Dog Friendly Sussex: Eastbourne to host free fayre for four-legged friends

The first-ever Chatsworth Dog Fayre is set to take place on Sunday, November 5 from 1pm – 5pm.

The event, held at the Chatsworth Hotel on the seafront, hopes to raise the profile of Eastbourne as a dog-friendly destination.

It is one of several projects funded by the VisitEastbourne Tourism Development Fund – a £15,000 pot to subsidise new initiatives, which help to increase footfall and visitor spend in the town.

The fayre will include pet portrait photograph sessions, pet first aid training, dog grooming demonstrations, doggy competitions, dog treats and a tombola, with dog food and pet fashion brands such as Butternut Box and Over Glam in attendance.

Entry to the fayre is free to well behaved dogs and their owners.

The event is part of a weekend programme of activities at the hotel, offering accommodation packages and dog walking tours via DogFriendly.co.uk – where dog owners can also vote for Eastbourne as the most dog friendly destination (vote closes October 31).

It takes place as a new Dog Friendly Guide is published, which will appear both online, at VisitEastbourne.com, and in print and distributed by the Friends of Eastbourne Seafront welcome team, Seafront Office and Eastbourne Visitor Centre.

The guide is a directory of all things dog-friendly in Eastbourne and the surrounding areas.

Councillor Margaret Bannister, Eastbourne Borough Council’s lead member for tourism, leisure, accessibility and community safety, said: “This is going to be an amazing event for our four-legged friends and their owners, and will showcase what a really dog friendly destination Eastbourne is.

“The VisitEastbourne Tourism Development Fund is all about partnership working and how by working together we can amplify our message to visitors and provide impactful results, highlighting the fantastic town that Eastbourne is and what it has to offer to wider audiences. I am delighted to see it working in action.”

In addition to dog-friendly projects, the Fund also supported the launch of A Taste of Victoria Place, which showcased the restaurant community in August, and will be supporting several other projects between now and December.