Worthing

§ This page gives an overview of the Worthing local authority district, bringing together key facts, maps, and data to help you quickly understand the area. One of 361 district profiles on Baseview.

Overview ⁞ Worthing, on the West Sussex coast, is a seaside town with a long promenade, pier, and gardens. The town centre includes theatres, galleries, and historic buildings, while the South Downs rise immediately inland with walking trails and viewpoints. The coastline features shingle beaches, while villages on the Downs offer rural charm. Worthing’s geography is defined by its coastal resort setting framed by rolling hills.

The administrative boundary of Worthing can be viewed on OpenStreetMap: District Boundary of Worthing.

Map of Worthing
Administrative Boundary of Worthing (Local Authority District)

Key Facts about Worthing

What region is Worthing in? Worthing is in the South East of England, a region within the UK.

What county is Worthing in? Worthing is located in the county of West Sussex.

Is Worthing a city? No, Worthing is not a city. (Note: the UK has 76 officially designated cities.)

Who governs Worthing? The local authority for this district is: Worthing Borough Council - responsible for district-level services. Since West Sussex is a two-tier area, county-level services are handled by: West Sussex County Council.

▶ Official website of Worthing Borough Council 🔗 adur-worthing.gov.uk

Website of Worthing Borough Council
Website of Worthing Borough Council (captured on 2025-09-20)

Which police force covers Worthing? Policing in Worthing is provided by Sussex Police 🔗 sussex.police.uk, which serves 13 local authority districts: Adur ⁞ Arun ⁞ Brighton and Hove ⁞ Chichester ⁞ Crawley ⁞ Eastbourne ⁞ Hastings ⁞ Horsham ⁞ Lewes ⁞ Mid Sussex ⁞ Rother ⁞ Wealden ⁞ Worthing.

This district page, Worthing, is a sub-page of this county page: West Sussex and this region page: South East. It zooms in to local authorities and parliamentary constituencies, and provides a list of wards in this district. We have this list page for easy browsing of all UK local authority districts: List of Local Authority Districts.

Constituencies in Worthing

A constituency is a specific geographical area that elects one Member of Parliament (MP) to represent them in the House of Commons. The United Kingdom is divided into 650 parliamentary constituencies. We have this list page for easy browsing of all UK parliamentary constituencies: List of Constituencies.

Wards in Worthing

Worthing is divided into 13 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.

  • Broadwater
  • Castle
  • Central
  • Durrington
  • Gaisford
  • Goring
  • Heene
  • Marine
  • Northbrook
  • Offington
  • Salvington
  • Selden
  • Tarring

In the UK, a ward is a subdivision of a local authority area, used mainly for electoral and statistical purposes. Defined by the ONS, wards represent the primary unit for local elections, each returning one or more councillors to the local council. Wards are also used as a key geography for presenting population and census data.

Parishes in Worthing

Worthing is entirely unparished—there are no civil parishes in this local authority district.

Parishes are the lowest tier of local government; where they don’t exist, those very local services and representation sit directly with the principal council.

Built-up Areas in Worthing

Worthing covers 4 built-up areas, listed below in alphabetical order.

  • Lancing and Sompting *
  • Rustington *
  • Sompting *
  • Worthing *

In the UK, a Built-up Area (BUA) is a continuous urban area of at least 20 hectares (0.2 km²), defined by the ONS as land where buildings are generally no more than 200 metres apart, such as towns, cities, or large villages. (Note: A BUA name marked with an asterisk (*) indicates that the area is situated partly in the district of Worthing.)

Worthing compared with other districts in the UK

This section shows how Worthing compares with other local authority districts in the UK, using a variety of measures and rankings.

Worthing has 13 electoral wards.

Worthing compared with other districts
Smaller: 33  Similar: 37  Larger: 291 (compared with 361 districts)

Worthing has a population of 113,866 (2024 mid-year estimate by ONS)

Population of Worthing compared with other districts
Population of Worthing, compared with other districts in England and Wales

More local statistics and data for Worthing can be found on the ONS statistics for Worthing.