A FORMER restaurant site at Brighton Marina may be turned into a jiu jitsu martial arts centre.

Art Suave, a Brazilian jiu jitsu company, wants to take over and convert the former Brasserie Italiano restaurant at the Marina.

The company said – in its application to Brighton and Hove City Council for planning permission for change of use – that it wanted to make the site its European headquarters for “Gracie Jiu-Jitsu”.

The space would have room for 20 people practising the martial art and space for parents to watch, with a small café providing drinks.

The company said that the space had been empty for two years.

It said that change of use from a restaurant to leisure facilities would bring more people to an area of the Marina which was not a prominent location.

The application said: “The proposal will result in the loss of a restaurant unit.

“However, the provision of leisure facilities, which do not already exist, would attract people to the Marina.”

Brazilian jiu-jitsu developed from judo taught in Brazil by Japanese teachers.

It teaches a smaller person to defend themselves against a bigger person.

Art Suave Ltd said that it was a fundamental self-defence technique to empower women as well as offering children bully-proof programmes.

The application can be viewed by searching for BH2020/00404 on the council’s website at planningapps.brighton-hove.gov.uk.