Eastbourne's anti-social driving order lifts on 31 October until April. Councillors want it all year: the roads it covers, the fines and what happens next.
Eastbourne’s ban on revving, racing and noisy driving along the seafront and up to Beachy Head stops applying at the end of Saturday 31 October. It will not apply again until 1 April 2027.
Councillors want that to change. At Full Council on 30 September they voted unanimously to ask the council’s Cabinet to consider making the order run all year. The vote is in the minutes of the meeting, published this month.
What councillors asked for
The motion was moved by Councillor Penny di Cara and seconded by Councillor Robert Smart. It praised the work of Sussex Police in enforcing the order “from Beachy Head to the Harbour”. It then called on Cabinet “to give consideration to varying the order to cover the whole year, not just 1 April to 31 October, if there is evidence to justify the variation and the legal tests are met.”
The minutes record cross-party support. Members agreed the order had cut anti-social driving since it began. But they said speeding, dangerous driving and excessive vehicle noise were still a problem across the town, and particularly on the seafront and Beachy Head Road.
The motion does not change the order. It asks Cabinet to look at the case. The minutes set no date for that.
What the order bans, and where
The order is a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO). The council’s PSPO page says it covers activities most often reported as anti-social driving, including:
- revving engines
- rapid acceleration
- racing
- excessive noise from vehicles
- off-road driving on public land
It only applies in named “restricted areas”. The roads were set out in the 2022 report that proposed the order:
| Area | Roads |
|---|---|
| Beachy Head | Beachy Head Road, Dukes Drive, Upper Dukes Drive, Warren Hill, stretches of East Dean Road |
| Seafront | King Edward’s Parade, Grand Parade, Marine Parade, Royal Parade, Prince William Parade |
| East of the town centre | Seaside, Seaside Road, Lottbridge Drove |
When the order was renewed in 2025, the council kept the same area. Some people who responded asked for other roads to be added. The 2025 consultation report said the evidence needed to change the area “is not currently available”.
Sussex Police enforce it for the council. A breach can mean a £75 fixed penalty notice or prosecution, with a fine of up to £1,000 on conviction, according to the same report.
Why it only runs from April to October
The 2022 report chose the season on purpose. Police data then showed around 40% more reports between April and September than in the rest of the year. Limiting the order to the busiest months was meant to keep it proportionate and enforceable.
The order was first made in 2022. It was renewed in September 2025 for three more years, to 2028, still running from 1 April to 31 October.
Has it worked?
The council’s 2025 report gives these figures:
- 185 reports of anti-social or dangerous driving to police in the summer before the order began in 2022
- 160 reports between April and October 2024, a fall of 14%
- 15 fixed penalty notices issued in 2024
- 21 fixed penalty notices between March and the end of August 2025
The 2025 consultation drew 124 responses, almost all from residents. Most backed the order:
“A smaller number” of respondents asked for the order to cover more months, the report says. It did not give a figure.
What happens next
Cabinet now has to decide whether to look at the evidence. Under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, a council must consult the police and others before it varies an order. That consultation would have to come first, so the order will lift as usual at the end of October.
The next Full Council meeting is on 18 November, according to the minutes.
What it means for you
- From 1 November to 31 March, the order’s specific bans do not apply. The police can still deal with anti-social driving all year, the minutes note, using their other powers.
- To report anti-social driving, contact Sussex Police online or on 101. Use 999 if someone is in danger.
- If you have a view on an all-year order, any change would go to public consultation first, as the 2022 order and the 2025 renewal did. We will report it when it opens.
Roadworks and closures on the same roads are on our Eastbourne roadworks page.
Also decided at the same meeting
- Tourist tax. A motion opposing the government’s plan to let a future Sussex mayor charge a levy on overnight stays was replaced. Councillors passed an alternative by 17 votes to none, with 5 abstentions. It calls for “full consultation” with affected businesses before any levy, and says money raised in Eastbourne should be spent in Eastbourne. It also notes that the Eastbourne Hospitality Association and Friends of Eastbourne Seafront are exploring a business-run accommodation BID.
- Local Plan. The plan was approved for consultation by 17 votes to 2, with 6 abstentions. Comments close at 5pm on 13 November. Our Local Plan explainer covers how to respond.
Sources
- Eastbourne Borough Council, Full Council minutes, 30 September 2026: items 21a, 22a and 22b, and the next meeting date.
- Lewes and Eastbourne Councils, PSPOs in Eastbourne: the banned activities, the season and the renewal to 2028.
- Renewal of Eastbourne’s Anti-Social Driving PSPO, consultation page: the renewal and the report figures.
- Review of Anti-Social Driving PSPO in Eastbourne, Consultation Report, August 2025: responses, reports, fixed penalty notices, penalties and the restricted area.
- Eastbourne Public Spaces Protection (Anti-social Driving) Order 2022, Cabinet report: the restricted roads and the reasons for the April to October season.
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