Brighton Marina Liveaboards

[benonnet]

Hi
I hope I’m posting in the right place, I’m new to this forum.

I’m hoping to liveaboard in Brighton marina.
35 foot yacht (hustler35) which is seaworthy and will be sailed regularly.

I’m after advice about how best to approach the situation, better to be 100% upfront (I know there are liveaboards in Brighton marina) or best to get a berth and then sensibly move in.
Sensibly ie no hanging washing etc

it’ll just be my partner and I, and out jack Russell, she doesn’t bark (our dog I mean). She is very quiet, has been trained to not bark unless intruded upon.

Also what’s the general situation at Brighton for liveabords, if anyone has any up to date info that would be really useful.
ie how many, how tolorated etc

I know this is a subject covered many times but I thought id ask again as covid might have changed things.

many thanks in advance ?
Ben

 

[benonnet]

Btw the move would be a transition over a month or two, from our flat in London, so we have a residential address to start things off with.

 

[anon]

Hi & welcome to the forum, the usual answer to that question would be to never mention the L word however the situation in Brighton is somewhat in a state of flux, my understanding (and I've been living aboard here for some time) is as follows:

They've used access fob data and electricity use to determine those who appear to be living on their boats
On contract renewal they have offered a standard or "heavy use" contract
Standard contract allows (I think) up to 42 nights staying aboard at the marina
Heavy use allows you to stay for up to 12 weeks at a time for up to 48 weeks per year and of course is more expensive

It is rumoured that their intention is to limit the number of people on "heavy use" contracts to 250 and also that we'll all have to pay monthly which is more expensive, i.e. no option to pay in advance for the whole year - so they can more easily get rid of you if they want to? Rightly or wrongly it's become a bit of a them & us situation for some, personally I have no problem paying more for living aboard (oops silly me, I of course mean spending up to 12 weeks at a time for up to 48 weeks per year!) but it was a hefty increase.

I don't really know anyone who's made an initial approach recently with the intention of living aboard but my guess is that if/when you contact them it's not unlikely that they will ask you whether you intend to live aboard. What your best answer to that question if it's asked would be I'm not sure. If they don't ask your best bet might well be to do as you have already suggested and move aboard quietly over a couple of months.

The situation in general for living on boats or in vans or anything else out of the ordinary is not improving here in the UK and the same applies to other countries as well I'm sorry to say but I do wish you the best of luck with your plans, it's a great life and a great community assuming you can find somewhere you'll be accepted...

 

[benonnet]

Hi & welcome to the forum, the usual answer to that question would be to never mention the L word however the situation in Brighton is somewhat in a state of flux, my understanding (and I've been living aboard here for some time) is as follows:

They've used access fob data and electricity use to determine those who appear to be living on their boats
On contract renewal they have offered a standard or "heavy use" contract
Standard contract allows (I think) up to 42 nights staying aboard at the marina
Heavy use allows you to stay for up to 12 weeks at a time for up to 48 weeks per year and of course is more expensive

It is rumoured that their intention is to limit the number of people on "heavy use" contracts to 250 and also that we'll all have to pay monthly which is more expensive, i.e. no option to pay in advance for the whole year - so they can more easily get rid of you if they want to? Rightly or wrongly it's become a bit of a them & us situation for some, personally I have no problem paying more for living aboard (oops silly me, I of course mean spending up to 12 weeks at a time for up to 48 weeks per year!) but it was a hefty increase.

I don't really know anyone who's made an initial approach recently with the intention of living aboard but my guess is that if/when you contact them it's not unlikely that they will ask you whether you intend to live aboard. What your best answer to that question if it's asked would be I'm not sure. If they don't ask your best bet might well be to do as you have already suggested and move aboard quietly over a couple of months.

The situation in general for living on boats or in vans or anything else out of the ordinary is not improving here in the UK and the same applies to other countries as well I'm sorry to say but I do wish you the best of luck with your plans, it's a great life and a great community assuming you can find somewhere you'll be accepted...

Thanks for your reply, very helpful.
Can you give me an idea of what the heavy use policy costs, in the terms and conditions I’ve found online it refers to an “extra nights” product giving 48 weeks and max 12 weeks consecutive, obviously this is the same as you mention, but I can’t find any mention anywhere of how much this costs.
Thanks again as your insight is very helpful ?
Regards
Ben

 

[anon]

Thanks for your reply, very helpful.
Can you give me an idea of what the heavy use policy costs, in the terms and conditions I’ve found online it refers to an “extra nights” product giving 48 weeks and max 12 weeks consecutive, obviously this is the same as you mention, but I can’t find any mention anywhere of how much this costs.
Thanks again as your insight is very helpful ?
Regards
Ben

Hi Ben,

You're very welcome, I believe heavy use is standard plus 18% and that's about what mine worked out at...

 

[benonnet]

Hi Ben,

You're very welcome, I believe heavy use is standard plus 18% and that's about what mine worked out at...

Thanks again, and thanks for the warm welcome to the forum ?
Best wishes
Ben

 

[laika]

Can you give me an idea of what the heavy use policy costs, in the terms and conditions I’ve found online it refers to an “extra nights” product giving 48 weeks and max 12 weeks consecutive, obviously this is the same as you mention, but I can’t find any mention anywhere of how much this costs.

Just deleted my reply-in-progress as I've seen anon's new post. I thought it was 20% but it might well be 18.

There are no "liveaboards" so they don't want you to mention it. The "extra nights" thing is like a caravan holiday home contract: you're still not officially allowed to live there. And indeed I think it's what they're applying to the floating holiday homes they seem to be populating the east jetty with.

I'm wondering about anon's suggestion on how they determined who they were going to hit up for the extra nights charge in the first place: they tried to slap it on me even though I stopped liv^H^H^H"spending extra nights" aboard long before lockdown 1.0 and I spent hardly any time aboard for a year and a half. Moreover they'd even called me up at the start of lockdown and asked me if I was staying on board (I told them I wasn't). I was guessing they'd just got me down as a live aboard because I used to rent a mailbox from them (before I got fed up with the exorbitant amount they charged to lose 20% of my mail).

Regarding monthly....The price of monthly berthing skyrocketed in July...by 18%. I asked if they'd mistakenly added "extra nights" and they assured me that no: it's the base price. But maybe (thinking about it) monthly doesn't have a 4 nights a month limit so it's one and the same.

I really don't think Brighton Marina is a good place for a dog. It's a very long way to the nearest dog-friendly green space.

 

[anon]

...Regarding monthly....The price of monthly berthing skyrocketed in July...by 18%. I asked if they'd mistakenly added "extra nights" and they assured me that no: it's the base price. But maybe (thinking about it) monthly doesn't have a 4 nights a month limit so it's one and the same...

Hmm, I wonder cos if they stop me paying in advance for the whole year and it's not one and the same then I'll have another 18% increase next year. I'm off as soon as is feasible tbh, other reasons mainly but all this doesn't help...

 

[laika]

Regarding monthly....The price of monthly berthing skyrocketed in July...by 18%.

Out of curiosity I just revisited the charges:
Berthing Prices at Brighton Marina | Premier Marinas

They've completely overhauled the structure. Monthly used to be peak charge for april - september and winter rates october - march, although there was usually a "winter deal" for the whole 6 months. Now they've gone to "peak" being June - August (18% higher than the the old "peak") and all other times a rate which is higher than the old peak rate.

While the boat was in the yard at the beginning of August they condemned my berth and said they weren't replacing it (I assume they want to put those floating house thingies there). I didn't like the alternative berths they offered me and frankly the only thing that had been keeping me there was the lovely near neighbours I was being moved from. So I transferred my contract to Gosport.

I suppose people with the floating houses don't get annoyed by their keels being in the mud several hours a day.

 

[Robin]

We asked Brighton upfront in 2018 and they were very unhelpful even though we had a 'dirt address' too, only allowed a bare min of nights on board per year, unacceptable even if not true liveaboards, even if they did not follow up on their rule book. Situation normal other than at what used to be Hoo marina on the Mudway, now called Port Werburgh I think, that allowed some residential boats.

We are openly live aboards not at Brighton but no new ones will be allowed where we are and if one of the very few leaves they will not be replaced except by a normal berth holder. Sucks!

 

[Bru]

I have heard a rumour (unconfirmed by anything official looking) on the inland waterways scene (where I still have a great many friends) that councils are starting to crack down really hard on unofficial liveaboards in marinas and on moorings.

If the rumour is true, it's possible, indeed likely, that coastal councils are taking a similarly tougher approach to coastal marinas

I certainly wouldn't, now, wish to be without a place to stay ashore (we have an arrangement with No.1 Son although Covid and my elderly father's health combined to scupper our plans to move aboard, a situation that is now unlikely to change for several years).

Lockdown was a special case with Council and government officials actively turning a blind eye, indeed openly acknowledging the reality of people living aboard under the official radar. I suspect though that it brought the issue to the forefront of their minds and they made a note to crack down when lockdown was over

 

[st999]

Thanks again, and thanks for the warm welcome to the forum ?
Best wishes
Ben

Hi, Can you please update me whether you went ahead with this and what happened? Sorry I would have PM'd you but I'm a new member and don't know how

We are in a similar situation and have just been told the official line. This will be a first boat for us so we are really unsure about whether we can go ahead. The plan is to liveaboard with a view to becoming mobile later next year.

 

[benonnet]

Hi, Can you please update me whether you went ahead with this and what happened? Sorry I would have PM'd you but I'm a new member and don't know how

We are in a similar situation and have just been told the official line. This will be a first boat for us so we are really unsure about whether we can go ahead. The plan is to liveaboard with a view to becoming mobile later next year.

H

hi we are currently doing our day skipper course in Gibraltar, the plan is to buy a boat after that, there’s several that we are looking at.

so no we haven’t yet taken a berth at Brighton marina
What’s the party line you’ve been told?

 

[Bru]

This thread having revived from several months ago, things have moved on

The rumours I mentioned above were, it turns out, only the start of it

People across the whole country are being told to stop living aboard at both inland and coastal marinas

Living aboard unofficially "under the radar" is now to all intents and purposes a thing of the past in most locations and the few that haven't started to strictly apply their terms and conditions and / or significantly tighten them are almost certain to follow suit

Legitimate live aboard berths are rare as hens teeth and exorbitantly expensive

I seriously urge against buying a boat on the assumption that you'll be able to live aboard in the UK. You really need either a berth already arranged or a plan B

 

[dslittle]

I really don't think Brighton Marina is a good place for a dog. It's a very long way to the nearest dog-friendly green space.

It‘s a long time since we were at Brighton and stayed on our yacht for VERY extended periods of time (before the increases in berthing charges but after they started charging a fortune to receive mail) so I won’t comment on the current situation as others are far better placed to do that.

However, I will comment on keeping a dog on board as we did (with two dogs). Neither we, nor our dogs, had any problems. Granted there aren’t any green spaces within a short walk but the dogs managed to make it to the beach without any great mishaps. Obviously the onus was on us to be ‘good’ owners and ensure that there were no signs of our dogs passing…

It has stood our current dog in good stead, she manages incredible times between going to the toilet when necessary (despite our best efforts, she will not do anything on the yacht - longest passage 26 hours. She still found time to wander around for about ten minutes before finding a convenient spot!!!)

 

[st999]

H

hi we are currently doing our day skipper course in Gibraltar, the plan is to buy a boat after that, there’s several that we are looking at.

so no we haven’t yet taken a berth at Brighton marina
What’s the party line you’ve been told?

I was told that they don't allow liveaboards in Brighton or Eastbourne.

My hope was we could get away with it if subtle but that seems unlikely given Bru's comment.

 

[billskip]

I was told that they don't allow liveaboards in Brighton or Eastbourne.

My hope was we could get away with it if subtle but that seems unlikely given Bru's comment.

With today's every movement of people being recorded, it's not surprising that certain departments of officialdom choose areas of interest such as marinas for observation.
I think a lot of this is down to things like community/pole tax charges etc.
On two occasions a friend was hounded by the local council for putting a caravan on a plot.
I dont know how the law stands with eviction, and whether (like being made homeless)someone would have to take responsibility.

 

[Tranona]

I dont know how the law stands with eviction, and whether (like being made homeless)someone would have to take responsibility.

Eviction does not apply. Berths are rented on a short term contract and because they are not residential are not covered by housing regulations. some have tried the "homeless" bit in the past without success.

 

[billskip]

Eviction does not apply. Berths are rented on a short term contract and because they are not residential are not covered by housing regulations. some have tried the "homeless" bit in the past without success.

Is this the reason that marinas have short term contracts, or is there some sort of legal reason they are not allowed?

 

[Robin]

Eviction does not apply. Berths are rented on a short term contract and because they are not residential are not covered by housing regulations. some have tried the "homeless" bit in the past without success.

Our contract is for one year at a time and we were recently invited to renew which we have and paid for up to end march 2023. That said one liveaboard was not offered a renew contract and AFAIK are now paying monthly at visitor rates Another who was out of the water int he yard full time is also having to move on and looking for accommodation, boat presumably sold as a 'project'. .