Lewes District Council – News – October 2026

Pool at Seahaven Swim & Fitness Centre has now reopened at Wellbeing Square

Following the official opening of Wellbeing Square last month, the swimming pool in the newly remodelled building has also now reopened.

Operated by Wave Active, the pool offers casual swim sessions, new aquatic classes, as well as the Swim School lessons.

Wellbeing Square has also introduced:

• A brand-new, purpose-built gym and studio facilities
• Two brand-new fitness and holistic studios
• Lilian’s Room Lite, opening in October
• A lovely café for breaks between sessions

The landmark Wellbeing Square has brought modern, integrated and purpose‑built health and wellbeing facilities to the centre of Newhaven.

The completed scheme includes two state‑of‑the‑art GP practices and an extension to Seahaven Swim & Fitness Centre, creating a unique environment where healthcare, wellbeing and community services are delivered side‑by‑side.

A new pharmacy is also coming soon.

Led by Lewes District Council, the £21 million project makes full use of council‑owned town centre properties to revitalise healthcare provision in Newhaven. The project has been delivered with funding from the UK Government and Lewes District Council.

Find out more here:

Wellbeing Square opening ‘proud moment’ for council

Tenant confirmed for Shakespeare Hall Cafe and Community Hall

Progress on West Beach restaurant

Following the selection of a preferred tenant through an Expression of Interest process and the successful completion of the construction tender, the project continues to progress through its pre-construction phase.

Work is currently focused on resolving several servicing requirements ahead of finalising the build contract, with the aim of entering into contract by the end of December 2026.

Once delivered, the scheme will provide a new destination for residents and visitors, featuring a restaurant, outdoor facilities, public conveniences including a Changing Places facility, enhanced landscaping, and additional informal open space. The restaurant itself will provide around 80 indoor covers within a circa 4,065 sq ft space, with the potential for a further 75 alfresco dining covers across an upper terrace and lower deck.

Robinson Road Waste & Recycling Depot

Planning permission for the upgrade of the Waste & Recycling Depot in Robinson Road, Newhaven, was granted in October 2025.

Following an initial tender exercise that returned costs above the available budget, the project team has reviewed the scheme and developed a revised scope of works but that continues to deliver the main original project outputs for improved facilities and on-site operations.

To support operations, Phase 1 of the project – the new electric vehicle charging facility on Lewes Road, has been operational since April 2026. The facility is performing well, providing dedicated EV charging infrastructure and parking for the council’s fleet of 16 vehicles, enabling the Environment First team to efficiently deliver services across the district. In addition, the site provides storage space for new wheelie bins, helping to support the ongoing delivery
of waste and recycling services.

The new scope of works at Robinson Road includes reconfiguration and refurbishment of existing buildings to provide improved and accessible welfare and office facilities for staff, provision of EV charging for the current and planned
electric fleet including a new substation, and selective demolition of unused buildings making space for additional charging bays for the small vehicles.

A new tender has been issued, with award of the design and build contract anticipated by mid November 2026 and at the same time, the contactor’s programme will be confirmed.

To facilitate the works, Environment First will temporarily relocate its operations to The Port. This arrangement will ensure services can continue uninterrupted and will provide interim EV charging facilities for the new fleet while the Robinson Road upgrades are completed. The project team will work with the contractor to advance demolition of existing buildings at the site alongside the detailed design phase to help expedite the programme.

Railway Approach car park closures

Railway Approach car park, beside the Marine Worshops be closed to allow for ground surveys to take place on the following days:

• Tuesday 27 October
• Monday 21 December
• Tuesday 22 December
• Wednesday 23 December

The surveys come ahead of resurfacing work, planned for next year, which will be part of a renovation of the car park.
We’ll also be using the closures as an opportunity to fill potholes in the car park.

The closest alternative car parks are:

• Dacre Road
• Lower Place
• Denton Island
• West Quay

Top tips for post-Halloween pumpkins

Some think leaving old pumpkins in wooded areas or public green spaces is “helping the wildlife” but this can actually cause animals serious harm.

Pumpkins are not a natural food source for local wildlife like hedgehogs. In fact, decomposing pumpkin flesh can make them ill at a critical time of year when they need to gain weight for winter hibernation.

Use your weekly food waste collection: Chop them up and place them into your weekly food waste collection bin. Our team will then take them to be composted into soil conditioner, to be used by local farmers and gardeners.

Sign-up for free food waste collections

The best way to ensure wild hedgehogs are well-fed is to create organic wild spaces, leafy corners and log piles where they can forage for natural foods, like grubs and insects. Find out more here: Feeding Hedgehogs

Don’t replace it, repair it

We are so lucky to have a brilliant, bustling network of volunteer-led Repair Cafés across Lewes district! Repairs are usually free, with donations invited. They are also a chance to have a chat over a cup of tea and a slice of cake.

A new Repair Cafe for Peacehaven

Peacehaven’s new Repair Cafe will launch on Saturday 21 November 2026 from 10am to 1pm at Community House, Peacehaven (BN10 8BB).

They are looking for Volunteer Fixers – friendly, practical-minded people who are happy to share their skills, knowledge and expertise with others and help give broken or well-loved items a new lease of life. To find out more, please email info@peacehaventowncouncil.gov.uk

Chailey Repair Cafe

Giving your unwanted items a second life

Anglo Doorstep Collections – The clothes and “bric-a-brac” specialist ​

If you have bags of clothes, shoes, kitchenware, or small household and electrical items piling up, Anglo Doorstep Collections brings the charity shop right to your front door.

Operating a national, free collection service, their core focus is on driving the circular economy and keeping everyday textiles and goods out of wheelie bins.

​When you book a pick-up online, you get to choose the charity your donation supports from their list of partners—including Action for Children, the RSPCA, Together for Short Lives, and Advance.

As a bonus, they team up with climate action platform, Ecology to plant a tree for every single booking made.

Anglo Doorstep Collections

Furniture Now! The furniture and white goods champion

​If you are upgrading a washing machine, redecorating a living room, or clearing out larger household items, Furniture Now (part of the Now! Charity Group) is your go-to local hero. Operating hubs across East Sussex in Lewes, Eastbourne and Hailsham, their heart is firmly planted in our local community. ​

Furniture Now focuses on fighting local poverty and social exclusion. Instead of letting high-quality furniture or appliances go to waste, they ensure these essentials reach families and individuals facing financial hardship.

They sell and accept donations of reusable household furniture, electrical appliances, and smaller homeware.

Furniture Now!

Please keep these items out of your recycling bin

Lewes district consistently has one of the lowest recycling contamination rates in the country.

To help keep this up, please remember to keep the following items out of your recycling bin:

• Food waste and liquids: These can soak into paper and cardboard, making clean materials impossible to recycle.
• Batteries and vapes: These pose a serious fire hazard for our collection crews when crushed inside the trucks or at the sorting depot.
• Textiles: Items like old clothes or towels.
• Nappies and any non-recyclable packaging: These belong in the general waste bin.

If you are ever unsure if an item can be put into the dry mixed recycling, check our A-Z of Reduce, Reuse, Recycle