Littlehampton, United Kingdom
Littlehampton is a town of 58,714 people in England, United Kingdom.
Why visit Littlehampton
Townapedia lists 13 museums and landmarks, 41 parks and trails, 127 places to eat, 15 places to stay and 4 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Climping Beach, Arundel Museum, Littlehampton Redoubt and Harbour Park.
Weather in Littlehampton
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Littlehampton
Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the mouth of the River Arun. It is 52 miles (84 km) south south-west of London, 19 miles (31 km) west of Brighton and 10 miles (16 km) east of Chichester.
From the Wikipedia article Littlehampton (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Travel tips from other travellers: Littlehampton on Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Photos of Littlehampton
Things to do4
Museums and landmarks13
Arundel Museum
Museum · 3.0 mi
Local museum in Arundel, England, United Kingdom
1 more on the map.
Parks, trails and playgrounds41
29 more on the map.
Restaurants and cafes127
The Oystercatcher
Bar and pub · 2.0 mi
Yapton Road, Climping
Mo-Th 11:30-22:00; Fr 11:30-23:00; Sa 09:00-23:00; Su 09:00-22:00
The Locomotive
Bar and pub · 0.9 mi
74 Lyminster Road, Littlehampton
Mo-Th 12:00-23:00; Fr,Sa 12:00-00:00; Su 12:00-22:00
115 more on the map.
History
A human settlement at Littlehampton can be traced back to prehistoric and Roman times, while it appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as the hamlet of 'Hantone'. The settlement is believed to have been a fishing community around this time, appearing on a French map in around 1100 as 'Hanton'. The settlement is then believed to have been given to the Abbey of St Martin de Seez in Normandy, who owned Littlehampton until around 1400. The area then passed back to the ownership of successive Earls of Arundel and Dukes of Norfolk, whose successors still reside in Arundel today.
Littlehampton began to develop as a port as a result of constant silting of the River Arun, perhaps leading to the prefix of 'Little' being added to 'Hampton', in order to distinguish it from the larger Southampton further along the coast. The expansion of port activities led to a new river mouth being cut in 1735, alongside the building of a wooden harbour. At this time it was also known as Arundel Port.
As the eighteenth century progressed, the town developed from a fishing community to a holiday destination, with Lord Byron, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Percy Bysshe Shelley and John Constable all believed to have spent time there.
Read more of the history
The town's status as both a port and a holiday resort led to economic success in the nineteenth century, with a railway line and a cross-channel ferry to Honfleur in France being introduced. The population of the town grew tenfold over the century, from 584 in 1801 to 5,954 in 1901. Littlehampton remained as a holiday resort in the twentieth century, becoming known as 'The Children's Paradise' in the 1920s.
Post-war Littlehampton saw much house building on the outskirts of the town, eventually absorbing the villages of Wick, Lyminster and Toddington, while the commercial element of the town became increasingly focused on boat building and water sports. In 1967, the town attracted attention by becoming the base for the first Blue Peter lifeboat.
From the History section of Littlehampton on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
More about Littlehampton
Economy
A local company, Dando Drilling International Ltd, founded in 1867, had been exporting drilling rigs from Littlehampton since 1868. Since June 2024, the company has been in voluntary liquidation. Van Heyningen Brothers (VHB) salad growers was a major employer in the town from 1964 to 2003.
The world headquarters of The Body Shop was previously situated towards the north of the town, and was a major employer in the area.
Arts and culture
The Littlehampton bonfire procession, bonfire and firework display is an annual event which has been organised by the Littlehampton Bonfire Society since 1952. It is part of a series of bonfire festivals organised by Sussex Bonfire Societies throughout Sussex.
Littlehampton supports a range of performance groups including Stagedoor Theatre Company, The Edwin James Festival Choir & Orchestra, The Musical Comedy Society and Players Operatic Society who perform throughout the year. It also holds a popular 'Last Night of the Proms' concert performed annually by the Littlehampton Concert Band.
Character actor Stanley Holloway (1890–1982) died in The Nightingale Nursing Home, Littlehampton, in 1982 aged 91.
Littlehampton was the backdrop for Swanage for the first episode of series 2 of the comedy drama series, The Inbetweeners, with filming taking place on the promenade and River Arun. Also the fifth episode of series 2, when Simon goes to see his dad, was filmed at the Travelodge by the Body Shop.
Littlehampton is used as the town centre for the 'Moving On' episode of the BBC sitcom Ever Decreasing Circles
Littlehampton appears in an episode of The Hungry Sailors on ITV.
Education
Littlehampton has one secondary school, The Littlehampton Academy, which opened in 2009, replacing the Littlehampton Community School.
For younger children there are five primary schools – Lyminster, River Beach, St. Catherine's, White Meadows and Georgian Gardens. In 2011, following a major reorganisation of primary school provision in the town, six separate junior and infant schools were replaced with four primary schools. River Beach Primary was formed from the merging of Connaught Junior with Arun Vale and Elm Grove Infants schools, whilst the merger of Flora McDonald Junior and Wickbourne Infants schools brought about the creation of White Meadows. Lyminster existed before the reorganisation as an infant school and has now begun a phased expansion to become a primary school, whilst St. Catherine's existed before the reorganistaion as a primary school.
From the Wikipedia article Littlehampton, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Notable people from Littlehampton
George K. ArthurBritish actorPhoto: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain
David KurtenBritish politician (born 1971)Photo: copyright holder: David Kurten, CC BY-SA 4.0
Jeffrey QuillBritish test pilot (1913–1996)Photo: Hay Wrightson, Public domain- Anita RoddickBritish business woman, founder of The Body Shop (1942-2007)
- Laila ShahzadaPakistani artist (1926-1994)
- Violet FaneBritish writer (1843-1905)
- Paul BenceEnglish footballer (1948-2024)
- Edwin HarrisEnglish cricketer (1891–1961)
- Oliver ZangwillBritish psychologist (1913–1987)
- Will GreenEnglish rugby union player
- Michael HarbottleEnglish soldier and cricketer (1917-1997)
- Frederick Ravenhillcricketer (1837-1897)
Born in Littlehampton, according to Wikidata (CC0). Each name links to its Wikipedia article.
Where to stay15
Churches and places of worship31
The Parish Church of St. Mary the Virgin
Church · Anglican
Church Street, Littlehampton
Shopping26
Gas and EV charging4
Schools, colleges and libraries13
St Catherine's Catholic Primary School, Littlehampton
School · Roman Catholic · 0.4 mi
Highdown Drive, Littlehampton
Healthcare8
Map of Littlehampton
250 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Goodwood Aerodrome (QUG) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 10 miles away.
- Rustington 1 mi east, about 2 min by car
- Barnham 4 mi west, about 7 min by car
- Worthing 7 mi east, about 12 min by car
- Lancing 10 mi east, about 15 min by car
- Chichester 11 mi west, about 17 min by car
- Shoreham-by-Sea 12 mi east, about 19 min by car
- Selsey 12 mi southwest, about 19 min by car
- Portslade 14 mi east, about 23 min by car
- Emsworth 17 mi west, about 28 min by car
- Brighton 18 mi east, about 28 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Towns near Littlehampton
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Keep exploring
Local news
Headlines from INDB.
Reviews, tips and questions
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Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- Mapillary (see each image): photos
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Littlehampton Harbour, West Sussex, The original uploader was Sue Wallace at English Wikipedia ., CC BY 2.0
- Littlehampton, United Kingdom (Unsplash), Jamie Street jamie452, CC0
- Littlehampton Town Council buildings (Manor House) 01, Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0
- West Beach Nature Reserve, Littlehampton 08, Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Arundel Museum, James brigden, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Formula one circuit ride at Harbour Park Littlehampton, Technonath, CC0
- Winter at Mewsbrook Park, Jimmybobby1985, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Angmering Baptist Church, Angmering, The Voice of Hassocks, CC0
- Arundel, Arundel Cathedral Arun 1248090 20230815 0201, Tilman2007, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Bailiffscourt Chapel, Atherington (NHLE Code 1233450), The Voice of Hassocks, CC0
- Former Bilsham Chapel, Bilsham (NHLE Code 1222544), The Voice of Hassocks, CC0
- St Nicholas' Church, London Road, Arundel (NHLE Code 1027914) (April 2011) (5), User:Hassocks5489, CC0
- Fitzalan Chapel, Bigup sim, CC BY-SA 3.0
- St Catherine's RC Church, Littlehampton (NHLE Code 1027807), The Voice of Hassocks, CC0
- St Mary Magdalene's Church, Tortington (NHLE Code 1222209), The Voice of Hassocks, CC0
- St Margaret's Church, Angmering (NHLE Code 1027708), The Voice of Hassocks, CC0
- Poling St Nicholas Church, Rjhfandclf, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Littlehampton Fort 01, Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Littlehampton Academy front view alternative 01, Mightyhansa, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Church of St. Mary Magdalene, Lyminster 02, Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0
- St. Mary the Virgin's Church, Littlehampton 03, Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0
- The White Hart, Littlehampton, Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Hawker Hunter GA11, UK - Navy AN1366311, Mike Freer - Touchdown-aviation, GFDL 1.2
- Littlehampton Redoubt 2, Charlesdrakew, Public domain
- Cygnus olor WWT Arundel, Peter Trimming, CC BY 2.0
- Street-level photo, andreste96, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, andreste96, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, andreste96, CC BY-SA 4.0
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