Arundel and South Downs

Arundel and South Downs () is a constituency in West Sussex created in 1997 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament by Andrew Griffith, a Conservative, since 2019.

Constituency profile

The constituency is rural and agricultural. It is located in the county of West Sussex and lies almost entirely within the South Downs National Park. It contains a number of small towns and villages; the largest settlements are the towns of Steyning and Storrington, each with populations of around 6,000, and other small towns in the constituency include Arundel, Midhurst and Petworth. Residents of the constituency are considerably older and wealthier than the national average, and 97% of the population are white.

Parts of the constituency lie within the Chichester, Horsham and Arun local government districts, all of which are currently controlled entirely or partly by the Liberal Democrats but were historically under Conservative control. Voters in the constituency were evenly balanced between supporting and opposing Brexit in the 2016 referendum.

Boundaries

1997–2010: Following their review of parliamentary boundaries in West Sussex which Parliament approved in 1995, the Boundary Commission for England formed new constituencies. As created in 1997, the seat was constituted as follows:

The following wards of the District of Arun, namely, Aldingbourne, Angmering, Arundel, Barnham, Findon and Walberton;

The Bury ward of the District of Chichester;

The following wards of the District of Horsham, namely, Bramber and Upper Beeding, Chanctonbury, Henfield, Pulborough, Steyning, Storrington, Sullington, West Chiltington and West Grinstead; and

The Bolney, Clayton, Hurstpierpoint and Keymer wards of the District of Mid Sussex.

In their recommendations, the Boundary Commission for England mooted the name Chanctonbury after uninhabited Chanctonbury Ring, an ancient hill fort at its centre.