Hastings nightclub for adults with disabilities marks big anniversary

A Hastings nightclub for adults with disabilities and/or neurodiversity is celebrating a remarkable 20 years of success, great fun and happiness.

Millie Rowland, founder of Millie's Nightclub which meets monthly at The White Rock Theatre, says the club will be celebrating their 20th anniversary in style.

They will be at the venue on Friday, June 5 (Studio 27, 7-10pm) when the guests will be live band Admiral Finns.

Millie explains: “Millie's Nightclub is a nightclub for adults with disabilities and/or neurodiversity, living in Hastings and surrounding areas.

“We were founded in June 2006, following a night out in Hastings. My sister Charlie has cerebral palsy and wanted to go nightclubbing. But it was so inaccessible. So we sat down the next day to talk through what a good nightclub would look like for her: accessible, earlier and affordable were the three key points.

“Accessibility is about having not too many stairs, also not too deep a bar, somewhere also where it’s not too loud. Charlie has got a bit of a speech impediment and if it's too noisy, it can be difficult for her. She's also got quite a lot of friends in wheelchairs so it needs to be accessible for them as well, the whole venue.

“She was finding it frustrating. It can be distressing when you haven't got those things that you need, and when she gets a bit embarrassed her speech impediment gets worse. You just want an environment that takes away all those worries.

“I spoke with a local venue and some friends, and in June 2006, Millie's Nightclub opened. In our 20 years since we have hired four venues and have found a new permanent home with The White Rock. We employ three DJ's with disabilities, alongside our cloakroom staff and security staff.

“The very first night we opened I remember my mum came along as well to help and she said come and look outside and there was a queue all the way down. We realised that we had created something that was going to stay around. I remember growing up my sister saw me working in nightclubs and in bars and saying she wanted to be part of that and on that first night 60 people turned up all with additional needs.

“We now meet the nightclubbing needs of 120 people living with disability or neurodiversity in our local area.”

In fact, the club has become a right of passage for the local college, Millie says.

“The White Rock is great because it is well known, and a lot of our members go to shows there. It's very accessible and just knowing that there are the White Rock staff there gives an extra level of safety and security. And they're just so welcoming. As soon as we approached them, they said ‘You are what we need!’

“I'm one of those people that just gets on with things in life and gets things done. I work in adult social care but this is something that I feel very proud of, and I want to make sure that it's around for another 20 years if not more.”

It doesn't have a set night each month: “It depends what is on at the theatre. They wouldn't want a noisy club maybe when they were having a quiet poetry night there. But that's fine. They always fit us in and we have never missed a month, plus it is such a good space for us.”