Brighton SEND nursery move approved by council

The nursery's current site in Palmeira Avenue, Hove, was described as “increasingly unsuitable and inaccessible”.

A nursery for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in East Sussex has been given the green light to move to a new site.

The Jeanne Saunders Centre charity's current base in Palmeira Avenue, Hove, was said to be “increasingly unsuitable and inaccessible”.

Brighton & Hove City Councillors (BHCC) voted unanimously to approve the sale of the Connaught Annex in nearby Connaught Road to the charity to enable it to improve accessibility for children.

BHCC is the sole trustee of the charity and owns the Connaught Annex.

BHCC voted unanimously to approve the sale of the Connaught Annex (in yellow) to the Jeanne Saunders Centre charity for £800,000

The annex, also known as the Connaught Day Centre, was occupied by West Hove Primary School until 2022.

A BHCC committee heard that once the nursery moves to the Connaught Road site, it will be based on a single open-plan floor, with an outside area, allowing the children to “free flow”, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The charity said it would fund the £800,000 purchase by selling its current site.

BHCC previously said it would seek legal advice to avoid a conflict of interest in selling a building it owns to a charity it runs.

Questions were raised at the committee meeting on Thursday regarding the normality of a council being the sole trustee of a charity.

BHCC chief executive Jess Gibbons said that it was not uncommon for councils to be the sole trustee and the charity would be managed in line with Charity Commission rules.

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