The Brighton & Hove Wrap - 23rd May 2025
Marina dredging challenged, basketball merger + cannabis seizure
🔔Happy Friday and thanks for reading. The Brighton & Hove Wrap will take a brief break over the next fortnight, returning on 13th June. 🔔
⛵Brighton Marina has had its dredging licence renewed by the government’s Marine Management Organisation (MMO), prompting criticism from local conservation groups and Chris Ward MP.
➡The marina dredges to clear the entrance to the harbour for boats, but can currently dispose of dredged materials into the Beachy Head West Marine Conservation Zone, reports Savannah Nicholson.
🌃There’s a new mural by street artist Dan Kitchener on the side of the Big Beach Cafe in Hove. (The Argus)
🏪After 40 years, Vinod and Meena of community convenience shop Bright News in Buckingham Road, Brighton, are retiring. The store will continue to operate under new management, says Bright News’ Facebook page.
🏳️🌈Brighton & Hove LGBTQ+ support charity, Switchboard, has a new CEO, according to Scene.
⚽Brighton & Hove Albion FC will have a permanent gallery space at Brighton Museum & Art Gallery from the start of the 2026/27 season, opening in August 2026.
🔵Meanwhile, a new BHAFC megastore will open at the AMEX stadium on 2nd July, says the club.
🏊The new RNLI-run lifeguard service for the city starts this weekend. RNLI lifeguards will operate at 10 different sites between Hove and Saltdean until 7th September, reports the BBC.
🏀Brighton Bears basketball club, currently in England’s fourth division, is to merge with Worthing Thunder of the second division, writes the BBC.
➡“This merger brings together decades of legacy, excellence and fierce rivalry to create a united force, dedicated to driving elite basketball development and community impact across the south coast,” the clubs said in a joint statement.
🏓In table tennis, Brighton were named Senior British Clubs League Premier Division champions this week, retaining their title.
⛔The food court at the base of the seafront zip wire by the Palace Pier will be dismantled and removed by the start of 2027. The Argus has the details.
🏄♀️Sky News has footage of Brighton’s contribution to a UK series of paddle-out protests organised by Surfers Against Sewage last weekend (17th).
➡The demonstration by the West Pier was part of a national day of action calling on water companies to take action over sewage spills and discharge into the sea.
😬On Thursday, the council said it was investigating a small sink hole on Eastern Road, “near the hospital”. The area has been made safe and repairs are planned.
🏦The current mayor of Brighton & Hove, Labour councillor Mohammed Asaduzzaman, has stepped down this week, reports Brighton and Hove News.
➡Fellow Labour councillor Amanda Grimshaw has been appointed as the new mayor.
🚨A Brighton man has been jailed for seven years for the rape, abuse and control of a woman in 2024 (Sussex Police report).
🌿Separately, a man has been charged and remanded in custody after a suitcase containing a “signifcant amount of cannabis” was seized from an address in Boulevard Place, Hove, in May (8th).
👗A new branch of Nobody’s Child opened in East Street on Thursday (22nd) — the clothing brand’s second bricks-and-mortar shop outside of London, reports Retail Gazette.
📅Coming up…
🍻The Joker pub on Preston Road, Brighton, celebrates its 10th annivesary on the 6-8th June:
📝The European Writers Salon got in touch about its literary mixer event on 26th June, featuring two Brighton writers and hosted by Afrori Books at the Brighthelm Centre.
🪀Brighton & Hove hosts the UK’s national yo-yo contest on 28th June:
