4. Background
Arun District lies on the south coast of England in West Sussex and is one of seven districts within the county, covering an area of 85 square miles. It stretches from Ferring in the east bordering Worthing & Adur Councils, to Pagham in the west bordering Chichester District Council and extends north to just north of Arundel at Houghton where it borders Horsham District Council. It consists largely of rural areas but has three main towns of Littlehampton, Bognor Regis and Arundel within it, and is made up of 23 district wards. Some of the South Downs National Park falls within the district.
Overall, the district is relatively prosperous by national standards; however, there are significant areas of poverty and housing need. Five of the most deprived wards in West Sussex are found in Littlehampton and Bognor Regis.
Data from the Office for National Statistics 2011 Census and Census 20211 showed that between the last two censuses (held in 2011 and 2021), the population of Arun increased by 15,400, from just over 149,500 in 2011 to around 164,800 in 2021, a 10.3% increase. The population here increased by a greater percentage than the overall population of the Southeast (7.5%), and by a greater percentage than the overall population of England (up 6.6% since the 2011 Census).
Between the last two censuses, the average (median) age of Arun residents increased by two years, from 47 to 49 years of age. This district had a higher average (median) age than the Southeast as a whole in 2021 (41 years) and a higher average (median) age than England (40 years). The median age is the age of the person in the middle of the group, meaning that one half of the group is younger than that person and the other half is older. The number of people aged 50 to 64 years rose by around 4,500 (an increase of 15.2%), while the number of residents between 35 and 49 years fell by just under 1,700 (5.8% decrease).
The main housing tenure is owner occupation, with just under 50,000 households in that tenure in the 2011 census and just over 52,600 in the 2021 census. This figure represented approximately 75% of the total of approximately 67,000 households in 2011. The overall number of households across all tenures in the 2021 census was 72,661 as shown in Table A.
The percentage of households in the social rented sector increased in Arun but fell across England. In Arun, the percentage of households in the social rented sector rose from 8.8% (c.6,000 households) in 2011 to 9.3% in 2021, while across England it fell from 17.7% to 17.1%.
During the same period, the regional percentage fell from 13.7% to 13.6%. As of August 2022, the Council was the largest social housing provider in the district and owns and manages 3,381 social rented homes, 45 shared ownership and 452 leasehold properties. More than 17 Registered Partners (Housing Associations) have affordable housing stock within Arun, as well a number of housing/homelessness charities.
Table A. Number of households across all tenures in Arun District
|
Tenure |
Number |
|---|---|
|
Owned: Owns outright |
32182 |
|
Owned: Owns with a mortgage or loan |
19588 |
|
Shared ownership: Shared ownership |
836 |
|
Social rented: Rents from local authority |
3210 |
|
Social rented: Other social rented |
3564 |
|
Private rented: Private landlord or letting agency |
11801 |
|
Private rented: Other private rented |
1424 |
|
Lives rent free |
56 |
Source: Office for National Statistics Census 2021
Private renting during the same period in Arun increased from 15.3% to 18.2% (c.10,000 households in 2011 to c.13,200 in 2021), while the rate of home ownership decreased from 73.8% to 71.2%.
The average house price in the district in November 2022 was £378,000, an increase of 13.2% on the same time the previous year and up from the June 2018 level of £286,0002. The number of homes sold in Arun rose year-on-year, from 2,633 to 3,213, although comparing sales volumes in Arun for September 2021 and September 2022, they fell from 377 to 192. The average price for a house in Arun ranges from £301,680 for a terraced house to £600,939 for a detached house, with a semi-detached house costing on average £353,353. The average price for a flat or maisonette in Arun is £193,567. The average price in Arun is £28,000 higher than the average price in England.2 The average private rent in Arun is £891 per month.
The BRE Housing Stock Model Data suggests that the distribution of HMOs, both mandatory licensable and non-licensable, may be due to the proximity of the train stations in Littlehampton and Bognor Regis3. Additionally, in an Arun context, it may reflect the types of buildings present in those areas. For example, larger multi-storey buildings that can be more easily converted to HMOs or flats. In the wards where the additional licensing regime will be introduced it may also be that the demographic of occupants in those areas and properties results in a higher number of HMOs. This could be due the presence of the more traditional bedsit-type HMOs as well as section 257 flats (flats converted without Building Regulation approval), although this hasn’t been investigated in great detail. The increase of such properties in those areas could also be as a consequence of lower rents and easier tenancy accessibility to those property types; however, this has not been investigated further and no certain conclusions can be made. The BRE Housing Stock Model Data does show that River, Marine and Hotham wards have the three highest levels of deprivation in private rented dwellings within Arun.3
1Office for National Statistics 2011 Census and Census 2021. Note: the way in which the ONS defined some categories of data changed between the two censuses.
2UK House Price Index England: November 2022. HM Land Registry, January 2023.
3BRE Integrated Dwelling Level Housing Stock Modelling and Database for Arun District Council: Analysis of the Private Rented Sector, including HMOs (21 September 2022).