Patcham Place preserved

In the evening sunshine which only reaches it at this time of year.

The gate posts & fencing.

The KSD Group took over the lease of Patcham Place in 2012 and deserve every credit for the thoroughness with which they have restored and maintained Patcham Place since.

Following recurrent thefts of lead prior to 2014 estate-style mild steel fencing and handsome gate posts were installed.  Remnants of original wrought-iron fencing are still to be found at the top of Coney Hill.

Patcham Place was built in the 16th.C but the facade was later modified with the black mathematical tiles that can be seen today. It is said to be haunted by one of its owners Anthony Stapley who lived there c1620-1655. He was a leading Puritan and Parliamentarian in the area and one of the 59 MPs who signed Charles I's death warrant.

Previous posts:

Move to dispose of Patcham Place 

Patcham Place Proposals

Patcham Place Stables

Fencing for Patcham Place

Tourism 2016

Latest figures released by Tourism South East show the city attracted a total of 11,234,000 visitors in 2016, an increase of 6.4% on 2015.

On a regional and national level, the overall picture shows that Brighton & Hove is performing well, while England saw visitor numbers increase by 4%, the South East, overall, recorded a decrease of 2%.

Total expenditure by visitors to Brighton & Hove is estimated to have been in the region of £885.9 million in 2016, an increase of 3.2% compared to 2015.

The data also shows the city had  9,627,000 day trippers,  a 5.8% upturn on 2015, while the amount of money spent during their trip increased by 6.2% to £353 million.

The number of overnight stays in the city showed the biggest increase at 1,607,000, just over 10% up on 2015.  Domestic visitors were shown to be the group that had contributed most to this growth with almost 15% more overnight trips made by UK travellers compared with 2015 figures. 

The only figure to have dipped slightly is the number of overnight trips made by overseas visitors, which was down marginally, by 2.1%, though both the length and value of each trip has increased.

About Tourism South East (TSE)
TSE is a not-for-profit organisation with a mission to provide services and expertise that supports the performance and growth of tourism businesses and destinations. Services provided include:  domestic and international marketing campaigns, PR and web promotions, training courses, research and visitor information services, networking opportunities and advocacy.

Read more about the Economic Impact of Tourism Study, Brighton & Hove

Christmas Lights switch-on '17

 This year’s big switch-on event will take place on Thursday 16th November from 5:15pm

From 5pm on Thursday 16th November, Brighton city centre will burst into festive spirit with a FREE party in East Street. The event, organised by Brilliant Brighton is in association with 107.2 Juice FM and Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice, while the Christmas lights are being sponsored by Southern Water.

This year’s event showcases the enchanting 40-strong all-female Brighton choir, We Bop, along with the angelic young voices from Hove’s Singing’s Cool and performers from renowned The Theatre Workshop, starting the feel-good family festivities.

Comedic group AFOUR will also be performing their fun, tongue-in-cheek Christmas song Four Kings.

There will also be a raffle with fantastic prizes from Brilliant Brighton businesses, with all donations going directly to children’s hospice, Chestnut Tree House.

Googlebox stars Chris Butland-Steed and Stephen Webb (who live locally) will have the all-important task of counting down and flicking the switch to unveil Brighton’s festive lights. These will  include the new "Ho Ho Ho", voted for by the public, in September.

The event is staged by Brilliant Brighton,  an organisation formed of 517 businesses who put on the switch-on event and collectively pay the £75,000 per year fee to ensure the city is lit up at Christmas, and sponsored by Southern Water.

UK's Most Entrepreneurial City

According to a survey carried out by Instant Offices, Brighton takes the top spot for Most Entrepreneurial City in the UK with London only coming 12th.

John Williams, Head of Marketing at Instant Offices says “I can understand the appeal of Brighton and the south coast of England. It is a bit of an antidote to the hustle and bustle of the capital while possessing a strong, creative industry and really appealing to business owners and workers seeking a more relaxed alternative to London. We have seen record demand for office space in Brighton and also a large increase in the number of operators trying to set up space in the city to cater for its growing business community.”