Published by The Argus on Thursday 5 February 2026
By Joseph Blakely
The Church of Scientology has kept hold of the premises licence for its UK headquarters, following a review.
The licence for Saint Hill Manor, located in East Grinstead, was up for review by Mid Sussex District Council after a complaint was submitted.
However, at a meeting on February 3, the council’s licensing sub-committee said it had not been presented with significant evidence that the licensing objectives for the venue were being undermined.
The council said that it had given particular scrutiny to the matters of public safety and public nuisance, but it felt it would not be reasonable or proportionate to take action.
The application for the review had alleged that “considerable disruption” had been caused to the local community by the International Association of Scientologists event that was held at the property in October last year.
It suggested the church was creating a public nuisance by causing congestion and excessively loud noise, and asked the council to consider limiting the scale of events and put in measures to safeguard vulnerable people.
Despite retaining the church’s licence, the council found the application for the review was not “vexatious”, and recognised that the applicant, Alexander Barnes-Ross, made use of public access to the site and was therefore affected by any activities.
A premises licence is granted by the local authority and allows the licence holder to carry out a range of activities, including holding events.
A full summary of the council’s decision will be published in due course.
Mr Barnes-Ross described the council’s decision as “disappointing”, but pledged to continue to fight to minimise what he described as “chaos” caused by the church.
He said: “Last year the church applied for a ban on protesting outside Saint Hill, which they ultimately retracted. The process cost the taxpayer £84,000 and the Council raised several concerns about public safety and the nuisance caused by their annual event.
“Despite being given this evidence, the licensing sub-committee voted against my proposal to implement measures that would reduce the disruption these events bring to East Grinstead.
“The church argued that their events are religious in nature and benefit from an exemption under the Licensing Act, but when questioned during the hearing their lawyers admitted the event does not involve any acts of worship whatsoever.
“Although the council’s u-turn is disappointing, I will continue to do whatever possible to minimise the chaos the church’s events bring to East Grinstead.”
Saint Hill Manor was once home to Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard and served as the church’s world headquarters until 1967.
The venue has been visited by famous Scientologist and actor Tom Cruise on multiple occasions.
A spokesman for the church said: “The application to review the premises licence held by the Church of Scientology at Saint Hill Manor was dismissed as without merit by the council’s sub-committee.
“Much of the application was discounted prior to the hearing as it was not relevant to the licence.
“The sub-committee made it clear that if any similar applications were made in the future, they could be ruled as vexatious, meaning they are intended to harass or cause disruption.
“The licence is largely in place to allow the Church to hold an annual anniversary event, including a charity fundraising concert that has raised more than £2 million for local charities in recent years.”