Mid Sussex is a local government district in the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 county of West Sussex

West Sussex

West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...

. It contains the towns of East Grinstead

East Grinstead

East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...

, Haywards Heath

Haywards Heath

-Climate:Haywards Heath experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Rail:Haywards Heath railway station is a major station on the Brighton Main Line...

 and Burgess Hill

Burgess Hill

Burgess Hill is a civil parish and a town primarily located in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England, close to the border with East Sussex, on the edge of the South Downs National Park...

.

The district was created on 1 April 1974, and replaced the urban district

Urban district

In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....

s of Cuckfield

Cuckfield

Cuckfield is a large village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester. Nearby towns include Haywards Heath to the southeast and Burgess...

, Burgess Hill

Burgess Hill

Burgess Hill is a civil parish and a town primarily located in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England, close to the border with East Sussex, on the edge of the South Downs National Park...

, and East Grinstead

East Grinstead

East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...

 and nearly all of Cuckfield Rural

Cuckfield Rural

Ansty and Staplefield, formally Cuckfield Rural, is a civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, covering an area from the north-west side of Burgess Hill, the whole lying to the west of Cuckfield civil parish, from which it was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act...

. These districts had previously been under East Sussex

East Sussex

East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...

.

The District borders the Tandridge district of Surrey

Surrey

Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

 to the north, Lewes district and Wealden

Wealden

For the stone, see Wealden GroupWealden is a local government district in East Sussex, England: its name comes from the Weald, the area of high land which occupies the centre of its area.-History:...

 district to the east, and Brighton and Hove to the south, all in East Sussex, and Horsham district

Horsham (district)

Horsham is a local government district in West Sussex, England. Its council is based in Horsham. The district borders those of Crawley, Mid Sussex, Mole Valley, Chichester, Arun and Adur....

 and Crawley

Crawley

Crawley is a town and local government district with Borough status in West Sussex, England. It is south of Charing Cross, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town of Chichester, covers an area of and had a population of 99,744 at the time of the 2001 Census.The area has...

 to the west and northwest respectively, both of which are in West Sussex.

Civil parishes

Within the Mid Sussex District are the following civil parishes:

Parish	Type	Area (Hectare)	Population (2001)	Pop Density /Hectare
Albourne Albourne Albourne is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. It lies just off the A23 road three miles east of Henfield. The parish has a land area of 772.9 hectares...	Parish Council	773	600	0.78
Ardingly Ardingly Ardingly is a village and civil parish in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty about north of Haywards Heath in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. The village is about south of London, south-south-west of East Grinstead, southeast of Crawley, north of Brighton and ...	Parish Council	1609	1833	1.14
Ashurst Wood Ashurst Wood Ashurst Wood is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, within the historic county of Sussex, England. It is to the southeast of East Grinstead, just off the A22 arterial road. The village is in the Mid Sussex district of the county, and has a parish population of...	Parish Council	251	1771	7.05
Balcombe Balcombe, West Sussex Balcombe is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester. Nearby towns include Crawley to the northwest and Haywards Heath to the south southeast...	Parish Council	2105	1765	0.84
Bolney Bolney Bolney is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester, near the junction of the A23 road with the A272 road. The parish has a land area of 1479.41 hectares...	Parish Council	1479	1209	0.82
Burgess Hill Burgess Hill Burgess Hill is a civil parish and a town primarily located in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England, close to the border with East Sussex, on the edge of the South Downs National Park...	Town Council	947	28803	30.42
Cuckfield Cuckfield Cuckfield is a large village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester. Nearby towns include Haywards Heath to the southeast and Burgess...	Parish Council	432	3266	7.57
Cuckfield Rural Cuckfield Rural Ansty and Staplefield, formally Cuckfield Rural, is a civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, covering an area from the north-west side of Burgess Hill, the whole lying to the west of Cuckfield civil parish, from which it was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act...	Parish Council	3869	1574	0.41
East Grinstead East Grinstead East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...	Town Council	2443	23942	9.80
Fulking Fulking Fulking is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It is located on the north slopes of the South Downs, five miles to the north-west of Brighton...	Parish Council	628	250	0.40
Hassocks Hassocks Hassocks is a large village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. Its name is believed to derive from the tufts of grass found in the surrounding fields....	Parish Council	1088	6821	6.27
Haywards Heath Haywards Heath -Climate:Haywards Heath experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Rail:Haywards Heath railway station is a major station on the Brighton Main Line...	Town Council	975	22800	23.38
Horsted Keynes Horsted Keynes Horsted Keynes is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. The village is located about eight kilometres north east of Haywards Heath, in the Weald...	Parish Council	1581	1507	0.95
Hurstpierpoint and Sayers Common Hurstpierpoint and Sayers Common Hurstpierpoint and Sayers Common is a civil parish in the district of Mid Sussex, West Sussex England....	Parish Council	2030	6264	3.09
Lindfield Lindfield, West Sussex Lindfield is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. The parish lies to the north-east of Haywards Heath, of which the village is a part of the built-up area. It stands on the upper reaches of the River Ouse...	Parish Council	224	5394	24.07
Lindfield Rural Lindfield Rural Lindfield Rural is a civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It is located on the southern slopes of the Weald, five miles to the east of Haywards Heath. It covers an area of and has a population of 2644 persons...	Parish Council	1981	2644	1.33
Newtimber Newtimber Newtimber is a small village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It is located north-west of Brighton, and is named after Newtimber Place and the small village named after it; the parish also includes the hamlet of Saddlescombe. It covers an area of ....	Parish Council	695	96	0.14
Poynings Poynings Poynings is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It is located on the north side of the South Downs near Devil's Dyke, five miles north-west of Brighton...	Parish Council	666	287	0.43
Pyecombe Pyecombe Pyecombe is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It is located 7 miles to the north of Brighton. The civil parish covers an area of and has a population of 200 ....	Parish Council	887	200	0.23
Slaugham Slaugham Slaugham is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It is located seven miles to the south of Crawley, on the A23 road to Brighton...	Parish Council	2432	2226	0.92
Turners Hill Turners Hill Turners Hill is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. The civil parish covers an area of , and has a population of 1,849 ....	Parish Council	1390	1849	1.33
Twineham Twineham Twineham is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. It is located eight kilometres to the west of Burgess Hill. The civil parish covers an area of In the 2001 census 271 people lived in 100 households, of whom 139 were economically active.The name 'Twineham'...	Parish Council	784	271	0.35
West Hoathly West Hoathly West Hoathly is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, located south west of East Grinstead. In the 2001 census 2,121 people, of whom 1,150 were economically active, lived in 813 households. The parish, which has a land area of , includes the hamlets of...	Parish Council	2139	2121	0.99
Worth Worth, West Sussex The civil parish of Worth, which includes the villages of Copthorne, West Sussex and Crawley Down, covers an area of and has a population of 9888 persons. The ecclesiastical parish was one of the larger West Sussex parishes, encompassing the entire area along the West Sussex/Surrey border between...	Parish Council	1995	9888	4.96
Mid Sussex	Total	33403	127381	3.81

Local politics

The parliamentary constituency of Mid Sussex

Mid Sussex (UK Parliament constituency)

Mid Sussex is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...

 covers most (but not all) of the District, and is currently held by the Conservative Party

Conservative Party (UK)

The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...

. The incumbent Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) is Nicholas Soames

Nicholas Soames

Arthur Nicholas Winston Soames MP , known as Nicholas Soames, is a British Conservative Party Member of Parliament for the constituency of Mid Sussex....

, the grandson of former Prime Minister

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...

 Sir Winston Churchill

Winston Churchill

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...

, and a former junior minister in the Government of John Major

John Major

Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...

 (1990–97). In the 2005 general election, Nicholas Soames held the seat with 48.0% of the popular vote, a 1.8% increase; the Liberal Democrat

Liberal Democrats

The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...

 candidate Ms Serena Tierney took 36.1% of votes, a 5.0% increase; the Labour Party

Labour Party (UK)

The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...

 candidate Robert Fromant received 12.7% of the vote, a 6.1% decrease; and the United Kingdom Independence Party

United Kingdom Independence Party

The United Kingdom Independence Party is a eurosceptic and right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. Whilst its primary goal is the UK's withdrawal from the European Union, the party has expanded beyond its single-issue image to develop a more comprehensive party platform.UKIP...

candidate Harold Piggott received 3.2%, a 0.7% increase. The turnout for Mid Sussex was 68.6% (49,494 people voted) up 3.7% from 2001.