Brighton College owns the Craven Vale Estate for Eleven Months, 1922-23 Nationally, 1920-24 were years

of post-war stringency. While government expenditure was being hacked back by Geddes Axe and maintained schools were starved of funds, Brighton College sailed blithely forward, cocooned from retrenchment by comfortable annual surplusses. One episode highlights what was wrong. By 1921, the 70 per cent increase in numbers of the previous five years had put enormous strain on games facilities, even with Manor Farm and Whitehawk. Negotiations were thus opened to buy nearly 21 acres less than three hundred yards further up Sutherland Road: the Craven Vale estate. The location was perfect and although the upper part of Bakers Bottom narrowed and had steep sides, engineers estimated leveling would cost around 8,000. The contract was signed in August 1922*, but Brighton Borough Council objected because the estate was being used as allotments and it did not want them to be lost. Instead, the Corporation offered the College 25 acres just over one mile away in East Brighton Park on a 99-year lease (rent 250 pa) if they would hand over Craven Vale for its purchase price. Initially the College agreed to entertain an exchange of freeholds, but that the Corporation rejected out of hand and then proceeded to threaten compulsory purchase. Even though the Borough was shown to possess no power to do that, the College Council gave up. In Dawsons own words, they did not want to incur unpopularity in the matter, so in July 1923 agreed to the Corporations terms. Craven Vales freehold was surrendered for leasehold land further away which the College then discovered would cost 17,057 to level, divert the road and build a caretakers cottage. To cap it all, the Borough Corporation itself subsequently evicted the allotment holders (1950) and turned Craven Vale into a housing estate. Of all Brighton College follies, none was greater than this. Such an excess of feebleness, of shortsightedness! What were they thinking about to surrender such patent benefits for the sake of appeasing a little odium? * for 2,408 (also page 193) Source: Brighton College 1845 1995 Martin D.W.Jones, Phillimore, 1995; page 193