Brighton & Hove City Council proposes five new unitary authorities for Sussex
What is Brighton & Hove proposing?
Further to our bulletin last week - setting out business cases from West and East Sussex with regards to how local government could be restructured in the region - Brighton & Hove has now published its new proposed model of five unitary authorities across Sussex, replacing the current two-tier system in many areas.
What’s a unitary authority?
A unitary authority is a single-tier local council responsible for all local government functions in its area - such as education, roads, planning, housing, social care, and waste. This is different from the two-tier system (used in most of Sussex), where responsibilities are split between county and district/borough councils.
Brighton & Hove is already a unitary authority, and their proposal sets out how they suggest the rest of Sussex could follow suit.
The proposed five new unitary councils
Brighton & Hove City Council’s devolution proposal is not a neat merge of existing local authority areas - it’s a ward-level redesign based on service patterns, local identity and population scale.
Here’s a breakdown of what’s proposed:
Unitary A: Greater Brighton
Brighton & Hove City Council (all wards)
Lewes District Council: East Saltdean & Telscombe Cliffs, Peacehaven West, Peacehaven East, Peacehaven North, Falmer Parish (from Kingston ward)
Wealden District: 11 wards including Pevensey Bay, Polegate, and parts of Willingdon and Hailsham
Total population: 359,868
Unitary C: High Weald & Lewes
Mid Sussex (all wards)
Wealden District: 33 wards across Uckfield, Crowborough, Heathfield, Hailsham and surrounding villages
Lewes District: Most of the Lewes town and rural wards including Ringmer, Newick, Ditchling, Barcombe
Total population: 322,617
Unitary D: Gatwick to Chichester
Chichester, Horsham, Crawley (all wards)
Total population: 394,308
Unitary E: Coastal West Sussex
Arun, Adur, Worthing (all wards)
Total population: 343,098
This new Brighton & Hove proposal is the most radical yet seen in the Sussex devolution debate - prioritising functional geography and equality of representation over existing bureaucracy, and with the Council arguing that it offers ward-level alignment around real-life service use, infrastructure and community identity.
It is clear that the balance of decision-making power around the table of any new mayor's cabinet is a big factor here. Brighton & Hove City Council seem keen to avoid a situation in which the mayor's cabinet could include leaders of a West Sussex unitary with 800,000+ population, East Sussex unitary with 500,000+ population and Brighton & Hove unitary with 270,000+ population.
Whereas West and East Sussex county, districts and boroughs have put forward business cases and shortlisted options so far, Brighton & Hove is putting forward one big proposal.
Whether this model of reorganisation gains traction remains to be seen, but it shows how there is some appetite to rethink existing boundaries and dismantling the current East and West Sussex administrative boundaries completely.
What’s the reasoning?
The proposal is built around three key principles:
Population scale: Each new unitary should serve around 300,000–500,000 people – more in line with Whitehall guidance.
Place identity: New councils should reflect geographic, economic and social connections.
Governance legitimacy: Democratic representation and local accountability must be at the heart of any restructure.
Brighton & Hove argues that smaller units (like its proposed five) would be more responsive and representative than a single “mega-council” or only two unitaries dividing East and West.
Is this the likely outcome?
Ultimately, central Governmet will decide it's preference - but there may well be another opportunity for the public to give feedback before anything is finalised. This is Brighton & Hove’s starting position - a contribution to the wider debate. The council says it is ready to engage in 'collaborative discussions' with other councils and government about how best to structure local democracy in the region.
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