SHRA has no involvement in managing or running the Community Centre, which is managed by the Sovereign Harbour Community Association (SHCA). Its two halls, meeting room and cafe area are available for hire. Please visit the SHCC website for further information and to find "What's On": www.sovereignharbourcommunitycentre.com
February 2025 - Bingo and Biccies at the Community Centre - Fancy some fun and a chat? The Community Centre are hosting a Bingo & Biccies event on the first Tuesday of every month commencing on Tuesday, 4 February 2025 at 2pm. Join them for 10 games for £8, with refreshments included. All proceeds go into the prizes fund and towards the upkeep of the Community Centre. Click the image for a full-size version.
December 2024 - SHRA agreed to sponsor the Christmas tree in the foyer of the Community Centre.
The tree was a huge success (literally!). Everyone who visited enjoyed it, and it will be the centrepiece of the Centre’s Christmas festivities for years to come. Click image to enlarge.
October 2024 - The Handover
On 1 October, after a long wait, Eastbourne Borough Council handed the lease of the Sovereign Harbour Community Centre to a community-based charity, the Sovereign Harbour Community Association (SHCA). SHCA is a non-profit, Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) set up with the aim of delivering an environment, service and safe space for the community to come together for companionship, support, well-being, and enjoyment.
The SHCA hopes to host and organise events and activities to welcome everyone to the centre to help launch the newly community-managed facility.
If you let us know about them, SHRA would be happy to promote any community centre events to our members via the SHRA website and in Waterlines: please email details well in advance to: webmaster@shra.co.uk
Since SHRA was established in 2000, it has campaigned for a purpose-built community centre as envisaged by the developers in the original plans. Despite promises and commitments by the developers and the local council during the ensuing years, it was not until 2015 that a plan was submitted to construct a community centre on Site 5 opposite the Yacht Club.
Eastbourne Borough Council (EBC) appointed Sea Change Sussex, a not-for-profit economic development company, to oversee the project's delivery. Wave Leisure Trust, a charitable, not-for-profit trust, was commissioned by the Council to assist a previous Sovereign Harbour Community Association (SHCA) in all aspects of managing the community centre.
In 2016, the land on Site 5 was found to be contaminated and withdrawn. An alternative area was offered on Site 7 for a reduced-size centre. SHRA and the previous SHCA thought the offered location was unsuitable and that the reduced building size made their commercial plans unviable. They decided to sever their involvement.
In early 2017, EBC and East Sussex County Council (ESCC) announced that they had acquired a plot of land for the community centre on Site 6, adjacent to the road leading into the Retail Park.
With Sea Change Sussex overseeing the project, construction began in mid-2017. Although the main construction work was completed within a year, the utilities' fitting out and connection were delayed many times. Somewhat prematurely, drop-in launch events were arranged by EBC in March 2018 in Pacific House. These gave information about the centre and sought residents' views on its uses. Click here for the event's flyer... 
However, it was not until December 2019 that events were able to take place in the centre.
As noted above, EBC appointed Wave Leisure Trust to assist the original SHCA in all aspects of managing the community centre. Following SHCA's withdrawal from the project in 2016, Wave Leisure Trust oversaw the centre's management until October 2024, when it was handed over to a new SHCA CIO (see above). During 2021 and 2022, the centre was used exclusively as an NHS COVID-19 vaccination centre.
