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Former St John's Chapel, AnstyPhoto: The Voice of Hassocks · Public domain
Town Hall & politics · Mid Sussex District Council

No party holds a majority on Mid Sussex District Council

Ansty is run by Mid Sussex District Council and West Sussex County Council, with Ansty and Staplefield parish council for local matters. No party holds a majority on either Mid Sussex District Council or West Sussex County Council. Its MP is Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat), member for Mid Sussex.

Council tax 2026–27

£2,469

Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.

Where it goes →
Band D council tax
£2,469
2026–27, a year
Ward councillors
2
1 ward · Mid Sussex
MP
Alison Bennett
Liberal Democrat · Mid Sussex
Turnout, July 2024
70%
Mid Sussex · England 60%
What stands out · In brief

How Ansty’s politics has changed since 2021

No majority on Mid Sussex District Council

No party holds a majority on Mid Sussex District Council. The Liberal Democrats, the largest group, hold 20 of its 48 seats as elected, 5 short of the 25 needed. The Conservatives hold 18, independents 5, the Greens 4 and Labour 1. Who’s in charge ↓

West Sussex changed hands in 2026

West Sussex County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, went from a Conservative majority (45 of 70 seats in 2021) to no overall control at the May 2026 election: the Liberal Democrats won 23 of 70 seats. West Sussex ↓

Council tax

A Band D bill in Ansty is £2,469 for 2026–27; Mid Sussex District Council keeps 8% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 57% in ten years, against England’s 56%. Council money ↓

Written from the data on this page: Democracy Club results since May 2021, the UK Parliament Members API and MHCLG council tax.

Who’s in charge

No party has a majority on either council

Seats by party as elected. A party needs 25 of Mid Sussex’s 48 or 36 of West Sussex’s 70 seats to run the council alone.

District council · 48 councillorsMid Sussex District CouncilNo overall control
GreenGreenGreenGreenLabourLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratIndependentIndependentIndependentIndependentIndependentConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservative48seats
  • Liberal Democrat20
  • Conservative18
  • Independent5
  • Green4
  • Labour1

Latest election: May 2023.

County council · 70 councillors · Ansty elects 1West Sussex County CouncilNo overall control
GreenGreenGreenGreenGreenGreenGreenLabourLabourLabourLabourLabourLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKReform UKLocal Alliance70seats
  • Liberal Democrat23+11
  • Reform UK23+23
  • Conservative11−34
  • Green7+6
  • Labour5−4
  • Local Alliance1no change
  • Independent0−2

Change against the council before the 7 May 2026 election.

GreenLabourLiberal DemocratIndependentConservativeReform UKOther parties

Seats are counted from election results: each ward’s most recent winners until its seats are filled. Councillors who have since changed party or resigned aren’t reflected, and which parties lead the council, and who is leader, comes from the council itself.

Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), elections since May 2021; seats per ward from its EveryElection.

Who runs Ansty

Two tiers of council, and a parish tier

Ansty has two tiers of council: the county runs the big services, the district the local ones.

Town or parish councilAnsty and Staplefield parish council

Local matters: allotments, play areas, halls, footpaths and benches; it is consulted on planning and adds a precept to the council tax bill. A town council is a parish council by another name.

100% of Ansty’s residents · Band D precept £95

District councilMid Sussex District Council

Bins and recycling, planning, housing, environmental health, leisure, and collecting council tax.

Website ↗
County councilWest Sussex County Council

Schools, social care, roads and transport, libraries and waste disposal.

Website ↗

Who to ask

Bins and recyclingMid Sussex District Council
Planning applicationsMid Sussex District Council
Council housing and homelessnessMid Sussex District Council
Council tax billsMid Sussex District Council
Parks and leisure centresMid Sussex District Council
Allotments, play areas, benchesAnsty and Staplefield parish council
Potholes, roads and streetlightsWest Sussex County Council
Schools and school placesWest Sussex County Council
Adult and children’s social careWest Sussex County Council
LibrariesWest Sussex County Council
Tips and recycling centresWest Sussex County Council
Police priorities and budgetSussex Police police and crime commissioner

From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: in two-tier areas the district or borough runs local services and the county the big ones.

Councils from ONS lookups (wards and councils May 2026, parishes 2025), names and websites from GOV.UK’s local council finder; parish councils from MHCLG’s 2026–27 list of precepting parishes.

Who represents Ansty

From the parish to Westminster

Every elected tier that speaks for Ansty, from the most recent elections.

  1. 1
    Town or parishParish tier
    Ansty and Staplefield parish council
  2. 2
    Mid Sussex District Council1 ward · 2 councillors
    Malcolm Ronald AveryJim Knight
  3. 3
    West Sussex County Council1 division · 1 councillor
    Rodney Thomas Hayden Jackson
  4. 4
    Police and crime commissionerSussex Police · elected May 2024
    Katy Bourne
  5. 5
    House of CommonsMid Sussex
ConservativeLiberal Democrat

Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. Tap an MP’s name for their contact page on parliament.uk.

Councillors

2 councillors for 1 ward

Wards with at least 2% of the town’s residents, or half their own inside it. Each shows who won its most recent elections, newest first, until its seats are filled.

Cuckfield, Bolney & Ansty
403 residents · 6% in Ansty
  • Malcolm Ronald AveryConservative · May 2023
  • Jim KnightConservative · May 2023
ConservativeLiberal Democrat
Show as a table, with West Sussex County Council’s 1 division (1 councillor)
WardSeatsElectedWhen
Cuckfield, Bolney & Ansty6% in Ansty · 403 residents2 seats · May 20232
Malcolm Ronald AveryJim Knight
May 2023

West Sussex County Council: county divisions

DivisionSeatsElectedWhen
Hurstpierpoint & Bolney ED2% in Ansty · 403 residents1 seat · May 20261
Rodney Thomas Hayden Jackson
May 2026

Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Mid Sussex District Council’s website lists who sits now.

Results from Democracy Club’s candidates database (CC BY 4.0; elections since May 2021) and ward seats from its EveryElection, matched to ONS wards (May 2026) and county divisions (May 2025).

Local elections

Mid Sussex council election, May 2023

Results in the wards that make up Ansty, as declared. Percentages are of votes cast for candidates in each ward; where a ward elects several councillors, each voter has that many votes.

Seats won in Ansty’s wards2 seats · 4 May 2023
Conservative2

1 ward voted. Every seat in the town’s wards was up.

Next elections

No election is scheduled yet for Ansty’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.

Who can I vote for? ↗
Cuckfield, Bolney & Ansty4 May 2023
Malcolm Ronald Avery ElectedConservative24.0%
Jim Knight ElectedConservative18.9%
Barbara Edith KingLiberal Democrat14.5%
Sacha DykesIndependent11.2%
James Jonathan HollowayLiberal Democrat9.8%
Rachel Louise McNamaraGreen9.7%
Andrew William FosterLabour7.8%
Baron Von ThunderclapThe Official Monster Raving Loony Party4.0%

3,728 votes for candidates · 2 seats, so 2 votes each

LabourConservativeLiberal DemocratGreenIndependentOther parties

Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.

Parliament

Ansty is in Mid Sussex constituency

The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Ansty).

Mid Sussex · general election4 July 2024
Alison Bennett ElectedLiberal Democrat39.6%
Kristy AdamsConservative27.1%
David RowntreeLabour17.6%
Gary JohnsonReform UK11.1%
Deanna NicholsonGreen3.8%
Baron Von ThunderclapOfficial Monster Raving Loony Party0.7%

53,328 votes for candidates · majority 6,662

MP for Mid Sussex

Alison Bennett

Liberal Democrat, MP since 4 July 2024.

70%

turnout in July 2024: 53,328 votes from 75,969 registered voters. England: 60%.

Majority 6,662 of 53,328 votes (12.5%): the 242nd-narrowest of 543 in England.

LabourConservativeLiberal DemocratReform UKGreenOther parties

MPs and results: UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0); constituencies from ONS (2024 boundaries). Percentages are of valid votes; turnout is votes cast over the electorate.

Council money

Ansty’s Band D council tax is £2,469 a year

Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.

COUNCIL TAXBand D · 2026–27 · a Band D home in Ansty and Staplefield
Ansty and Staplefield parish councilparish precept£94.55
Mid Sussex District Councildistrict council£202.22
West Sussex County Councilcounty council£1,890.36
Sussex police and crime commissionerpolice and crime£281.91
A year£2,469.04
Bills by band run from 6/9 of Band D (Band A) to 18/9 (Band H). Discounts and support reduce many bills.

Mid Sussex District Council keeps £202.22 of a Band D bill (8%); the rest goes to the Ansty and Staplefield parish council, West Sussex County Council and the Sussex police and crime commissioner.

Band D since 1993

£0£500£1K£1.5K£2K£2.5K1995200020052010201520202025England, 1993–94: £567.95England, 1994–95: £580.11England, 1995–96: £609.00England, 1996–97: £646.00England, 1997–98: £688.00England, 1998–99: £747.00England, 1999–00: £798.00England, 2000–01: £847.00England, 2001–02: £901.33England, 2002–03: £975.56England, 2003–04: £1,101.75England, 2004–05: £1,166.56England, 2005–06: £1,213.81England, 2006–07: £1,267.91England, 2007–08: £1,321.32England, 2008–09: £1,373.08England, 2009–10: £1,413.84England, 2010–11: £1,439.22England, 2011–12: £1,439.33England, 2012–13: £1,444.13England, 2013–14: £1,455.60England, 2014–15: £1,467.98England, 2015–16: £1,483.58England, 2016–17: £1,529.56England, 2017–18: £1,590.55England, 2018–19: £1,671.46England, 2019–20: £1,749.88England, 2020–21: £1,817.67England, 2021–22: £1,898.48England, 2022–23: £1,965.71England, 2023–24: £2,065.05England, 2024–25: £2,170.99England, 2025–26: £2,280.21England, 2026–27: £2,391.52Mid Sussex, 1993–94: £496.13Mid Sussex, 1994–95: £536.63Mid Sussex, 1995–96: £579.38Mid Sussex, 1996–97: £613.70Mid Sussex, 1997–98: £650.81Mid Sussex, 1998–99: £715.39Mid Sussex, 1999–00: £762.72Mid Sussex, 2000–01: £803.17Mid Sussex, 2001–02: £853.94Mid Sussex, 2002–03: £938.13Mid Sussex, 2003–04: £1,111.91Mid Sussex, 2004–05: £1,177.13Mid Sussex, 2005–06: £1,233.90Mid Sussex, 2006–07: £1,294.69Mid Sussex, 2007–08: £1,356.85Mid Sussex, 2008–09: £1,418.62Mid Sussex, 2009–10: £1,467.76Mid Sussex, 2010–11: £1,504.88Mid Sussex, 2011–12: £1,504.92Mid Sussex, 2012–13: £1,506.23Mid Sussex, 2013–14: £1,507.87Mid Sussex, 2014–15: £1,511.55Mid Sussex, 2015–16: £1,515.34Mid Sussex, 2016–17: £1,571.13Mid Sussex, 2017–18: £1,629.08Mid Sussex, 2018–19: £1,713.61Mid Sussex, 2019–20: £1,808.37Mid Sussex, 2020–21: £1,883.48Mid Sussex, 2021–22: £1,975.94Mid Sussex, 2022–23: £2,038.26Mid Sussex, 2023–24: £2,138.80Mid Sussex, 2024–25: £2,245.92Mid Sussex, 2025–26: £2,356.49Mid Sussex, 2026–27: £2,474.26Mid Sussex £2,474England £2,392

Mid Sussex’s Band D bill has risen 57% in ten years, from £1,571.13 in 2016–17, against England’s average (56%). It was £496.13 in 1993–94.

Your bill by band

Band A 6/9£1,646
Band B 7/9£1,920
Band C 8/9£2,195
Band D 9/9£2,469
Band E 11/9£3,018
Band F 13/9£3,566
Band G 15/9£4,115
Band H 18/9£4,938

A Band D home in Ansty and Staplefield, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.

West Sussex’s councils

Crawley£2,418
Horsham£2,441
Worthing£2,456
Chichester£2,470
Mid Sussex£2,474
Arun£2,487
Adur£2,548

Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included. Bars start at £2,300.

Council budgets per resident, 2026–27

ServiceMid Sussex + West Sussexvs England
Adult social care£412−£75
Children’s social care£255−£35
Roads and transport£63+£22
Housing (not council homes’ rents)£32−£29
Bins, street cleaning, environment£162+£43
Libraries, leisure, culture£39−£5
Planning and development£33+£7
Public health£58−£20
Running the council£49−£10
Other£14−£5
Ansty’s councils, per residentEngland, all councils
Show as a table, with West Sussex
Mid Sussex + West SussexAnsty’s councilsWest SussexEngland
Adult social care£412£412£487
Children’s social care£255£255£290
Roads and transport£63£60£41
Housing (not council homes’ rents)£32£46£61
Bins, street cleaning, environment£162£154£119
Libraries, leisure, culture£39£41£44
Planning and development£33£35£26
Public health£58£56£78
Running the council£49£46£59
Other£14£13£19
Total, schools apart£1,165£1,165£1,234

Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Both tiers added: Mid Sussex per its residents plus West Sussex per the county’s. Schools are left out: academies are paid for directly by government, so council school budgets depend on how many schools have converted. West Sussex and England: all their councils together. Police, fire and transport authorities aren’t included.

Band D: MHCLG Band D council tax 2026–27 (each authority’s own figure, excluding parish precepts) and Council Tax statistics for town and parish councils 2026–27; since 1993–94, MHCLG’s area averages including parishes.

Get involved

Having a say in how Ansty is run

Register to vote

It takes about five minutes online; the deadline is 12 working days before a poll.

gov.uk ↗
Contact your councillors or MP

Type a postcode to write to each of its councillors and its MP.

WriteToThem ↗
Report a pothole or a broken streetlight

GOV.UK sends the report to the council that looks after the road.

gov.uk ↗
Watch or speak at a council meeting

Council and committee meetings are open to the public, with agendas and minutes online.

midsussex.gov.uk ↗
Comment on a planning application

Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.

midsussex.gov.uk ↗
Stand for election

The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.

Electoral Commission ↗

Questions about how Ansty is run

Which council runs Ansty?

Ansty is run by Mid Sussex District Council and West Sussex County Council. The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.

Does Ansty have a town council?

Yes: Ansty has its own parish-tier council (Ansty and Staplefield parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £95 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.

Who is the MP for Ansty?

Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat) is the MP for Mid Sussex, which covers Ansty.

How many councillors does Ansty have?

2 ward councillors represent Ansty’s 1 ward, and 1 county councillors its county divisions.

When are the next elections in Ansty?

No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Ansty’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.

How much is council tax in Ansty?

Band D council tax in Ansty is £2,469 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).

Who controls Mid Sussex District Council?

No party has a majority. As elected, Liberal Democrat 20 · Conservative 18 · Independent 5 · Green 4 · Labour 1 of 48 seats; a majority needs 25. The council’s website lists who leads it now.

Who controls West Sussex County Council?

As elected, Liberal Democrat 23 · Reform UK 23 · Conservative 11 · Green 7 · Labour 5 · Local Alliance 1 of 70 seats; a majority needs 36.

Who won the 2023 council election in Ansty?

In Ansty’s wards on 4 May 2023, Conservative 2 of the 2 seats up. The Conservatives had the largest share of votes, 42.9%.

Sources: ONS ward, county division, parish, constituency lookups (Census 2021 output areas; Open Government Licence v3.0) · GOV.UK local council finder · Democracy Club candidates (CC BY 4.0) and EveryElection · UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0) · MHCLG Band D council tax, parish precepts and Revenue Account budgets 2026–27 (OGL v3.0) · ONS mid-2025 population estimates. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.