Last week we shared information with all staff about a situation which has affected those using and visiting Bramber House. You can access this information here: https://staff.sussex.ac.uk/news/article/58642-accessing-and-working-in-bramber-house.

This week we are pleased to be able to update you on works that are taking place to get the building back into full use.

Current situation:

• Staff who work in the North of Bramber House on floors 1 and 2 and on floor 4 can continue to work as usual;

• All other staff have been temporarily moved;
• The conference and events suite (floor 3) is closed;
• Access to Bramber House for staff is only from the entrances on the East/Refectory Road side of the building and an access card is required;
• There is no access to floors 1-4 of the building for students;
• Eat Central is open as usual, though access is only via the entrance from the terrace/seating area adjoining Arts Path’
• The lift in the Co-Op lobby can only serve the Ground floor and floor 4 and must only be used by staff.

Next steps

• Works to partition the 3 main stairwells located on the Arts Path/West side of Bramber House are continuing.
• In the meantime these stairwells remain closed.
• Work is underway to construct safety partitions between the stairwells and lobbies on floors ground, 1, 2 and 3. Once this work is complete it will be possible to start opening up some parts of the building.
• It is hoped that partial reoccupation is available from 3 October.
• Occupation numbers are likely to be reduced from usual occupancy as the capacity of the building will need to be reviewed to ensure safe evacuation as a result of the works.

Teaching in Bramber House

• Bramber House cannot be used for teaching next week (w/c 26 September);
• In order to mitigate the impact on teaching and learning sessions are being placed in alternate rooms wherever possible;
• Student Experience colleagues have been working hard to accommodate teaching in other spaces around campus;
• 5 rooms in Friston have been identified as suitable alternatives for some of the Bramber House teaching rooms, and have been block booked through to the end of the year;
• Other available space is being identified around campus, and teaching is prioritised over all other activities;
• If no space is found, then the last resort of online teaching will be used, though every effort is being made to avoid this.

Conferences and events

If you have events booked on floor 3 of Bramber House please note that the Commercial and Conferencing teams are currently assessing for identifying alternative venues, in chronological order. They will be in contact with colleagues who have bookings to discuss the options. Please do not try and book alternative venues yourselves as priority has to be given to relocating any teaching that is disrupted by the changes.