Hastings: education and heritage-led regeneration

Hastings: key facts

• Population: 68,000
• Local authority: Hastings Borough Council
• Environment and Planning Contact: Simon Hubbard, Executive Director, Regeneration and Planning
• Local plan

• Regeneration agency Sea Space

• Contact: Abigail Gilbert

Education is regarded as one key element in a major programme of regeneration which has the aim of reviving the economy of the seaside town of Hastings, East Sussex, along with its neighbour Bexhill. A new style ‘multi-versity’ now has over 700 students, while a new further education college is under construction

New business and retail is being attracted into the town by the regeneration agency Sea Space which was set up in 2003 to deliver a business plan across two council areas (Hastings and Rother, which covers Bexhill). SEEDA allocated an initial £38 million to the project. In total, £400 million of public and private investment is expected by 2012.

Heritage led funding is also key. The Old Town has received an English Heritage Conservation Area Partnership Scheme and a Heritage Economic Regeneration Scheme and Heritage Lottery Fund Townscape Heritage Initiative, with additional Single Regeneration Budget and EU Objective 2 contributions.

The problem

The visible signs of this are clearly apparent today: many grand Victorian houses are in multiple occupation, a deteriorating seafront, and closed and boarded up shops. Unemployment is above average, and 42 per cent of employment comes from the public sector.

There are (sometimes hidden) social problems, too. In terms of multiple deprivation the Castle (Town Centre) and Central St Leonards wards both lie within the worst 10% nationally, earnings are 68 per cent of the south east average and 31.7 per cent of residents between 16 and 74 have no qualifications. Benefit dependency is a particular issue.

History

Nestled in between two cliffs, Hastings Old Town grew as a medieval fishing settlement, and was the senior Cinque Port during the middle ages.

There are two other distinct historic neighbourhoods, the Georgian planned resort of St Leonards, and the Victorian seafront and town centre.

The town centre and seafront developed from the 1840s with the arrival of the railway via two rail routes. Two landmark structures remain from its 1930s heyday, the reinforced concrete two-tier promenade, and the Art Deco Marine Court and Marina Pavilion, built by local engineer Sydney Little.

Starting a café economy - the first stages of regeneration

The Conservation Area Partnership scheme, which ran from 1995 to 2001, funded public realm improvements and façade restoration around the Trinity Triangle, the retail core of the town centre, kick-starting the development of a café and restaurant economy.

A successful café culture has grown up, complementing the first retail-led regeneration project, the Priory Meadow, in 1997, which brought new retailers to Hastings and integrated a new public space with the town centre.

An innovative EU-wide INTERREG project called Coastal Treasures has established an architectural audit of Hastings and St Leonards, which aims to use architecture to encourage cultural tourism and to act as a tool for planners, conservation officers and local amenity societies when considering new development. In order to enhance another of Hastings’ key assets, the seafront, a seafront strategy and design guide is being produced by Hastings Borough Council.

‘Grotbusters’
The local authority enacted a little-used part of planning law to identify key buildings suffering neglect and decay to put pressure on the owners to carry out remedial work. Orders were placed on the owners to carry out essential work. This led to successful prosecution in many cases, and prompted the renovation of many houses. This was especially effective along the St Leonard’s seafront.

The current regeneration process

In July 2001, SEEDA set up the Hastings and Bexhill Task Force which identified five key themes for regeneration:

• Urban renaissance – renovating existing buildings and creating new architecture, public spaces and buildings including business premises, education facilities and homes.
• Business - supporting local firms and attracting new companies to the area to create well-paid jobs
• Education - helping to improve education standards and expanding higher education
• Broadband - helping companies make best use of the latest Internet technology
• Transport - lobbying for improvements to the road, bus and rail networks

Architects MBM were commissioned to draw up a masterplan for Hastings and Bexhill.

Making Waves, a long term regeneration strategy was launched by Hastings Council, setting out aims and objectives, and how the various agencies would work together.

Small scale projects

One of the first of these was the opening of the new ‘multi-versity’, UCH (University Centre Hastings ) in the centre of town. This runs courses delivered by a range of other HE institutions, including Canterbury, Brighton and Sussex universities. In currently has 700 students with the aim of expanding to 2,000 by 2012.

The other is the Creative Media Centre in the town centre, which opened in September 2005, built by BBM sustainable design (shortlisted for a RIBA award in 2006). The Creative Media Centre is aimed at advertising, marketing, design, and other digital businesses to make it the focus for a vibrant, creative business community.

The Innovation Centre opened a year later for new high-tech and innovative businesses and companies.

Transport

Poor transport links have been a problem. Trains to London take a minimum of 82 minutes. As a first step towards much needed improvements to the railway network, a new railway station opened in 2004, built through a partnership with Network Rail, reviving a previously run-down station area and forecourt.

A land bridge will be constructed running over a main road to take passengers down into the new Priory Quarter in the town, leading to the Creative Media Centre at the south end.

A Hastings link road to Bexhill is also being planned to alleviate congestion between the two towns.

Hastings station

Longer term projects

The Priory Quarter is being developed as a new area for business. It will include 338,000 sq ft of offices, 58,000 sq ft of retail and a multi-screen cinema. It will incorporate the University Centre, and the Creative Media Centre with the aim of acting as the hub of new commercial activity in the town.

The Station Plaza, currently under construction, will open in 2009 with a new home for the vocational Hastings College with 5,000 student places, a primary health care centre and 100 homes.

Looking further ahead, Pelham Place is intended as a flagship mixed-use urban renaissance development designed by Foster & Partners. Plans include a four star hotel, 32 penthouse apartments, the renovation of the Georgian Grade 2-listed Pelham Arcade, and investment in St Mary's in the Castle, a Grade 2-listed converted church with the potential to become a quality conference and culture venue.

Sea Space are working with English Partnerships on a Millennium Communities Project of 700 new homes in Ore Valley. The plans also include constructing a road to Ore Station, a second site for the new Hastings College and improved green spaces.

St Leonards

In March 2006 Hastings Borough Council was awarded funding of almost £1million from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to restore St Leonards Gardens and South Lodge .

The gardens originated as a subscription garden at the centrepiece of James Burton's purpose built seaside resort town and were opened to the public in 1880. Since then they were allowed to deteriorate, becoming unappealing and underused.

Bexhill (Rother District Council)

The regeneration of nearby Bexhill town centre is supported by Sea Space working with Rother District Council, whose Masterplan includes:
• Landscaping of the promenade and refurbishment of the Colonnade and Marina Arcade
• Expansion of the town to the north with 1,100 new homes and 50,000m² of business space
• Commercial premises on the former Sidley Goods Yard
• A new high quality hotel in the town centre
• Relocation of Bexhill High School in 2009 to new premises to the north of the town, backed by £34M from the national Building Schools for the Future programme
• New leisure, training and business facilities plus housing on the current High School site

These developments are designed to give new economic purpose to the declining town by introducing a town centre business community; providing much needed spending power to sustain its ailing retail offer and providing complementary visitor, business and education activity to support the £8 million Heritage Lottery Fund investment in the De La Warr Pavilion.

Challenges

De La Warr pavilion

Hastings university centre