Brighton Tower Block Closure Disrupts Christmas Trade Over Fire Safety Concerns

Businesses situated in an East Sussex tower block have reported that their Christmas trading has been hindered after the city council ordered the building’s closure due to fire safety risks. Brighton & Hove City Council closed New England House in Brighton with immediate effect on Friday evening, citing the building’s risk level as “intolerable,” which is the highest classification for fire risk. Alice Rivers-Cripps, a tenant and founder of the jewellery company Posh Totty Designs, described the decision to close the building without warning during one of their busiest weekends of the year as “cowardice.” The council has issued an apology to tenants, but stated that the decision was “based on safety and risk to life.” Businesses operating at New England House, which was established in 1963, received an email notification that the premises would be closed at 19:04 GMT on Friday. Ms. Rivers-Cripps, who has worked in the building for 15 years, indicated that a team of 50 staff members had been scheduled to work on-site across Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. She added that the closure had led to a backlog of thousands of orders. “It felt a little underhand that it came at 19:04 on a Friday night. I don’t understand why we couldn’t have been given that information earlier,” she informed BBC Radio Sussex. “It’s an incredible place, but ultimately, it has been left to fall into disrepair. “We could have told you 10 years ago that there were problems, but nobody came forward and helped. And then suddenly overnight, we’re shut out of our own premises.” Jacob Taylor, the deputy leader of the council, conceded that the timing of the closure was a “disaster” for small businesses. However, he explained that the council’s chief executive made the decision for the building to remain closed until full-time fire marshals were available on site, between 15:00 and 16:00 on Friday. “She had to make that decision based on safety and risk to life,” he stated. Mr. Taylor further mentioned that an internal audit concerning the matter would be conducted. The building was subsequently reopened on Tuesday, following the deployment of fire marshals.