Researching Brighton’s New Sustainability Toolkit.
On Tuesday 9 July, Restaurants Brighton and The University of Brighton teamed up to host the first ever Sustainability Toolkit workshop at Kemptown’s DaddyLonglegs pub. We’d like to thank everyone who was able to attend, and thank the team at DaddyLonglegs for their expert hosting and for making sure everything ran smoothly.
As part of our work on the Sustainability Toolkit we organised an in-person workshop and invited a number of hospitality venues, suppliers, community activists and policy influencers. The objective of the meeting was to share some of the stories from the case studies we are recording, to understand some of the challenges businesses face when implementing sustainable changes, and to discuss ideas.
What was good
We were delighted with the participation. It was wonderful to see a diverse group of organisations in the same room and to see the benefits of people talking to each other! It was great to be in a room with a group of committed individuals who are open to collaborative conversions and the knowledge exchange that is needed to make significant and impactful changes.
What are the headlines
We discussed a range of topics from the importance of making sure that staff are onboard with the changes needed to the lack of consumer engagement with sustainable changes. The value of exchanging stories of what works, what doesn’t and how to go about addressing the challenges of waste – food waste, energy waste, water waste – is immeasurable. There are many people already doing so much and it is vital that more conversations like this happen.
Who was there
English’s, Moshimo, Nostos, Brighton and Hove Food Partnership, Visit Brighton, Cllr Ty Goddard, Arcobaleno, Casazul, Real Junk Food Project, Lost In The Lanes, Starfish and Coffee, Palmito, Redroaster, Designs Woodcraft, Uber Eats, Alliance Southeast, University of Sussex, Community Works, and Visit England.
What happens next
It will take some time to analyse the outputs of the workshop more formally and we will make sure we publish and share them via this blog and our social media.
We also share updates in our monthly hospitality industry newsletter Tip Jar which you can subscribe to here.
We will start publishing and sharing the case studies more widely by the end of July and very much look forward to understanding what impact those have as well as how to share more useful information.
As always, if you have any questions or would like to participate in this project then please do get in touch on hello@restaurantsbrighton.co.uk.
Some background on the project
Restaurants Brighton is partnering with the University of Brighton to create a dynamic Sustainability Toolkit.
By Earth Day 2025, we aim to demonstrate the tangible impact of this accessible, free, and evolving resource.
The Toolkit empowers restaurant owners to assess and enhance their environmental and social sustainability practices in collaboration with suppliers and staff. Benefits include improved efficiencies, reduced costs, and enhanced brand reputation.