Hastings Commons is proud to celebrate the opening of Eagle House after a comprehensive refurbishment bringing this old building right up to date as an asset for the community. Its launch on 11th February will be accompanied by a number of events to welcome people to celebrate and show their love to other recently opened spaces at 12 Claremont and the Observer Rooftop.

Home to the Common Room – a place for folk to sit down with a cuppa, have a chat, and feel more human – Eagle House, at 27-29 Cambridge Road, Hastings, is now also home to the Youth Commons, which works with 11-18 year olds and responds to their wants and needs in and around Hastings. Joining the Youth Commons on the lower ground floor are OBX, Hastings Commons’ Creative Technology hub, which works with communities to run workshops, talks, exhibitions and arts projects. Three further floors have been renovated to a high quality, offering genuinely affordable rents to support socially conscious businesses to thrive.

The new-look Eagle House will be opening up at 5.00pm on Wednesday 11th February for the first time with a collaborative welcome hosted by the Youth Council, the anchors of the Public Living Room, and OBX – showing that it’s here, open and ready for you to Show Your Love! The Youth Council will be serving up soft drinks and homemade sweet treats, doing crafts and offering tours of the new space. The Common Room’s friendly team of anchors invite you in for a chat and a cheese experience, while OBX will be opening their new exhibition, Machine as Collaborator?, on the floor below.

Continuing the theme, you are invited to Show Your Love to 12 Claremont, another building beautifully restored to serve as a vibrant hub for creativity, inclusion and community engagement, with an open house welcome 6-8pm from Amici Studios and Project Art Works.

If that’s not enough, and while love is in the air, the roof-top bar at the Observer Building will reopen at the weekend for cocktails, cakes (and blankets). After a fantastic summer pop-up, come Show Your Love for the OB on date night, mates’ night or self-love night this Valentine’s weekend and enjoy the best views in town. With plans to reopen permanently later in the year, every penny of profit from the rooftop goes into supporting the work of the Youth Commons – so it’s a drink with purpose!

“Seven years ago on Valentines Day 2019 we first got the keys to the Observer Building, and we celebrated with a party to show it our love,” says Gini Simpson, Hastings Commons Creative Lead. “This year we have two new Valentines – Eagle House and 12 Claremont – and we’re celebrating… The launch of the Common Room and the Youth Commons at Eagle House are the latest milestones in Hastings Commons’ mission to return historic buildings to public use in ways that are inclusive, sustainable and locally rooted.”

Young People’s Group at the Common Room

A new meetup group for those in their 20s and 30s will be starting on the 5 April at the Common Room on Cambridge Road. It will be held the first Wednesday of the month from 18.00-19.30 and will offer the chance to get to know new people over a cup of tea in a casual space. People can drop in and come and go as they please. To find out more contact Kathryn on 07706035330.

Pop-up fundraiser for bonfire fun

To help raise funds to put on this year’s event, Hastings Borough Bonfire Society are holding a Pop-Up Shop fundraiser in the Old Town, open from Saturday 1 April to Sunday 9 April, 11.00-17.00. The shop will be in the old “Stone Corner” where the High Street and Courthouse Street join. It will sell all manner of donated goods at bargain prices.

It is also an ideal opportunity to come and talk to volunteers about the society and find out about joining HBBS, as well as all the numerous activities that members undertake throughout the year to put on their annual spectacular.

Pop in to say hello, bag a bargain and support your local Bonfire Society, so they can continue to put on the very best bonfire event in Sussex.

Karmabank Crowdfunder

Karmabank is a local charity completely run by volunteers, set up and led by Rima Sams. Since May last year, Rima has collected surplus food from supermarkets, local groceries and fareshare which would otherwise be destined for landfill, and redistributed it to the local community with the help of a small group of volunteers.

Every Thursday lunchtime Karmabank offers anyone experiencing financial difficulty a warm, nutritious three-course meal; and a take-home shopping bag brimming with fruit, veg, baked goods, and a couple of tinned items. Their team of volunteers prepare and cook the meals and fill shopping bags with quality fresh surplus produce.

Demand for their service is growing as the sharp increase in cost of living is pushing more local people into financial hardship, and new arrivals are being temporarily housed in hotel accommodation with no cooking facilities. Karmabank have needed to move to Concordia Hall for more space, and are crowdfunding for essential kitchen equipment including a dishwasher, oven and food processor. They’re also recruiting new volunteers to help meet their increased demand. 

Find their crowdfunder at: crowdfunder.co.uk/p/karmabankhastings

This week Kathryn Sutter met Lara and Al, owners of Spanish-on-Sea, an accessible and friendly Spanish language school in Hastings Town Centre.

Lara and Al were, like many, drawn to the town following the pandemic, arriving in July 2021 after many years spent in London. ‘We had known the town for several years after coming with friends to the Beatwave festival,’ explained Lara. ‘After the pandemic, it just felt right to come here, we were ready for a change. I am from Madrid and had always lived in large cities so was not used to living in a smaller town. However, I think Hastings has quite a Spanish vibe, people look out for each other here.’

Both Lara and Al worked in Education in London. When moving to Hastings they realised that there wasn’t a dedicated Spanish Language School in the town. They quickly started a free Spanish Club in the Common Room, which was a big success. ‘Since the day we arrived in Hastings, everyone has been so friendly and kind to us, so we started the free club to give something back to the community,’ shared Al, who was born in London, but moved to Vigo in Galicia when he was three. ‘Over time we realised that running a school could be a good opportunity for us. We had never run a business before, so it was quite a risk’.

Spanish-on-Sea has only been running for a year but has grown to become a lively school offering lessons four days a week. It has just moved to new premises on Cambridge Road. ‘We offer something for everyone – from small kids to adults – and also teach GCSE and A Level Spanish,’ said Lara. ‘Our classes have a big focus on culture and colloquial Spanish so the things our students learn are useful when they go to Spanish speaking countries, we teach Spanish from the street,’ added Al.

The couple’s work has spread further into the community and in October they started a monthly Spanish film club at the Electric Palace Cinema to bring more Spanish Culture to the town. They are also keen to involve themselves actively in local affairs. ‘I volunteer at the Refugee Buddy Project teaching GCSE English, which I enjoy,’ shared Lara. Meanwhile Al said, ‘I had never attended a protest in my life, but attended the Southern Water protests last year – it was important to show my support for the issue.’

The couple has come a long way since they met 12 years ago and even decided to get married last year to complement their new life in Hastings. As with any new business they face challenges but feel that this town is the perfect place to be. ‘Everyone we have met so far has encouraged us, which has made us keep going, we hope we can continue to make our lives and the school a success’.

– Find out more by searching Spanish-on-Sea on Facebook and Instagram. Their next Spanish Film night at the Electric Palace will be on the 1st March. The school can be found at 7 Cambridge Road, TN34 1ST. 

Volunteer Shelley explains “Our ‘Print Saturdays’ are for people who are not digitally connected. We started three weeks ago, and so far we have printed a postal return label, some song sheets, a job application form and photocopied some knitting patterns.

We also do ‘scan and send’ using a specially set up email account. We call it ‘functional printing’, it’s not fancy and while we do charge, (5p per sheet with a discount for Library of Things members), it’s not a profit making venture.” People can print up to 10 sheets at a time, and, if they need it, Hastings Library of Things also has a laminator, shredder, guillotine, thermal and comb binders, which members can borrow for an annual fee of £3.00.

Umbrella Sussex is part of the ‘sharing’ economy, running projects that support ‘people helping people’, sharing resources and skills in ways that bring people together. Their two main projects are Make and Mend (Bexhill and Beyond) and Hastings Library of Things.

Make and Mend run Fixing Fridays 12-4 most Fridays, inviting people to bring broken things for mending, and to drink tea together.

The Functional Print Service is available Saturdays, 1-4pm, in Hastings Library of Things Showcase, Rear of the Common Room, Eagle House, 27-29 Cambridge Road, Hastings, TN34 1DJ. For more information, visit: umbrellasussex.org.uk/news