Sussex Police Re-Open Beach Hut On Brighton Beach

Monday, 3 August 2020 06:38

By Iona Stewart-Richardson @IslandIona

Sussex Police is re-opening the doors to the beach hut on Brighton beach, to help keep people safe and engage with local communities.

Building on the success of last year, the beach hut, named The Lookout has a dedicated location in a busy and popular area of Brighton seafront near the carousel and fishing museum where officers and partners can engage with the public during the busy summer months.

It will be used by the Brighton and Hove Prevention Team and other partner agencies as a visible presence for the community and visitors to the city who are encouraging residents and visitors to visit the beach hut.

Officers and partners will provide information about crime prevention and safety, as well as offering a safe space if needed.

It opened this weekend and is expected to have officers from the Prevention team there every day throughout the summer.

The partners involved include Brighton and Hove City Council, East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service and others who will be using the beach hut during the daytime to delivery wide ranging community and safety messages. It will also contain safety equipment for use in emergencies.

Divisional commander Chief Superintendent Nick May said:

"The beach hut is an innovative way of working collaboratively with our partners to reduce and prevent problems and issues linked to our busy beach and seafront area.

"It provides a high visibility presence enabling my officers, PCSOs and our partners to engage positively with the community and provide a policing presence during a time which can normally be a busy period for the city."

Group Manager Nigel Cusack, East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said: "Brighton’s seafront is hugely popular and it’s important to us that people are able to enjoy it safely both in and out of the sea.

"We can save lives by helping people understand how to respect the water, whether it’s avoiding alcohol if you’re going to swim, keeping a close eye on kids playing in the waves or knowing what to do if you see someone in trouble.

"The beach hut project is a great way to share advice and highlight dangers, and we are pleased to continue to support the project alongside our local partners.

"We look forward to working together again to help keep residents and visitors in Brighton and Hove safe."

Future plans are also underway to move the beach hut to other parts of the city after summer.