Edwina Livesey Councillor for Lewes

29/09/2025

I've been really enjoying working with young people from Priory School and Seaford Head School and with Archaeology South-East on this fantastic project which will fill the old Gorringes huts on Garden St with a fabulous soundscape created in collaboration with artist Simon James from the Lewes and Seaford landscapes, and from the sounds of the huts themselves. This is a unique opportunity to enjoy these buildings as never before, and possibly the last time they will be open to the public. FREE, no booking needed, all welcome, 12-4pm 4th and 5th October 2025.

A Sonic Migration: Listening to the Green Huts -
Sharing Event
SATURDAY 4th and SUNDAY 5th OCTOBER 12-4pm at the GREEN HUTS, GARDEN STREET, LEWES.

Through soundscapes and audio recordings, we invite you to explore the journey of the Lewes Green Huts - corrugated iron structures that began life as a chapel for Canadian, British and Caribbean soldiers during World War I at Seaford Head Camp, before migrating by train to house Lewes cattle market and later Gorringes Auction House.

As the Green Huts near the end of their lives, young artists from Lewes Priory and Seaford Head Schools engaged in listening as both creative practice and historical enquiry. By listening together, we created safe spaces for conversations around the colonial history of these structures, exploring not only the sounds of the huts and original location in Seaford but the unheard and hidden aspects of the experiences around them.

Artist Simon James—the project's creative director—designed workshops to use listening to foster curiosity, playful experimentation, and invite active participation for everyone involved. Further depth and context was added by Archaeology South-East, UCL Archaeologists and Historic Building specialists, a spoken word artist and a historian from the Green Huts project. We considered what home means and what it might be like to leave that home behind. We heard sounds recorded in Jamaica, connecting us sonically to the islands where some of the soldiers came from. We created a pop-up sound installation by playing and recording the building like an instrument. The listening led to the young people becoming archaeological and geographical sleuths, to pinpoint where the original church site would have been—discovering it may have been close to or on the site of their school on Seaford Head.

The soundscapes you'll hear emerge from this collaborative exploration: wind blowing over Seaford Head near that original location, the roar of the sea, corrugated walls and doors played with percussion beaters and brushes, the creak of bolts and locks, footsteps echoing through structures and found objects discarded by the huts most recent residents. Alongside these recordings, the young artists created sound maps, visual collages, and geographical investigations, all on display here.

We share these sounds and discoveries with you as an invitation to continue the listening that began in the workshops. As you listen, consider how spaces hold memory, how history travels, what it means to be at home and how, by listening deeply to ourselves and others, we can connect more compassionately with the unheard often resonating just out of earshot.
Seaford Head School Priory School West India Committee
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61561107132292
https://www.facebook.com/VisitLewesDistrict Sussex Archaeological Society

The project was funded through the AHRC Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) award to University College London (UCL).

25/09/2025

Sadly, after such a long hard fight to save Lewes bus station, our application for a judicial review of the planning permission to replace it with housing no one in Lewes wants has been refused.

Lewes Town Council decided at its Full Council meeting on 6 May to pursue the first stage of a judicial review of the South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA)’s decision to grant planning permission for the former Lewes Bus Station site on Eastgate Street.

13/09/2025

Ben Dempsey will make a fantastic Mayor for Sussex. His humanitarian work in the Middle East including Gaza, and his current work for the Worldwide Fund for Nature, have helped give him the skills and knowledge needed to deliver change at scale. A bonus for us in Lewes is he lives in a village nearby, so knows this area very well. As a former councillor in Mid-Sussex, he understands how local government works. He is in this to make a difference, and I am really looking forward to getting out campaigning for him.

MAYOR OF SUSSEX - VOTE FOR HOPE

I am honoured to have been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of Sussex.

Across Sussex, people are worried about the cost of living, the state of our transport, health and care services, and the condition of our environment.

They are also alarmed at attempts by some to sow division in our communities.

A lot of people have lost all faith in politics. It’s time we restored some hope.

I grew up here in Sussex and have lived here most of my life.

The Sussex I know is decent, tolerant and open-minded. This election is a chance to promote a positive, unifying vision for stronger communities, better services, and a thriving environment.

I have 25 years’ professional experience, mainly in the humanitarian and environment sectors, and I have a PhD in nature conservation from the University of Sussex. In my career, I have experience of bringing people together with a shared vision of what’s possible.

That’s what I will do as Mayor of Sussex, helping to restore decency to our politics and deliver the things people most care about. I will focus on a fair deal on housing, better public transport, and making Sussex a nature superpower

Over the next few months I look forward to listening and talking to people right across our county.

Together, we can chart a prosperous, green and hopeful future for Sussex.

31/08/2025

What a fantastic morning at Lewes Societies Fair! Janet Baah and myself were speaking to residents non-stop about the Tourist Information centre and how volunteers could help get its doors open again. Very hopeful - loads of people signed up, all with so many good ideas. Around 1800 people came through the doors, all keen to contribute to our wonderful town. What an amazing array of clubs and societies we have. Also a fantastic exhibition about Lewes Flood in the Corn Exchange - looking forward to the big event commemorating this on November 1st. And the cake from Southover Bonfire Society was superb.

17/08/2025

A very enjoyable tour of Lewes Town Hall this week with historian and former Mayor Mike Chartier. Such a fascinating building, with former occupants ranging from medieval monks to the home guard in WW2. All part of preparations by staff and councillors for heritage open day on September 14th when this historic building and its stories will be open for everyone to enjoy. I’ve also been looking to the future this week as part of my role on the buildings and amenities committee, with exciting meetings about making green energy cheaper and more accessible for Lewes residents, as well as using modern technology to more effectively survey and manage our green spaces for wildlife. Really hopeful about this.

10/08/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1DmMqSSPLC/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Cllr Janet Baah and I really enjoyed meeting some of our lovely residents and visitors this morning at our pop-up Lewes Welcome stall in the excellent Lewes Car Boot in Phoenix car park. It is a disgrace that for 16 months now our newly-restored Tourist Information Centre at 186 High St has stood empty, earning no revenue at all, whilst Lewes residents have been paying almost £100k pa for a lopsided desk at the front of the LDC help point on Cliffe High St, which isn’t even open at weekends. I am writing regularly to LDC asking what is going on and also proposed a plan whereby volunteers could run 186 on Saturdays, enriching the service. No response. No plan. Can we have our TIC back please.