Condemned
The Town Hall cells were condemned in 1929 as unfit for use by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary. However, they continued to be used for nearly 40 years, even after the police station closed in 1965 and the staff moved to the new building in John Street. At the time the magistrates’ court was still at the Town Hall and the cells were still needed to temporarily house detainees coming to and from court. Only in 1967, with the opening of the new court in Edward Street, were the cells finally closed and turned over to storage. This was just before the amalgamation of the five separate police forces in Sussex: East Sussex, West Sussex, Brighton, Eastbourne and Hastings, into Sussex Constabulary in 1968. This force was rebranded as Sussex Police in 1974.
