Mid Sussex District Council
How is the council organised, what power does it have, which political parties control it and when are they elected?
Area and Wards
The District Council comprises:
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54 elected Councillors from
26 wards.
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Click on the image above for a large image or visit https://www.midsussexclimatecoalition.com/featured-project
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The ward boundaries are currently under review with the aim of equalising the number of voters in each area.
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New ward boundaries from April 2023 are shown on this map.
Political Groups
The split between the political parties;
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33 Conservatives (61%)
13 Liberal Democrats (24%)
4 Green Party (7.5%)
4 Independents (7.5%)
Leader of the Council
Elected by the full council every four years.
The leader since 2019 has been Conservative Councillor Jonathan Ash-Edwards. He represents Lindfield, while his father Chris is a Haywards Heath Town Councillor.
The Cabinet
The Council vote for it's own Leader who in turn, choose five other councillors to form the Cabinet.
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•Councillor Jonathan Ash-Edwards (Chair) (Conservative)
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•Councillor John Belsey (Conservative)
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•Councillor Ruth de Mierre (Conservative - Cabinet Member for Customer Services)
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•Councillor Stephen Hillier (Conservative - Cabinet Member for Economic Growth)
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•Councillor Robert Salisbury (Conservative - Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning)
•Councillor Norman Webster (Conservative - Cabinet Member for Community)
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•Terry Stanley (Secretary)
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•Alison Hammond (Secretary)
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Council Officers
These are the paid employees of the council who have the ability in their knowledge and attitudes to influence policy and its successfulness.
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Mid Sussex District Council currently employ Phil Whiting as Sustainability Officer.
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At previous council meetings they have pledged to put officers through courses on climate awareness (details to follow).
Scrutiny Committees
The job of the three Scrutiny Committees is to monitor decisions of the Cabinet. The three committees are:
Scrutiny Committee for Community, Leisure and Parking
Scrutiny Committee for Planning, Economic Growth and Net Zero
Scrutiny Committee for Leader, Deputy Leader and Housing and Customer Service
Links & Usual Info
