Key figure at Sussex University and West Pier Trust dies at 87

One of the founding fathers of Sussex University who went on to become chief executive of the West Pier Trust has died at the age of 87.

Tributes were paid by both organisations to Geoff Lockwood who was also a long-serving clerk to the sight loss charity Blatchington Court Trust.

Mr Lockwood came to Sussex in 1961, joining the administrative team at Knoyle Hall before the Falmer campus officially opened a year later.

He succeeded Ted Shields as the university registrar and secretary in 1973, serving until his retirement in 1996 when he was recognised with an honorary degree from the university.

Mr Lockwood worked with the first five vice-chancellors and the first three chancellors and, according to one his successors, John Duffy, he earned “a substantial national and international reputation”.

The West Pier Trust said: “It was with great sadness that we heard of the death of Geoff Lockwood shortly before Christmas.

“A former chief executive and board member of the West Pier Trust, he was a key figure in the period 1995 to 2009 during which full restoration of the pier became a possibility before our hopes were dashed by the arson attacks of 2003.

“It was Admiral Sir Lindsay Bryson, the Lord Lieutenant of East Sussex and Brighton and Hove and chairman of the West Pier Trust, who persuaded him to join the board in 1995.

“As an enthusiast for all aspects of Sussex and Brighton life, Admiral Sir Lindsay had talent-spotted Geoff as an administrator who could be of great service to the pier.

“And so it proved. After his retirement from the university, Geoff assumed the role of chief executive of the trust, later becoming deputy chairman.

“He worked tirelessly to further the trust’s aims and was instrumental in securing Heritage Lottery funding of over £15 million that would have safeguarded the pier’s future but for the arson attacks, after which the Heritage Lottery Fund withdrew the funding offer.

“He stepped down as trust chief executive in 2009 but remained on the board until July 2016.

“Geoff was a great servant to and friend of the trust and his efforts earned the gratitude of everybody who values the West Pier.”

Mr Duffy said: “He was an excellent sportsman still turning up regularly on the squash court well in to his seventies.

“Geoff was a great family man and he was always quick to acknowledge the key role which his wife Helena played in building a close community in the early days of the university. He was immensely proud of his children and his grandchildren.”