Friends of Eastbourne Bandstand community interest company is formed

A community interest group (CIC) for Eastbourne Bandstand has been formed to support the attraction.
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A CIC is a kind of non-charitable limited company which exists to benefit a community.

Now Friends of Eastbourne Bandstand CIC has been formed. The Grade II listed building is currently being renovated by Eastbourne Borough Council (EBC) and is due to reopen in Spring 2023. The council is spending £750,000 on the current renovation, however costs to fully restore it will be in excess of £12 million pounds.

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Directors of the CIC are Chris Leach, current chair of the Eastbourne Society; Helen Burton, Eastbourne Borough Council’s cabinet member for heritage assets; and Hugh Parker, Eastbourne’s heritage champion.

Eastbourne Bandstand CICEastbourne Bandstand CIC
Eastbourne Bandstand CIC

Mr Leach said, “The bandstand is important to our town’s residents as well as visitors, and this nationally significant building needs to remain an icon of the town. The Save the Bandstand campaign has done a great job in highlighting the issues at the bandstand. I am keen to work positively and collaboratively alongside residents and the council moving forward.”

Helen Burton said, “Hopefully I can bring my experience in organising volunteers and fundraising to support the bandstand into the future, and the fact that I am also a councillor means I can help to coordinate action, bringing the council and the community together. Now there is a CIC we can apply for grants that the council cannot access.”

The directors said, “We aim to recruit volunteers to manage the bandstand in collaboration with the council, fundraising, promoting it and helping to run events there, moving forward positively. We want to further embed the bandstand within the hearts of residents by holding a wider range of events, managed by volunteers in collaboration with the council. We’re really excited about this new development in the bandstand’s history, and we invite others to get involved. We will be arranging a meeting soon to coordinate our plans and will invite others to join us.”

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Gaynor Sedgwick, chair of Save Eastbourne Bandstand and Friends of Eastbourne Seafront, said, “We hope the CIC set up by Cllr Burton will be successful in grant funding for the bandstand. We regard it as a success that EBC have at long last turned their attention to the bandstand and are giving it the attention it deserves.”

You can contact the group by email at [email protected]