bigger one when I can’t pick it up.

When you think about it, there is so much you can do which will not add any time or effort to your day. If you go out on a walk, there is nothing stopping you from putting some gloves on and picking up as much litter as you can. There are no excuses. COVID-19 had to grind the Earth to a halt, and now it is the best time to reform the Earth into a state where future generations will not have to suffer from an irreversible hell. This is our home; this is everybody’s business.

Oliver Witts

Eco Activist, @uklitterpickers

Photos by Brian Yurasits on Unsplash, Oliver Witts

Will People of Eastbourne Celebrate With Plastic?

Now the lockdown is being gradually eased and people can gather in small groups in their gardens and public places, will people of Eastbourne be planning a celebration?

Now the lockdown is being gradually eased and people can gather in small groups in their gardens and public places, will people of Eastbourne be planning a celebration?

Plastic Free Eastbourne wants to encourage all communities to hold celebrations should they wish to when this pandemic has allowed us all to gather and mingle once again in groups.

But while we were in the lockdown, our town has changed. It has the cleanest air for a long time. Our wildlife is enjoying the lowest levels of pollution in their habitats for decades. We can hear birdsong and nature in clear conditions. Our streets and open spaces are as free of litter as ever before. We would like to retain these conditions from now on.

One big way of retaining this newly obtained environment is to make sure wherever possible that any gathering remains single-use plastic free, which is in line with Eastbourne’s status as a Plastic Free Community since December 2019, fully supported by Eastbourne Borough Council.

The examples of single-use plastic hugely damaging for the environment include but are not limited to:

  • balloons,
  • plastic single-use water bottles
  • clingfilm
  • plastic cutlery
  • single-use plastic packaging
  • lighted lanterns

Instead, we should try to celebrate like we saw people doing in the newsreels during VE Day in 1945. Not one balloon was visible and yet, they obviously were having a great time!

So what are the alternatives? We have some suggestions for you:

  • planting a tree communally
  • ribbon dancers
  • banners and streamers
  • kites and spinners
  • tissue paper pompoms
  • light a candle
  • drumming
  • seed bombs to name just a few.

Of course, all of these should be plastic-free, made from recycled materials, or for more than one use. Hygienic packaging of food and drink should be washable and reusable, such as plastic reusable boxes with lids. Alternatively, products made from Vegware or similar should be chosen.

We would like to build on the great work which we as a town have done together to reduce single-use plastic already. We have the reputation for being at the forefront of developing a Plastic Free Community. If we all agree, we can take our campaign up to the next level and contribute greatly to becoming carbon neutral by 2030.

And above all – we will keep our town and our coastline free of plastic for the next generations to enjoy.

Oliver Sterno

Plastic Free Eastbourne, EEAN Education Group

Photos by Brian Yurasits , Eleni Koureas on Unsplash.

Cycling in Eastbourne during COVID-19

Emergency protected cycle lane proposals: from the railway station to DGH via King’s Drive.

Emergency protected cycle lane proposal: from the railway station to DGH via King’s Drive

King’s Drive (and Lewes Road) is one of Eastbourne’s busiest arteries, linking the town centre and seafront with several large residential areas: Upperton, Ratton, Hampden Park, Willingdon and beyond to Polegate and Hailsham. It also connects to the hospital (DGH), East Sussex College, various schools, David Lloyd sports club and retail parks.

King’s Drive runs along the edge of flood meadows, it is essentially flat and it provides the quickest, most direct North-South route. Sadly, the good news for cyclists ends there. As anyone who has attempted to ride along King’s Drive knows, the sheer volume and speed of traffic feel uncomfortable and at times it’s downright dangerous. Data from Crashmap bears this out. Not surprisingly, few people attempt to use their bicycles here and most opt for the car, even for short trips.

Solutions

Bespoke Cycle Group has long argued for a separate cycleway to be constructed along the meadow to the east of St Thomas A Becket school (see below) and behind Weavers Close. It would continue to the DGH roundabout and join up with the existing cycle path alongside Cross Levels Way.

Sustrans echoed this idea in its draft recommendations (310.2) to ESCC in 2017, but signs of progress have not been detected. In the meantime, the COVID-19 pandemic has swept in, forcing local authorities around the world to wake up to the importance of cycling and walking as genuine alternatives to cars and public transport in urban areas.

It is surely the time for ESCC to construct temporary protected cycle lanes here. Bespoke propose one-way 2m wide lanes (in line with the traffic) on each side of King’s Drive and Lewes Road, extending from the DGH roundabout to the junction of Tutt’s Barn Lane for southbound cyclists and from the junction with Upper Avenue to the DGH roundabout for northbound cyclists.

Here, a cycle lane could replace the grass verge, or take up part of the road next to it.

In this section of King’s Drive, temporary bollards could be placed on the road 2m from the kerb.

The same applies here, by St Thomas A Becket school, so this dad and his daughter wouldn’t need to be on the pavement.

Southbound cyclists could turn left into Tutt’s Barn Lane, then continue along the quiet Gorringe Road.

At the junction with Lewes Road, there could be a combined pedestrian and cycle crossing to Upper Avenue – ideally to the pavement on the north side (on the right of this picture).

This pavement could be widened, or space reclaimed from the road to accommodate a two-way cycle lane:

The grassy area could be narrowed to accommodate a two-way cycle lane.

There’s plenty of space on this corner of Upper Avenue:

A new crossing for pedestrians and cycles here on Upper Avenue, opposite St Mary’s House, would enable safe passage to and from St Leonard’s Road.

The quiet St Leonard’s Road probably wouldn’t need any cycle infrastructure.

Nor would St Ann’s Road, on the left in this photo.

St Ann’s Road leads to the station car park – for access to trains, the Enterprise Centre, town centre and seafront.

Robert McGowan

Transport Group, Bespoke

Eastbourne ECO Action Network

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