Hastings is a seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, 24 mi (39 km) east of Lewes and 53 mi (85 km) south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place 8 mi (13 km) to the north-west at Senlac Hill in 1066. It later became one of the medieval Cinque Ports. In the 19th century, it was a popular seaside resort, as the railway allowed tourists and visitors to reach the town. Today, Hastings is a fishing port with the UK's largest beach-based fishing fleet. It has an estimated population of 91,100 as of 2021.
Seaford is a town in East Sussex, England, east of Newhaven and west of Eastbourne.
The A259 is a road on the south coast of England passing through Hampshire, West Sussex, East Sussex, and Kent, and is the longest Zone 2 A road in Great Britain. The main part of the road connects Brighton, Peacehaven, Eastbourne, Hastings, Rye, and Folkestone.
St Leonards-on-Sea is a town and seaside resort in the Borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England. It has been part of the borough since the late 19th century and lies to the west of central Hastings. The original part of the settlement was laid out in the early 19th century as a new town: a place of elegant houses designed for the well-off; it also included a central public garden, a hotel, an archery, assembly rooms and a church. Today's St Leonards has extended well beyond that original design, although the original town still exists within it.
Ark Alexandra, previously known as Hastings Grammar School, William Parker School, William Parker Sports College, and later as Ark William Parker is a secondary school in Hastings, East Sussex in the United Kingdom. It was the only male single-sex secondary school in East Sussex. It is now a co-educational Academy spread over two sites following the merger of Ark Helenswood Academy and Ark William Parker on 1 September 2019.
East Sussex College or East Sussex College Group is the largest higher education college in East Sussex, providing education and training from foundation to degree level. The college educates almost half of the county's young people and over 8,000 adults each year at campuses in Lewes, Eastbourne, Hastings and Newhaven, and in the workplace.
Ark Helenswood Academy was a secondary school and sixth form for girls located in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, England.
The Hastings Academy, formerly known as Hillcrest, is a secondary school in Hastings, East Sussex, England. The Hastings Academy opened on 1 September 2011 moving into a new building during February 2013. The school has around 900 students and over 100 staff. The Principal is Mr Simon Addison. It is run by the University of Brighton Academies Trust.
Hollington is a council estate and local government ward in the northwest of Hastings, in the Hastings district, in the county of East Sussex, England. The area lies next to Baldslow, Ashdown, North and Conquest, and less than five miles southeast of Battle, East Sussex, the home of Battle Abbey, which commemorates the victory of William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
Combe Haven is a 153-hectare (380-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Hastings and Bexhill-on-Sea in East Sussex. An area of 18.5 acres is Filsham Reedbed Local Nature Reserve, which is managed by the Sussex Wildlife Trust
Church in the Wood, officially known as St Leonard's Church and originally as St Rumbold's Church, is an Anglican church in the Hollington area of the town and borough of Hastings, one of six local government districts in the English county of East Sussex. Although Hollington is now a large suburb, consisting mostly of postwar residential development, the church has stood in isolation in the middle of an ancient wood since it was founded in the 13th century—almost certainly as the successor to an 11th-century chapel. Restoration work in the Victorian era has given the Early English Gothic-style building its present appearance, but some medieval work remains. Legends and miraculous events have been associated with the church, and its secluded situation has been praised by writers including Charles Lamb. The church is a Grade II Listed building.
St Leonards-on-Sea Congregational Church is a former Congregational church in St Leonards-on-Sea, part of the town and borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England. Considered "one of the most ambitious Nonconformist buildings in Sussex", the sandstone building of 1863 forms a significant landmark on one of the Victorian resort's main roads—despite the loss of its copper spire in the Great Storm of 1987. Unlike most churches of its denomination, it did not join the United Reformed Church when that denomination was formed in 1972. It fell out of religious use in 2008 and had stood empty and was at risk of demolition. English Heritage has listed the building at Grade II for its architectural and historical importance. Bought by a new owner in 2012 it was almost completely renovated, but was then sold again in 2019. The new owner originally planned to open the church to the public as an arts and antiques centre with a cafe in the tower. After 5 years carefully and painstakingly renovating the building to its original glory, the lower church hall was finally re-opened to the public on 6 April 2024 as an indoor Saturday Market selling vintage and collectable items. The new owner now plans to open the main 'Great Hall' upstairs as a registered wedding venue by July 2024.
Hastings United Football Club, previously known as Hastings Town, is a semi-professional football club based in Hastings, East Sussex. They currently play in the Isthmian League Premier Division and have played their home games at The Pilot Field since 1985, after the demise of the previous Hastings United, whose identity they took on following a name change in 2002.
St Leonard's Baptist Church is the Baptist place of worship serving St Leonards-on-Sea, a town and seaside resort which is part of the Borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England. The elaborate building was designed by the architectural firm of Thomas Elworthy, responsible for many churches in late-Victorian era Sussex, and serves the residential hinterland of St Leonards-on-Sea—an area which grew rapidly after its early 19th-century founding by James Burton. English Heritage has listed the church at Grade II for its architectural and historical importance.
St Peter's Church is a former Anglican church in the Bohemia area of the town and seaside resort of St Leonards-on-Sea, part of the Borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England. Founded in 1883 in response to the rapid residential growth of this part of St Leonards-on-Sea, the "outstanding late Victorian church" was completed and opened in 1885. Architect James Brooks was towards the end of his career but still produced a successful, powerful Gothic Revival design, which was built by prolific local firm John Howell & Son—builders of several other churches in the area.
All Souls Church is a former Anglican church that served the Clive Vale suburb of Hastings, a seaside resort town and borough in the English county of East Sussex, between 1890 and 2007. The "large [and] serious town church" has been described as one of the best works by prolific ecclesiastical architect Arthur Blomfield. Built almost wholly of brick, inside and out, it dominates the streetscape of the late Victorian suburb and has a tall, "dramatic" interior displaying many of Blomfield's favourite architectural features. The church also has Heaton, Butler and Bayne stained glass and an elaborate reredos. Falling attendances and high maintenance costs caused it to close after a final service in November 2007, and the Diocese of Chichester officially declared it redundant soon afterwards. English Heritage has listed it at Grade II* for its architectural and historical importance.
Crown House is a residential building on the seafront of St Leonards-on-Sea, a 19th-century planned seaside resort on the coast of East Sussex, England. It was the first building completed in the town, which was planned and laid out by architect and property developer James Burton, and he used it as his own house. Intended as "a high-class watering place by the sea, along the best lines [and] for the best people", St Leonards-on-Sea was overshadowed by its larger neighbour Hastings and was merged into that town before the end of the 19th century, but Burton's venture was initially successful—particularly after a Royal visit in 1834–35 when the Duchess of Kent and the future Queen Victoria stayed at Crown House throughout the winter.
Filsham Reedbed is an 18.5-hectare (46-acre) Local Nature Reserve on the western outskirts of St Leonards-on-Sea in East Sussex. It is owned by Hastings Borough Council and managed by Sussex Wildlife Trust. It is part of Combe Haven Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Wellington Square Baptist Church is a Baptist church in the centre of Hastings, a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, England. It was built in 1838 for a congregation which had previously been meeting for worship in hired premises, and it has been in continuous use since then. Rev. W. Barker, a long-serving minister in the 19th century, revived the church after it was split by a secession and later helped to establish Baptist chapels in two other parts of Hastings. The church forms the northwest corner of Wellington Square, one of the town's earliest residential developments, and its stuccoed Neoclassical exterior harmonises with the surrounding houses. Historic England has listed the church at Grade II* for its architectural and historical importance.
