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OUTDOORS & FIELD SPORTS
Hailsham has an excellent recreation ground in Western Road, a short
distance from the town centre, with facilities for cricket, football,
tennis and the Sussex summer game of stoolball. Matches are organised
by local clubs, although there is opportunity for some public use
of the tennis courts.
The 1909 cricket pavilion overlooks the cricket field, and the tennis
club has its own clubhouse. Adjacent to the main field is the football
pitch of Hailsham Town Football Club, complete with spectator stands,
floodlights and clubhouse.
The Maurice Thornton Playing Field, with vehicular access from Vega
Close off of Observatory View, provides additional facilities for
football (junior and senior), stoolball, and athletics. There is
also a pavilion with changing facilities, showers and toilets for
the use of field hirers.
Potential hirers of any of these facilities should first enquire
at the Hailsham Town Council offices.
The recreation ground at Lower Horsebridge, Hellingly is home to
Hellingly Rugby and Cricket Clubs both of which field several teams
and have an enviable record of success in their respective local
leagues.
Further outdoor/field sports facilities exist at the Hailsham Community
College, including a floodlit all weather sports pitch and superb
new sports hall available for hire, and the larger of the primary
schools. Whilst these are essentially for school use, they can be
hired on occasions, by arrangement with the specific school.
Hailsham Bowling Club has 8 rinks at the rear of the Freedom Leisure
Centre in Vicarage Lane, with its own clubhouse facilities, and
extensive countryside views to the north, whilst similar but more
limited facilities are provided by Hellingly Bowls Club at Lower
Horsebridge recreation ground.
Fishing is permitted, in season, at the Hailsham Country Park Lake,
Gleneagles Drive, where there is a platform provided for disabled
anglers. Day permits can be purchased from MFC Supplies in Station
Road, while season tickets are available from the Hailsham Town
Council Offices. Fishing is not permitted at Hailsham Common Pond.
Further afield, the River Cuckmere, and several other local rivers
and lakes, afford good fishing, but as various stretches of water
are controlled waters visiting anglers should make enquiries in
the district (e.g. local fishing equipment shops).
Horse riding is popular and there are several livery stables in
the area.
For walkers and ramblers, there are numerous footpaths, woodlands,
riverside and field walks. Information on suitable routes may be
obtained from Hailsham Town Council offices. There are active branches
of the Ramblers’ Association in Hailsham and Hellingly, which
organise a weekly series of walks.
The local authorities promote cycling, and there is opportunity
for safe cycling along the Cuckoo Trail. Formerly the route of the
now dismantled branch railway line this has been converted, with
the aid of government funding, for horse riders (in part), walkers
and cyclists, and connects Tunbridge Wells through Heathfield and
Hailsham, to Polegate.
Entry onto the Cuckoo Trail may be gained via numerous access points
along its route, especially where it meets or crosses roads and
rural footpaths.
Within easy reach of Hailsham, 2 golf courses are available at Hellingly
and Horam, with others further afield at Lewes, Eastbourne, Seaford
and Cooden (Bexhill).
Indoor Recreation: Hailsham has a fine leisure centre - Freedom
Leisure, built in the 1970s, with fitness studios and gymnasium
providing facilities for a variety of activities including martial
arts, and yoga, etc., according to demand. Swimming is well catered
for, in the adjacent leisure pool, which was added in the 1980s.
The pool has a water slide, and separate toddlers’ pool, with
the whole complex being served by a pleasant social area and bar,
serving snacks and drinks. Ten-pin bowling , a toddlers soft-play
area and a junior gym were added to the facility in March 2006 and
continue to give enjoyment to the many visitors and residents.
A large community hall in Village Lane and several smaller halls
throughout the town and parish provide facilities for local and
county organisations and clubs to stage a variety of community events.
These include Hailsham Community Hall, Vicarage Lane; Hailsham East
Community Centre, Vega Close; Diplocks Hall, The Diplocks; Summerheath
Hall, Summerheath Road; Wealden District Council Committee Rooms
at Freedom Leisure; Union Corner Hall, Hawks Road; Methodist Church
Hall, High Street; Maurice Thornton Pavilion, Vega Close, Hailsham
Pavilion in George Street and Hellingly Village Hall.
In addition, a number of smaller meeting places or rooms may be
available selectively, for gatherings or meetings of a smaller nature.
These presently exist at - South View Community Rooms, in Western
Road (above the Citizen Advice Bureau offices), Hailsham Community
Hall (meeting rooms), Fleur-de-Lys Council Chambers (Town Council
Offices), Diplocks Hall,and St. Mary’s Church Lounge (High
Street).
These serve as an economic and comfortable home for groups who exist
to cater for various interests, which include short mat bowls, yoga
and aerobics, and other active indoor recreations, dancing, amateur
dramatics and light entertainment productions, flower arranging,
horticulture, local history, choral, needlework, the Royal British
Legion, pre-school play and learning groups, and as a venue for
indoor markets, fairs and jumble sales.
CLUBS & INSTITUTESThe
Hailsham Club at Vicarage Field (High Street), and the Hailsham
Memorial Institute, Western Road, are (membership only) centres
for local indoor activities. Both have excellent bar and snooker
facilities, and regularly organise club activities, competitions,
bingo, or musical evenings and stage entertainment. Membership is
limited, but residents of Hailsham are entitled to apply.
Age Concern has a day centre in the at the Charles Hunt Centre in
Vicarage Field, providing assistance to the elderly, and a meeting
and social centre where activities, designed specifically for our
senior citizens, are organised.
YOUTH CENTRES & ACTIVITIES
The Square Youth Café, a facility funded
by Hailsham Town Council for young people, caters for 11-18 year
olds living in Hailsham and surrounding areas.
Based in the centre of Hailsham, it is a café style facility,
creating a ‘drop-in’ feel. Young people can expect a
friendly welcoming atmosphere, in a safe, supportive and a non-judgemental
environment. Young people can come to chat and to be involved in
various activities, which include pool; table football, music, cooking
and the use of Internet services. Young people can organise day
trips that are either suggested by the staff or by the young people
themselves.
‘The Square’ provides a valuable service
to the Hailsham community in assisting in life skills and supplies
a much-needed outlet and social interaction for young people.
‘The Square’ is open Monday to Friday.
For more information about this facility, please visit www.squareyouthcafe.com
Connexions@Infopoint In addition to general careers
guidance and educational course application advice, the Infopoint
facility provides support to young people in other areas related
to health, relationships, drugs and alcohol addiction, further education,
pregnancy, housing, leisure time and more.
Tailored support is offered and young people can take their time
and discover the opportunities available to them through the service.
The Connexions drop-in centre is open Wednesdays (9.30am-1.00pm).
Alternatively, you can telephone 01323 745500 for an appointment.
HAILSHAM YOUTH COUNCIL
In an exciting new venture, Hailsham Town Council re-launched their
Youth Council in the autumn of 2009. The Hailsham Youth Council,
composed of 11-19 year olds from Hailsham and surrounding areas,
provides a forum for young people to input their ideas and engage
with town officials, impact local government policies and strengthen
their leadership skills. For more information on the Hailsham Youth
Council, please visit their website: www.hailshamyc.org
CHILDREN'S PLAY AREAS There
are numerous play areas for children throughout the town and parish.
The largest areas are the South Road Play Area (adjacent to Western
Road Recreation Ground) and Battle Road Play Area (adjacent to the
allotment gardens) in Hailsham, and the Lower Horsebridge play area
in Hellingly.
All play areas are managed, regularly inspected, and maintained
by the Town and Parish Councils, and offer a variety of play value
either for toddlers or young children.
Work on the installation of a new play area at the Maurice Thornton
Playing Field was successfully completed in the summer of 2009.
The new play park was fitted with modern robust play equipment and
installed at a cost of around £100,000. Funding included a
£50,000 ‘Big Lottery’ grant, £34,000 from
East Sussex County Council, £15,000 from Hailsham Town Council
and £1,000 raised by the Town Farm Residents’ Association
and Hailsham PCSOs.
Additional community halls, play spaces, formal recreation grounds
and a new country park, together with footpaths and cycle ways,
are to be provided as part of the developments at Roebuck Park,
Willow Gardens, The Grange and Welbury Farm.
CINEMAS, THEATRES & FINE ART Hailsham
Pavilion, in George Street, has been restored in recent years and
was re-opened after a period of 30 years since the last film was
shown. Although a listed building, having an ornamental classical
façade and lavishly decorated interior, it had been allowed
to fall into disrepair to the point of ruin. Due to the efforts
of local enthusiasts, the property was acquired, funding was raised,
and a comprehensive and inspired transformation has resulted in
its rebirth. A varying programme of topical film releases as well
as live shows and special events are presented regularly.
Summerheath Hall also serves regularly as a theatre to Hailsham,
and has a long history of being home to amateur dramatic players,
whose regular musical and drama performances have been presented
there since the early 1930s.
A number of other local theatrical and drama groups use both these
halls as a “theatre” venue for productions on less frequent
occasions.
There are cinemas and theatres in the nearby coastal towns of Eastbourne,
Bexhill, Hastings, and Brighton, and also at Uckfield and Tunbridge
Wells.
Hailsham has one major fine art gallery, Gallery North in North
Street. Since the Gallery North project began in November 2004,
they have shown the work of over 200 artists, organised numerous
art workshops, courses and events (including the formation and promotion
of Hailsham’s first Arts Festival.
They have shown the work of painters, sculptors, photographers,
jewellers, ceramicists and potters; and have covered subjects as
diverse as traditional fine arts, non-representational contemporary
works, botanical art, willow garden sculptures, Venetian face masks
and hand-made craft items.
Although Gallery North is supported by Wealden District Council
and Hailsham Town Council, they rely on donations, grants, bursaries
and sponsorship from various organisations to manage the project.
They are a not-for-profit organisation run by unpaid volunteers.
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