With the finishing touches complete, the keys to a £3.4million community facility in Sidley have been officially handed to Rother District Council.
Contractor BMR Construction handed possession back to the council after months of work to transform a shower block on Sidley Recreation Ground into a fully accessible community facility.
The state-of-the-art Sidley Hub will provide first-class sports changing facilities for the area, as well as a café, accessible toilets, off street parking and spaces for hire by local groups for sport play and informal recreational use.
Cllr Doug Oliver, Rother District Council leader, said: “It’s amazing to see the transformation from an old shower block to an amazing facility that will benefit the community for generations to come.
“The completion of the building is a major milestone in the council’s Local Regeneration Fund programme, made possible with investment from central Government, to improve cultural and community facilities and public spaces in the district.
“We are delighted to have been able to work with Heart of Sidley (HOS) who will ultimately lease the building from the council and ensure that it becomes a much-loved, well-used community asset.”
With the building work complete, Rother District Council will begin to finalise the lease agreement with the hope of handing the building to Heart of Sidley in the next month.
Jay Carroll, Chair of HOS Trustee Board, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to see this building finally completed. For the Heart of Sidley, Sidley Hub has been a dream 10 years in the making, born from our time as a Big Local area and driven by an immense amount of hard work from our community. Getting to this point has been a long journey, and it has taken a lot of dedication from all partners to make it a reality. We can’t wait to open the doors and turn this building into the vibrant, living Heart of Sidley.”
More information about the Local Regeneration Fund programme and the Sidley Hub project can be found at Corporate Projects – Rother District Council
The Sidley Hub development is part of a UK Government-funded partnership between Heart of Sidley, The De La Warr Pavilion and Rother District Council. Together we’re creating opportunities, inspiring pride of place and strengthening community life across Bexhill and Sidley.
Published: 27th May 2026
