Music venue owners in the city have a new guide to help them understand and navigate the planning system.

“The guide is invaluable for venues that are under threat, providing a much-needed pathway of how to navigate what needs to happen,” said Sally Oakenfold, Director & Chair, Music Venues Alliance Brighton. “This will ultimately help protect Brighton & Hove’s vibrant and fertile live music scene for now and future generations.

“As the needs of business and the requirements of development change across the city, resources like this guide will help us work with venues to ensure that our identity as a city of music is preserved.”

Councillor Mitchie Alexander, Cabinet member for Culture, Heritage and Tourism added: “The city’s live music scene is a pillar of our nighttime and visitor economies and our venues provide entertainment and joy to our residents and visitors.

“They also provide essential jobs for musicians, creatives and other workers, and help maintain our reputation as one of the best places in the country to develop a creative career.

“As a mother of a young jobbing musician, it’s wonderful to have seen her perform in a number of our grassroots music venues recently.

“It’s so important for our creative city to support our music venues. Currently for a small city we have a lot of clout in the music industry, and we need to protect this admirable reputation.

“By working in partnership with the Music Venue Trust we can ensure we are providing the support needed to protect our vital grassroots music venues.”

The guide has been developed through consultations and workshops between venue operators, planning experts and council representatives.

Events have included a workshop on the ‘Agent of Change’ policy and a cross-departmental meeting between council officers and venue operators at one of Brighton’s iconic venues, the Hope & Ruin.

The publication provides clear and practical advice on how to engage with the planning process and covers key topics such as understanding local planning policies and communicating with planning authorities.

Sophie Asquith, Venues Support Team Manager, Music Venue Trust, said: “We have been pleased to work in partnership with the council this year, recognising the importance of grassroots music venues and their position in a growing, creative city.

“We’re proud to culminate the work in publishing this Practical Guide, giving venue operators the tools to be able to respond to neighbouring planning applications and better understand the planning process.”

She added that through its Emergency Response Service, the Music Venue Trust has already supported venues to respond to a record number of planning applications.

“We have seen first-hand the importance of Grassroots Music Venue operators and their engaged audiences having confidence in the planning system, and how the council can support them.

“We hope to build from here and work with the council to cement the importance of the city’s dynamic, world-famous GMV scene,”

The guide is available for free and can be downloaded from the resources section on Culture in Our City.