Chichester District
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (June 2013) |
Chichester District | |
|---|---|
 Chichester shown within West Sussex | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Region | South East England |
| Non-metropolitan county | West Sussex |
| Status | Non-metropolitan district |
| Admin HQ | Chichester |
| Incorporated | 1 April 1974 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Non-metropolitan district council |
| • Body | Chichester District Council |
| • Leadership | Leader & Cabinet (Liberal Democrat) |
| • MPs | Andrew Griffith Jeremy Quin Gillian Keegan |
| Area | |
| • Total | 303.60 sq mi (786.32 km2) |
| • Rank | 42nd (of 296) |
| Population (2022) | |
| • Total | 126,103 |
| • Rank | 189th (of 296) |
| • Density | 420/sq mi (160/km2) |
| • Ethnicity | 98.4% White |
| Time zone | UTC0 (GMT) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (BST) |
| Website | www |
Chichester is a local government district in West Sussex, England. Its council is based in the city of Chichester and the district also covers a large rural area to the north.[1]
History
The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, as a merger of the municipal borough (city) of Chichester and the Rural Districts of Midhurst, Petworth and part of the former Chichester Rural District.
Civil parishes
There are 67 civil parishes in Chichester District.[2][3] Apart from the City of Chichester, and the three towns of Midhurst, Selsey and Petworth, most are villages.
Geography
Chichester District occupies the western part of West Sussex, bordering on Hampshire to the west and Surrey to the north. The districts of Arun and Horsham abut to the east; the English Channel to the south. The district is divided by the South Downs escarpment, with the northern part being in the Weald, composed of a mixture of sandstone ridges and low-lying clays known as the Western Weald. To the south the dip slope of the downs falls gently to a flat coastal plain and the sea. The Western Weald is drained by the River Arun and its tributaries including the rivers Lox, Kird and especially the River Rother and its tributaries the River Lod and the Haslingbourne Stream. On the northern boundary Blackdown is the highest point in Sussex, while further east around Loxwood the land is low and quite flat. The south of the district has many permeable chalk and gravel areas and is drained by two winterbournes, the River Lavant and River Ems, which are usually dry in the summer. The large inlet known as Chichester Harbour and the headland of Selsey Bill are conspicuous features of the coast.
The district, apart from the few main roads, is generally rural in character, as can be seen by the number of villages within it. Apart from the coastal strip there are few main roads, and the erstwhile railways which once served Midhurst have long been closed.
Landmarks
Apart from the geographical landmarks Chichester District contains architectural and cultural places including Chichester Cathedral, Chichester Festival Theatre, The Novium and Pallant House Gallery in the city. Stately homes open to the public include Petworth House and Uppark, both National Trust properties, Goodwood House and Stansted Park. West Dean College is open at certain times of the year. There is horse racing at Goodwood Racecourse, the Goodwood Festival of Speed at Goodwood House, and the Goodwood Revival at Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit. Cowdray House is a ruined Tudor mansion near Midhurst. Fishbourne Roman Palace lies west of Chichester city centre. To the north of the city are Weald and Downland Open Air Museum and Halnaker Windmill. There are gardens open to the public at Woolbeding and Pound Commons and West Dean College.
Governance
Chichester District Council | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| History | |
| Founded | 1 April 1974 |
| Leadership | |
Leader of the Council | |
Chief Executive | Diane Shepherd |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 36 councillors |
 | |
Political groups |
|
Length of term | 4 years |
| Elections | |
| First-past-the-post | |
Last election | 2 May 2019 |
Next election | 4 May 2023 |
| Meeting place | |
| East Pallant, Chichester, West Sussex | |
| Website | |
| www | |
Chichester District Council has 36 councillors, representing 21 wards. Chichester itself has five of those wards (North, South, East, West and Central) whilst the remaining wards comprise groups of villages; see Wards of Chichester District. Local elections are held every four years and at the May 2011 and 2015 elections, the Conservative party retained control.[5][6]
In 1999, a leader and cabinet form of governance was introduced.[7] Since then, the composition of the council has been:[8]
| Party in control | Leader | Years | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Jane Chevis | 1999–2002 | |
| Janet Duncton | 2002–2004 | ||
| No overall control (Conservative minority) | 2004–2005 | ||
| No overall control (Liberal Democrat minority) | Andrew Smith[9] | 2005–2006 | |
| Conservative | Myles Cullen | 2006–2011 | |
| Heather Caird[10] | 2011–2015 | ||
| Tony Dignum | 2015–2019 | ||
| No overall control (Conservative minority) | Eileen Lintill | 2019 | |
| Conservative | 2019–2020 | ||
| No overall control (Conservative minority) | 2020–present | ||
Councillors and wards
List of Chichester district councillors by ward:[11]
| Ward | Councillor | Elected | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chichester West | Clare Apel | 1999 | Vice-Chairman of the Council Member of Chichester City Council | |
| Southbourne | Tracie Bangert | 2019 | ||
| The Witterings | Graeme Barrett | 2019 | Previously represented East Wittering (2008–2015) and West Wittering (2015–2019) | |
| Chichester South | Heather Barrie | 2019 | Member of Chichester City Council | |
| Chichester Central | Martyn Bell | 2019 | Elected as a Conservative, currently sitting as a CHI councillor Previously represented Chichester West (2011–2015) Member of Chichester City Council | |
| Chichester West | Rev John-Henry Bowden | 2019 | Member of Chichester City Council | |
| Chichester East | Bill Brisbane | 2021 | Elected following a by-election held in June 2021[12] | |
| Westbourne | Roy Briscoe | 2019 | Cabinet Member for Community Services and Culture | |
| Southbourne | Jonathan Brown | 2016 | ||
| Chichester North | Tony Dignum | 2011 | Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth, Place and Regeneration Member of Chichester City Council Leader of the Council (2015–2019) | |
| Loxwood | Janet Duncton | 2019 | Elected following a by-election held in November 2019[13] Chairman of West Sussex County Council Leader of the Council (2002–2005) Previously represented Petworth (1973–1995; 1997–2019) | |
| Selsey South | John Elliott | 2015 | ||
| Loxwood | Gareth Evans | 2019 | ||
| Midhurst | Judy Fowler | 2019 | ||
| Fernhurst | Norma Graves | 2007 | Cabinet Member for Democratic Services, Business Support, Promotion and Events | |
| The Witterings | Elizabeth Hamilton | 2019 | Chairman of the Council Previously represented Easebourne (2007–2015) and West Wittering (2015–2019) | |
| Easebourne | Francis Hobbs | 2015 | ||
| Sidlesham with Selsey North |
Donna Johnson | 2019 | Local Alliance councillor | |
| Selsey South | Timothy Johnson | 2019 | Local Alliance councillor | |
| Petworth | Eileen Lintill | 2007 | Leader of the Council | |
| Chichester East | Sarah Lishman | 2019 | Member of Chichester City Council | |
| Midhurst | Gordon McAra | 2011 | Independent councillor | |
| Harbour Villages | Adrian Moss | 2019 | Previously represented Fishbourne (2003–2011; 2018–2019) | |
| Harting | Dr Kate O'Kelly | 2018 | Member of West Sussex County Council Previously represented Rogate (2018–2019) | |
| North Mundham and Tangmere |
Simon Oakley | 2019 | Member of West Sussex County Council Previously represented Tangmere (2011–2019) | |
| North Mundham and Tangmere |
Christopher Page | 2019 | Elected as a Conservative, currently sitting as a CHI councillor Previously represented North Mundham (2017–2019) | |
| Lavant | David Palmer | 2019 | ||
| Harbour Villages | Penny Plant | 2019 | Cabinet Member for Environment and Chichester Contract Services Previously represented Bosham (2015–2019) | |
| Chichester North | Richard Plowman | 2019 | Member of Chichester City Council Previously represented Chichester West (2015–2019) and Chichester North (2003—2007) | |
| Goodwood | Henry Potter | 2019 | Previously represented Boxgrove (2007–2019) | |
| Sidlesham with Selsey North |
Carol Purnell | 2019 | Previously represented Selsey North (2011–2019) | |
| Harbour Villages | David Rodgers | 2019 | ||
| Chichester South | Sarah Sharp | 2019 | Member of Chichester City Council | |
| Fittlworth | Alan Sutton | 2019 | Cabinet Member for Housing, Communications, Licensing and Events | |
| The Witterings | Susan Taylor | 2019 | Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Planning Previously represented East Wittering (2015–2019) | |
| Fernhurst | Peter Wilding | 2019 | Cabinet Member for Corporate Services Previously represented Plaistow (2017–2019) | |
Economy
West Sussex County Council and Chichester District Council are major employers in Chichester, along with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars assembly plant at nearby Westhampnett. Boatbuilding is an important industry along the coast. Many people from the northern parts of the district commute to work in London, using the A3 road or the railways from Portsmouth to London Waterloo station and Littlehampton to London Victoria station.[citation needed] Fertile soils on the coastal plain are used for arable farming and intensive vegetable production, the latter employing many migrant workers from Eastern Europe. High sunlight levels and a mild climate also make the coastal region suitable for glasshouse growing. A fertile strip of land on the north side of the River Rother is also used for vegetable growing, but most of the area north of the Downs is of low agricultural value and there are large areas of forest and pasture, interspersed with arable cropping.
Football clubs
See also
References
- ^ The dignity and privileges of the City of Chichester are vested in its town council, known as Chichester City Council, occupying only 10.6 km² of the total area of the District), which covers over 70 times the area
- ^ "Chichester". Office for National Statistics.
- ^ "Chichester". Ordnance Survey.
- ^ Joshua Powling (21 May 2019). "New Conservative leader at Chichester District Council". Chichester Observer.
- ^ "Chichester council elections". BBC. 10 May 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
- ^ "England council results". BBC. 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Chichester District Council – Business Support" (PDF). Audit Commission. August 2002. p. 5.
- ^ "Chichester District Council Election Results 1973-2011" (PDF). The Elections Centre, Plymouth University. June 2015.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|authors=ignored (help) - ^ Lawrence Marzouk (18 April 2007). "Control of Chichester hangs in balance". The Argus.
- ^ "Leader announces she will not stand at Chichester District Council election". Chichester Observer. 2 April 2015.
- ^ "Your councillors". Chichester District Council. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
- ^ "Declaration of Result of Poll: Chichester District Council Election of a District Councillor for Chichester East Ward on Thursday 24 June 2021".
- ^ "Declaration of Result of Poll: Chichester District Council Election of a District Councillor for Loxwood Ward on Thursday 21 November 2019".
