Horsham (constituency)

Horsham () is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament, centred on the eponymous town in West Sussex. The seat was won in 2024 by John Milne of the Liberal Democrats, making it the first time since 1876 that a non-Conservative Party candidate has held the seat.

Constituency profile

The Horsham constituency is located in West Sussex and covers most of Horsham District. It is centred on the historic market town of Horsham, which has a population of around 52,000, and covers a large rural area surrounding the town. This area includes the large villages of Billingshurst and Southwater. The Arun Valley railway line travels through Horsham and Billingshurst and connects them to the south coast, Crawley, Gatwick Airport and London, making the area home to many commuters. The constituency is generally affluent with low levels of deprivation, particularly in Southwater and its surroundings, which fall within the top 10% least-deprived areas of England. House prices in the constituency are higher than regional and national averages.

In general, residents of the constituency have high levels of education and income. White people made up 92% of the population at the 2021 census. Edward Turnour held the seat for 47 years from a 1904 byelection until the 1951 general election, which included the whole period of Horsham and Worthing's existence. Similarly, Peter Hordern held the seat for 33 years from 1964 to 1997, including the whole period of Horsham and Crawley's existence.

Its Member of Parliament (MP) was Francis Maude between 1997 and 2015; followed by fellow Conservative Jeremy Quin until 2024 when the seat was taken from Quin by John Milne of the Liberal Democrats, making it the first time since 1876 that a non-Conservative Party candidate has won the seat. The Liberal Democrats (or one of its predecessors, the Social Democratic Party) had come second to the Conservatives at every general election from 1983 to 2019, except 2015 (UKIP) and 2017 (Labour).

Boundaries

Historic

1885–1918: The Sessional Divisions of Horsham, Midhurst, Petworth, the civil parish of Crawley.

1945–1950: The Urban Districts of Horsham, Shoreham-by-Sea, Southwick, the Rural Districts of Chanctonbury and Horsham.

1950–1974: The Urban District of Horsham, the Rural Districts of Horsham, Midhurst, Petworth.

1983–1997: The District of Horsham.

1997–2010: The District of Horsham wards of Billingshurst, Broadbridge Heath, Cowfold, Denne, Forest, Holbrook, Itchingfield and Shipley, Nuthurst, Riverside, Roffey North, Rudgwick, Rusper, Slinfold, Southwater, Trafalgar, Warnham, the District of Mid Sussex wards of Balcombe, Copthorne and Worth, Crawley Down, Slaugham, Turners Hill, the District of Chichester wards of Plaistow and Wisborough Green.

2010–2024: The District of Horsham wards of Billingshurst and Shipley, Broadbridge Heath, Denne, Forest, Holbrook East, Holbrook West, Horsham Park, Itchingfield, Slinfold and Warnham, Nuthurst, Roffey North, Roffey South, Rudgwick, Rusper and Colgate, Southwater, and Trafalgar, and the District of Mid Sussex wards of Ardingly and Balcombe, Copthorne and Worth, and Crawley Down and Turners Hill.

2024–present: The District of Horsham wards of Billingshurst, Broadbridge Heath, Colgate & Rusper, Cowfold, Shermanbury & West Grinstead, Denne, Forest, Holbrook East, Holbrook West, Itchingfield, Slinfold & Warnham, Nuthurst & Lower Beeding, Roffey North, Roffey South, Rudgwick, Southwater North, Southwater South & Shipley, and Trafalgar.

:Electorate reduced to bring it within the permitted range by transferring rural wards to the east and south of Crawley to the newly created constituency of East Grinstead and Uckfield. The Cowfold, Shermanbury & West Grinstead ward was added from Arundel and South Downs.

Members of Parliament

MPs before 1660

{| class="wikitable"

!Parliament!!First member!!Second member

|1386

|Henry Boteler

|(?William Rydelere I)

|1388 (Feb)

|Roger Wyldegose

|William Rydelere I

|1529

|Alfred Berwick

|Henry Hussey

|Francis Knollys

|John Vaughan

|1562/3

|Peter Osborne

|Robert Buxton!!First Party!!colspan="2"|Second member

| 1774