St Anne's school Lewes protesters evicted
- 4 July 2011
- From the section Sussex
Protesters who occupied a disused East Sussex school for more than two months have been evicted.
A group called St Anne's Diggers (Stand) entered St Anne's school in Lewes on 1 May.
East Sussex County Council said enforcement officers took action to evict the protesters at 0430 BST.
A spokesman said the group did not resist eviction. Council officers are securing the building and ensuring it is safe, he added.
Stand said it wanted to prevent the school being sold for housing and claimed the occupation had local support.
The council said it plans to sell the site of the special school which closed in 2007, but no decision had been made about its future use.
The authority claimed it had no choice but to go to court to regain possession of the land and secure an eviction order.
Sean Nolan, the council's director of corporate resources, said a public meeting on the future of the site would take place on Thursday at 1930 BST in Lewes Town Hall.
He said: 'I am looking forward to starting discussions with the local community to find interim uses for the site.
"I hope people will be able to come to the public meeting and hope that together we will find uses that meet the community's needs and wishes."