Horsham is a local government district in West Sussex, England. It is named after the town of Horsham, which is its largest settlement and where the council is based. The district also includes the surrounding rural area and contains many villages, the largest of which are Southwater and Billingshurst. The district includes part of the South Downs National Park and part of the designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty of High Weald. At the 2021 census, the district had a population of 147,487.

The neighbouring districts are Crawley, Mid Sussex, Brighton and Hove, Adur, Arun, Chichester, Waverley and Mole Valley.

History Horsham itself had been an ancient borough from the thirteenth century but lost its borough status in the 1830s. The town had been made a local government district in 1875, which became Horsham Urban District in 1894.Local Government Act 1894

The modern district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 as one of seven districts within West Sussex. The new district covered the whole area of three former districts, which were all abolished at the same time: Chanctonbury Rural District Horsham Rural District Horsham Urban District The new district was named Horsham, after its largest settlement.

Governance

Horsham District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by West Sussex County Council. All of the district is covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government for their areas.

In the parts of the district within the South Downs National Park, town planning is the responsibility of the South Downs National Park Authority. The district council appoints one of its councillors to serve on the 27-person National Park Authority.

Political control The council has been under Liberal Democrat majority control since the 2023 election.

The first elections to the council were held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: (Put "Horsham" in search box to see specific results.) Party in control Years 1974–1976 1976–1995 1995–1999 1999–2003 2003–2007 2007–2023 2023–present

Leadership The leaders of the council since 2001 have been:

Councillor Party From To Liz Kitchen 2001 22 Apr 2009 Robert Nye 22 Apr 2009 14 Dec 2011 Ray Dawe 22 Feb 2012 26 May 2021 Paul Clarke 26 May 2021 3 Dec 2021 Jonathan Chowen 3 Dec 2021 Jan 2023Claire Vickers 2 Feb 2023 May 2023Martin Boffey 24 May 2023

Composition Following the 2023 election, and subsequent by-elections up to July 2026, the composition of the council was:

The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2019 the council has comprised 48 councillors representing 22 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

Premises The council is based at Albery House on Springfield Road in Horsham. The council moved into the building in 2025.

Between 2015 and 2025 the council shared a building called Parkside on Chart Way with West Sussex County Council. Prior to 2015 the council was based across several buildings, including Park House, an eighteenth century house on North Street which had served as the headquarters of the old Horsham Urban District Council since 1928.

Towns and parishes

The whole of the district is divided into civil parishes. None of the parishes has been formally designated a town by its parish council, although it is expected "Horsham Parish Council" will be renamed to "Horsham Town Council" once the elections are over, Billingshurst, Henfield, Pulborough and Steyning are post towns. From 1974 to 2026 the central part of the Horsham urban area, roughly corresponding to the pre-1974 Horsham Urban District, was an unparished area.

Within the Horsham District are the following civil parishes: ParishTypeArea (Hectare)Population (2001)Pop Density /HectareAmberley Parish Council 1179.37 533 0.45Ashington Parish Council 805.15 2351 2.91Ashurst Parish Council 1009.41 226 0.22Billingshurst Parish Council 3219.31 6531 2.03Bramber Parish Council 719.06 757 1.05Broadbridge Heath Parish Council 215.64 3021 14.01Coldwaltham Parish Council 893.13 845 0.95Colgate Parish Council 2243.67 1119 0.50Cowfold Parish Council 1925.57 1864 0.97Henfield Parish Council 1734.75 5012 2.89Horsham Parish Council 1170.63 23698 20.24Itchingfield Parish Council 1091.06 1477 1.35Lower Beeding Parish Council 1845.06 1001 0.54North Horsham Parish Council 1094.77 21348 19.50Nuthurst Parish Council 1696.76 1711 1.00Parham Parish Council 1586.23 214 0.13Pulborough Parish Council 2098.31 4685 2.23Rudgwick Parish Council 2468.98 2791 1.13Rusper Parish Council 2588.56 1389 0.54Shermanbury Parish Council 775.15 454 0.59Shipley Parish Council 3125.60 1075 0.34Slinfold Parish Council 1694.81 1647 0.97Southwater Parish Council 1400.20 10025 7.16Steyning Parish Council 1574.09 5812 3.69Storrington and Sullington Parish Council 1199.69 6074 5.06Thakeham Parish Council 1170.63 1794 1.53Upper Beeding Parish Council 1877.48 3798 2.02Warnham Parish Council 1980.21 1958 0.99Washington Parish Council 1275.90 1930 1.51West Chiltington Parish Council 1732.54 3315 1.91West Grinstead Parish Council 2583.65 2934 1.14Wiston Parish Council 1359.67 221 0.16Woodmancote Parish Council 848.72 478 0.56Horsham Total 53096.21 122088 2.30

Education

The Rikkyo School in England, a Japanese boarding school, is located in the Rudgwick community in Horsham District."INFORMATION IN ENGLISH." () Rikkyo School in England. Retrieved 8 January 2014. "Guildford Road, Rudgwick, W-Sussex RH12 3BE ENGLAND"

References

External links