People living near an entertainment site just north St Peter’s Church said that revellers urinated in their gardens and they were sleep-deprived during weeks of Brighton Fringe events.
Some revellers even defecated in their gardens, according to residents of St Peter’s Place, Brighton, who spoke out during a Brighton and Hove City Council licensing panel hearing on Friday (6 February).
They were objecting to a drinks licence application by the council for the grass area north of St Peter’s Church, close to The Level.
If granted, the licensed hours would be from 10am to 10pm from Sunday to Wednesday and from 10am to 10.30pm from Thursday to Saturday.
The hours sought would be longer during the fringe and festival season, from the last weekend in April to the first weekend in June.
On non-bank holiday weeks, the licensed hours if granted would be from 11am to 11pm from Sundays to Wednesdays and from 11am to midnight from Thursdays to Saturdays. On bank holiday weekends, the hours on a Sunday would also be from 11am to midnight.
Neighbours said that they did not want a repeat of the heavy bass during Caravanserai – the last event at the site held in May 2023.
Maja Myall told the panel that the sleep deprivation led to her daughter dropping four grades in her English GCSE, compared with her predicted grade.
As a result, she missed out on a place at her first-choice university despite getting straight A grades at A level.
Mrs Myall said: “This proves a direct causal link between the venue’s operation and measurable harm to a child’s development.
“This May, she will be at home completing first-year university law exams so she will be doing exams again when this event is proposed.”
Mrs Myall said that people had urinated in their garden and a man was caught with his trousers down ready to defecate.
She said that events should end at 9.30pm, with all amplified music finishing at 9pm and with sound limiters on speakers.
Another neighbour, Tom Lines, said that there was no barrier stopping the sound rising to his bedroom or the homes of thousands of other residents lining the valley.
Mr Lines said: “The pounding bass and drum notes, in particular, rise insistently to bedrooms and higher. It is like forced attendance at a stadium rock concert but for hours on end, day after day, week after week.”
He wanted the area to stay as open green space rather than used for “alcohol-fuelled activities late at night”, without the later May hours, without off-sales of alcohol and with noise restrictions.
Anja Neidring described previous events as “pure torture” and has complained about the noise to event managers in the past but said that she was ignored.
She said: “My daughter has to be fit in the morning for college and I need sleep. I work as a teacher in early education. The late hours are entirely unacceptable.
“From a prior experience, it is like having a night club within 20 metres of my bedroom.”
Green councillor Ellen McLeay, who represents West Hill and North Laine ward, spoke on behalf of a resident, David Williams, who lives 30 metres from the proposed site.
During the 2023 event he was forced to leave his home for two weeks because of the disturbance.
Councillor McLeay said: “David accepts that living in central Brighton means some disruption. He welcomes major events – the Marathon, Pride and the Naked Bike Ride – because they are temporary and proportionate.
“But the length and intensity of this licence make it untenable.”
Council outdoor events manager Ian Baird told the panel that a different operator would run Caravanserai this year and it would not take place every day.
The existing licence, which allowed drink sales and entertainment until 2am the entire length of Valley Gardens, is due to be surrendered, replaced by separate licences for each site, with earlier closing times.
Mr Baird said that the area was considered a performance and grassroots music venue which would have closing times of midnight and 1am although events would not go on so late.
Three draft conditions were proposed for the new licence. One would ensure that sound systems were under the control of a site manager who could turn down the volume.
Traders would also come under the control of the site manager and no noise should be audible from 11pm.
Off-sales would only be offered by markets at the site, with alcohol sold in sealed containers from a stall.
Currently, the council can use the site for 28 days for events without having to submit a planning application.
Mr Baird said: “We are applying for a planning application for this location. The basis of this is the 28 days must include the build and break activity.
“The application will allow for a slight extension to the 28 days for the build and break. That does not mean there will be live entertainment beyond those 28 days.”
Brighton Fringe submitted a supporting letter stating that there would be no events on Tuesdays and the venue would open five days a week.
The panel of three councillors – Julie Cattell, Sam Parrott and Kerry Pickett – retired to make their decision which should be made public within five working days.
