CAROLINE Lucas’s support for music venues in Brighton and Hove is encouraging.

It makes a change from the moratorium of venues happening throughout the country.

Vice report that more than half of British clubs have shut down in the last decade.

So Mrs Lucas’ pledge to prevent the closure of music venues in her constituency is welcome.

Indeed, the presence of such spaces serve important functions: they provide employment as well as entertainment, and are great places for the aspiring musicians of the city to hone their craft.

Also travelling acts are brought to the city, giving businesses an increased boost. 

However there are still challenges ahead.

A common issue seems to be that venues are closing because of complaints from residents of newly built accommodation.

Therefore, much more intelligent planning is needed to reduce the risk of noise affecting residents, without punishing places which are already established.

The deployment of better sound proofing technology should be adopted by both venues and developers.

All in all, there should be much more cooperation between venues and developers to plan how these interests can coexist rather than conflict.

Another issue is the need for easily accessible practice space.

Young artists making noise in their homes appears to annoy some residents.

In the future this can be mitigated with better sound proofing incorporated into new buildings.

But for now, properly sound proofed recording space needs to be more accessible for the multitude of music artists who inhabit the city, so they practice in these dedicated spaces rather than ‘making noise’ to the chagrin of neighbours.

The range of venues in Brighton are diverse and provide important services to the community.

Cooperation and smart planning is required to ensure the interests of music venues and developers are balanced.

  • James Aldridge is a student journalist