Lewes District Explained

Lewes is a local government district in East Sussex, England. The district is named after the town of Lewes. The largest town is Seaford. The district also includes the towns of Newhaven, Peacehaven and Telscombe and numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. The council meets in Lewes and has its main offices in Newhaven.

The district lies on the south coast, and a large part of it lies within the South Downs National Park. The district covers an area of 113sqmi, with 9miles of coastline.[1] Plumpton Racecourse is within the district. There are 28 parishes in the district.

The neighbouring districts are Brighton and Hove, Mid Sussex and Wealden.

History

The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. The new district covered the area of four former districts, which were all abolished at the same time:[2]

The new district was named after Lewes, the ancient county town of Sussex.[3]

Since 2016 the council has shared a chief executive and other staff with nearby Eastbourne Borough Council.

Governance

Lewes District Council
Logo Pic:Lewes District Council.svg
Logo Res:180px
Foundation:1 April 1974
House Type:Non-metropolitan district
Leader1 Type:Chair
Leader1:Lesley Boniface
Party1:
Liberal Democrat
Election1:20 May 2024[4]
Leader2 Type:Leader
Leader2:Zoe Nicholson
Party2:
Green
Election2:22 May 2023[5]
Leader3 Type:Chief Executive
Leader3:Robert Cottrill
Election3:18 January 2016
Members:41
Political Groups1:
Administration (24)
  • Green (16)
  • Labour (8)
    Other parties (17)
  • Structure1:United Kingdom Lewes District Council 2023.svg
    Structure1 Res:240px
    Voting System1:First past the post
    Last Election1:4 May 2023
    Next Election1:6 May 2027
    Session Room:East Sussex County Hall.jpg
    Meeting Place:County Hall, St Anne's Crescent, Lewes, BN71UE

    Lewes District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by East Sussex County Council.[6] The whole district is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[7]

    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.[8]

    Political control

    The council has been under no overall control since 2018. Since the 2023 election an alliance of the Greens and Labour has formed the council's administration.[9]

    The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements took effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[10] [11]

    Party in controlYears
    1974–1991
    1991–2011
    2011–2013
    2013–2015
    2015–2018
    2018–present

    Leadership

    The leaders of the council since 1999 have been:[12]

    Councillor Party From To
    Ann De Vecchi May 1999 8 May 2011
    Tony Nicholson 25 May 2011 20 Feb 2012
    James Page 20 Feb 2012 26 Feb 2014
    Rob Blackman 26 Feb 2014 Sep 2015
    Andy Smith 14 Oct 2015 5 May 2019
    Isabelle Linington 20 May 2019 15 Jul 2019
    Zoe Nicholson 15 Jul 2019 20 Jul 2020
    James MacCleary 20 Jul 2020 15 Jul 2021
    Zoe Nicholson 15 Jul 2021 18 Jul 2022
    James MacCleary 18 Jul 2022 22 May 2023
    Zoe Nicholson 22 May 2023

    Composition

    Following the 2023 election and changes of allegiance up to June 2024, the composition of the council was:[13] [14] [15]

    PartyCouncillors
    16
    15
    8
    2
    Total41

    The next election is due in 2027.

    Elections

    See also: Lewes District Council elections. Since the last boundary changes in 2019 the council has comprised 41 councillors representing 21 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[16]

    The wards, with their populations at the 2021 Census, are:

    WardPopulation
    (2021 Census)
    Number of
    Councillors
    Population
    per Councillor
    Chailey, Barcombe and Hamsey5,20422,602
    Ditchling and Westmeston2,55412,554
    East Saltdean and Telscombe Cliffs7,39432,461
    Kingston1,90411,904
    Lewes Bridge4,83422,417
    Lewes Castle3,96421,982
    Lewes Priory7,91632,639
    Newhaven North4,87722,439
    Newhaven South7,81422,605
    Newick2,44612,446
    Ouse Valley and Ringmer6,51332,171
    Peacehaven East5,37722,689
    Peacehaven North5,18622,593
    Peacehaven West4,87222,436
    Plumpton, Streat, East Chiltington
    and St John (Without)
    2,22212,222
    Seaford Central5,02322,512
    Seaford East4,77622,388
    Seaford North5,20722,604
    Seaford South4,38822,194
    Seaford West4,47122,236
    Wivelsfield2,96412,964
    Total Lewes99,905412,437

    The district straddles the constituencies of Lewes and Brighton Kemptown.[7]

    Premises

    Since 2013, full council meetings have been held at County Hall in Lewes, the headquarters of East Sussex County Council.[12] In 2023 the council moved its main offices to Marine Workshops, a former industrial building in Newhaven which it shares with East Sussex Colleges Group.[17]

    When created in 1974 the council inherited four sets of offices from its predecessor councils:

    The Downs was converted into housing and a leisure centre built behind it. The new council's offices were divided between the other three buildings. In 1998 the council acquired Southover House on Southover Road in Lewes, which had previously been offices of East Sussex County Council, to serve as its main offices, remaining there until 2022.[18]

    Geography

    The Prime Meridian passes through the district.

    Sussex Police has its head office in the town of Lewes.[19]

    Towns and parishes

    The whole district is divided into civil parishes. The parish councils for Lewes, Newhaven, Peacehaven, Seaford and Telscombe take the style "town council". Some of the smaller parishes have a parish meeting rather than a parish council.[20]

    ParishTypePopulation
    (2021 Census)
    Area
    (sq km)
    Pop Density
    per km2
    BarcombeParish Council1,49117.8183.7
    BeddingtonParish Council27315.7117.4
    ChaileyParish Council2,97517.81119.4
    DitchlingParish Council2,26515.50146.1
    East Chiltington & St John WithoutParish Council45813.5833.7
    Falmer & St Ann WithoutParish Council25017.0214.7
    FirleParish Council26713.8719.3
    Glynde & Tarring NevilleParish Council1949.7220.0
    HamseyParish Council73411.4464.2
    IfordParish Meeting1779.7118.2
    Kingston near LewesParish Council8165.70143.1
    LewesTown Council16,72311.421,464.4
    NewhavenTown Council12,6937.181,767.6
    NewickParish Council2,4457.80313.4
    PeacehavenTown Council15,4425.182,979.4
    PiddinghoeParish Council2343.8061.5
    PlumptonParish Council1,5999.66165.5
    RingmerParish Council4,76525.91183.9
    Rodmell & SoutheaseParish Council42911.2738.1
    SeafordTown Council23,86517.311,378.7
    South HeightonParish Council1,0158.49119.6
    StreatParish Meeting1645.1831.6
    TelscombeTown Council7,3924.731,563.5
    WestmestonParish Council2908.4834.2
    WivelsfieldParish Council2,96010.79274.3
    Total Lewes99,905292.10342.0

    ‡ St John Without, St Ann Without, Tarring Neville and Southease are separate civil parishes with parish meetings, but due to their small size population statistics are not published separately for them.

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Lewes District Council: News and local information . 2009 . Lewes District Council . 12 August 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090702162117/http://www.lewes.gov.uk/9203.asp . 2 July 2009 .
    2. si. The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972. 1972. 2039. 2 August 2023.
    3. si. The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973. 1973. 551. 31 May 2023.
    4. Web site: The Chair of Lewes District . Lewes District Council . 4 June 2024.
    5. Web site: Council minutes, 22 May 2023 . Lewes District Council . 22 May 2023 . 16 August 2023.
    6. act. Local Government Act 1972. 1972. 70. 31 May 2023.
    7. Web site: Election Maps . Ordnance Survey . 25 July 2023.
    8. Web site: Members . South Downs National Park Authority . 17 August 2023.
    9. News: Oxburgh . Huw . Greens and Labour join forces to run Lewes District Council . 17 August 2023 . Sussex World . 23 May 2023.
    10. Web site: Compositions calculator . The Elections Centre . 4 March 2016 . 31 July 2023.
    11. Web site: Election 2011 - England council elections - Lewes. BBC News.
    12. Web site: Council minutes . Lewes and Eastbourne Councils . 24 July 2022.
    13. Web site: Local elections 2023: live council results for England. The Guardian.
    14. News: Boothroyd . David . North Northants gets the Bill . 11 May 2024 . Local Councils . Thorncliffe . 5 April 2024.
    15. News: Boothroyd . David . Labour's win is Clydebuilt . 3 July 2024 . Local Councils . Thorncliffe . 14 June 2024.
    16. si. The Lewes (Electoral Changes) Order 2016. 2016. 1229. 17 August 2023.
    17. Web site: New cultural hub in Lewes . Lewes District Council . 4 June 2024 . 6 October 2023.
    18. News: Council to move out of Southover House in Lewes . 17 August 2023 . Sussex World . 3 February 2022.
    19. "Non-emergency enquiries." (Archive) Sussex Police. Retrieved 13 February 2011. "Sussex Police Headquarters Church Lane, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 2DZ."
    20. Web site: Town and Parish Council contact details . Lewes District Council . 17 August 2023.