With Brighton University’s Eastbourne campus looking to close by the 2024 to 2025 academic year; it spells an end to a partnership of a 40 year partnership with Eastbourne brimming from 1979.
With the end of the campus in a few years’ time, it is worth a dig into what this will mean regarding students and their involvement with Eastbourne. When speaking to Sam Nelson; current Student studying at Eastbourne campus, he picked up on the theme of Eastbourne lacking that ‘wow factor’, in terms that it won’t be able to compete with Brighton’s nightlife once all the students have left. Implying that Eastbourne is only nightlife to Students studying here due to connivance. He stated,’ the only reason i could see myself going to Eastbourne for a night out is perhaps good friends staying there or family there and they can’t make that journey to Brighton’.
Eastbourne doesn’t help itself in terms of nightlife pull. Cameo seems to be the only club that can stay open throughout the year. Embassy as pictured above is constantly under new ownership and has been closed most of the time since covid struck in 2020. While also the pier which once housed a club at its end, now only plays host to a pub, which closes before the sun even has a chance to go down. If Eastbourne wants to keep student attention, investment into the night scene is a must.
