Horsham District

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.

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

Liberal Democrat Liberal Democrat ; Administration (27) : ; Other parties (21) : Conservative (12) : Green (9) Horsham District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by West Sussex County Council. Much 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:

Leadership

The leaders of the council since 2001 have been:

Composition

Following the 2023 election, and subsequent by-elections up to April 2025, 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 central part of the Horsham urban area, roughly corresponding to the pre-1974 Horsham Urban District, is an unparished area. The rest of the district is divided into civil parishes. None of the parishes has been formally designated a town by its parish council, although Billingshurst, Henfield, Pulborough and Steyning are post towns.

Within the Horsham District are the following civil parishes:

Education

The Rikkyo School in England, a Japanese boarding school, is located in the Rudgwick community in Horsham District.

References

References

1. "Horsham Local Authority".
2. (1986). "A History of the County of Sussex: Volume 6 Part 2". Victoria County History.
3. {{London Gazette. (13 July 1875)
4. [[Local Government Act 1894]]
5. {{cite legislation UK. (1972)
6. {{cite legislation UK. (1973)
7. (23 April 2025). "Council minutes, 23 April 2025".
8. {{cite legislation UK. (1972)
9. "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey.
10. "Members".
11. (5 May 2023). "Sussex election results 2023: Tories lose Wealden for first time in 25 years". BBC News.
12. "Compositions Calculator". University of Exeter.
13. (27 February 2014). "Former Tory leader 'absolutely appalled' by her party's treatment of their vice chairman". Sussex World.
14. "Council minutes, 22 April 2009".
15. (14 December 2011). "Horsham council leader steps down". The Argus.
16. "Council minutes, 22 February 2012".
17. (19 May 2021). "Horsham District Council leader to stand down". Sussex World.
18. (26 May 2021). "Council minutes, 26 May 2021".
19. (12 November 2021). "Sudden resignation of Horsham District Council leader". Sussex World.
20. (3 December 2021). "Council minutes, 3 December 2021".
21. Powling, Joshua. (10 January 2023). "Third Conservative council leader quits at Horsham District Council within last 20 months". [[Sussex Express]].
22. (2 February 2023). "Council minutes, 2 February 2023".
23. (3 February 2023). "Conservative Claire Vickers elected as new leader of Horsham District Council three months before elections". Sussex World.
24. (24 May 2023). "Council minutes, 24 May 2023".
25. (2023-05-25). "Horsham's new council leader unveils his Lib Dem administration and its priorities".
26. (9 May 2023). "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
27. "Horsham". Thorncliffe.
28. {{cite legislation UK. (2017)
29. (4 March 2025). "Council is on the move".
30. (21 March 2015). "Horsham District Council starts office sharing move". Sussex World.
31. {{NHLE
32. "[http://www.rikkyo.co.uk/special/information-in-english.html INFORMATION IN ENGLISH]." ([https://archive.today/20140108135545/http://www.rikkyo.co.uk/special/information-in-english.html Archive]) [[Rikkyo School in England]]. Retrieved 8 January 2014. "Guildford Road,Rudgwick,W-Sussex RH12 3BE ENGLAND"