Anston House: Building almost completely demolished

Pictures taken of Anston House in Preston Road show the building is almost totally destroyed since work began almost two weeks ago.

As the exterior walls were ripped away, the rooms inside the structure were revealed, with many covered with graffiti tags and spray-painted scrawls.

Built in the 1960s, the derelict block, dubbed Brighton's ugliest and described by one councillor as “a blot on the landscape” has been abandoned for more than 30 years, since 1987.

Work continues to demolish Anston House

The site, owned by First Base and Hyde Housing Group, is set to be flattened and then redeveloped into 229 new homes across three tower blocks. This "build to rent" scheme was granted planning permission last year.

Of the 229 flats, 30 one-bedroom and two-bedroom properties will be classed as affordable, and there will also be a communal work space on the ground floor.

The building has almost been completely destroyed

Brighton architects Conran and Partners, who have laid out designs for the planned blocks of flats, said the development will "provide much-needed new, contemporary homes and work space within the city".

And William Shaw, a Brighton resident who lives nearby, said he and, he suspected, many other people in the city would be "really happy to see the back of Anston House".