State of the County 2025

Focus on East Sussex

Version number 1

Publication date August 2025

Contents

Summary. 3

Population. 5

Children and young people. 17

Health and wellbeing. 29

Adults 39

Housing. 50

Deprivation. 57

Economy. 63

Environment 80

Civil Society. 94

Community Safety. 95

Data. 101

Summary

Population – East Sussex has an older age profile than nationally, with a significantly higher proportion of the population aged 65+ than both England and the South East. Rother has the joint highest proportion of people aged 85 and over in the country.

Children and young people – More children achieve a good level of development at the Early Years Foundation Stage than nationally. However, the levels of attainment at Key Stage 2, and at Key Stage 4 (Progress 8 and Attainment 8) are lower than nationally. We continue to see higher levels of demand for children’s social care and more complex cases which together have resulted in a higher number of child protection plans. The number of Looked After Children has increased, and we have continued to see significant increased demand for support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, including for Home to School Transport.

Health and wellbeing – East Sussex has a consistently higher life expectancy for both men and women than the national average. There is a lower percentage of people who are overweight or obese in East Sussex compared to nationally, but smoking levels are higher in some parts of the county.

Adults – the number of people receiving long term support increased in 2024/25, with the majority aged 65 or over. Projections indicate that the number of people with dementia, and those with multiple long-term conditions will continue to increase in the coming years. A higher percentage of the population were providing unpaid care in 2021 in East Sussex than nationally.

Housing – house prices in East Sussex remain higher than the national average. The ratio of median house prices to median earnings is also higher than the ratio in England, and the same as the South East. Rented housing makes up a significant proportion of the housing sector in East Sussex, and there were significant rises in the cost of private rented housing between 2019 and 2025.

Deprivation – as a county, East Sussex is ranked 93 out of 151 Upper Tier Local Authorities on the Index of Multiple Deprivation rank. This is a similar level of deprivation as Lincolnshire, Somerset and Kent. However, deprivation varies across the county, with Baird Ward in Hastings in the most deprived 1% of Lower Super Output Areas (LSOA) in the country, while an LSOA in Uckfield is in the least deprived 3%. The Government has identified 4 out of 5 local authorities in East Sussex as having specific locations with priority need for ‘levelling up’ funding. This funding will be used in projects that address economic recovery and growth, improved transport connectivity, and need for regeneration.

Environment – emissions of carbon dioxide have continued to fall in East Sussex over recent years. However, further reductions will be needed.

Economy – employment rates rose in 2024. The challenges that existed pre-pandemic relating to productivity and average wages for those employed within the county remain. Although the unemployment rate in the county is now below the national average, it remains higher than the regional rate. Youth unemployment remains higher than the overall rate.

Civil Society – there are a diverse range of Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise organisations in East Sussex, working at every level, neighbourhood, town/parish, and district/borough. There are over 3,000 not-for-profit groups and organisations providing activities and support to residents and communities that bring about positive change and improve people’s lives.

Community safety – neighbourhood crime rates in East Sussex are lower than the national average in all categories. Between 2023 and 2024 there was a decrease in neighbourhood crime in East Sussex. There was an increase in serious violent crime in the county between 2023 and 2024, though the rate of serious violent crime remains low in East Sussex.

Population

Age and sex

The ONS mid-year estimates 2023 estimated the population of East Sussex to be 555,500. Compared to England and the South East, East Sussex has a much older age profile, with Rother having the joint highest rate of people over the age of 85 in the country at 4.9%, the same rate as North Norfolk and New Forest. 26.5% of the East Sussex population is comprised of people aged 65 or over, compared to 19.8% for the South East and 18.7% for England. 3.9% of people in East Sussex were aged 85+ in 2022, higher than nationally, 2.5%, and the South East, 2.8%.

Source: ONS mid-year estimates 2023

Young people, those aged 0-17, made up 18.7% of the population of East Sussex in 2023. This is lower than in England, 20.8%, and the South East, 21.0%. Working age people, those aged 18-64, made up 54.9% of the population in East Sussex in 2022. This is lower than England, 60.5%, and the South East, 59.3%.

This means that for every 10 working age people there are 4.6 older people in East Sussex, this ratio rises to 6.1 in Rother. The national average is 3.0.

52% of the county’s population was estimated to be female and 48% male, similar to the national split. For those aged 65 and above, it was estimated that 55% of the population was female and 45% male.

Sexual Orientation

The 2021 Census indicates that 3.3% of the East Sussex population identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Other (LGB+). This is similar to the national average of 3.2%. Hastings had the highest percentage of people identifying as LGB+ at 4.6%.

Note: A significant percentage of people across the county provided no response, therefore the percentage of people identifying as LBG+ could be either higher or lower than estimated. Source: Census 2021

Gender identity

Gender identity was included in the national census questions for the first time in 2021. A significant percentage of people did not respond to this question, but this is still the best data we have on this topic. 0.4% of the East Sussex population recorded that their gender identity is different to their sex registered at birth. This equates to 1,640 people.

Note: A significant percentage of people across the county provided no response, therefore the percentage of people with a different gender identity to their sex registered at birth could be either higher or lower than shown. Source: Census 2021

Religion

For the 2021 Census, 45.9% of the population in East Sussex stated their religion was Christian, 1.1% stated their religion was Islam, 0.5% as Buddhism and 0.3% as Hindu. 44.7% of the population selected ‘no religion’ as their response.

The percentage of people who indicated an affiliation to a religion fell between 2011 and 2021, while the number of people who gave ‘no religion’ as their response grew.

Source: Census 2021

Marital status

Data from the 2021 Census shows that 31.9% of respondents from East Sussex were single and 46.8% of respondents were married or in a civil partnership. 2.3% of respondents were separated from their partners and 11.2% were divorced or had a civil partnership which was dissolved. The remaining 7.7% of respondents were widowed.

Ethnicity

The latest ethnicity data for the county is from the 2021 Census. 88.3% of the county’s population identified as White: British and Northern Irish, compared to the regional average of 78.8% and the national average of 73.5%. A higher percentage of the population in East Sussex identified as Gypsy or Irish Traveller than the national average (0.2% compared to 0.1%).

Source: Census 2021

Overall, the percentage of the population in East Sussex in each ethnic minority group has either stayed the same or increased between 2011 and 2021.

Source: Census 2021

A higher percentage of pupils (17%) are from ethnic minority backgrounds, compared to the adult population. Overall, Eastbourne has the highest percentage of students from ethnic minority backgrounds for both primary (28%) and secondary (24%) schools.

Source: ESCC Schools Census January 2025

Disability

In the 2021 Census, the proportion of the East Sussex population that identified themselves as disabled was 20.3% (110,550). This is exactly the same as the proportion that identified as disabled in the 2011 Census (20.3%, 107,150).

The percentage of people identifying themselves as disabled varied slightly across the district and boroughs, but rates across the county were higher than the South East average.

Veterans

2021 Census data shows that 4.6% of the population in East Sussex were Veterans, compared to the national average of 3.8%. This equates to 21,200 Veterans living in East Sussex.

Pregnancy and maternity

The ONS births data provides an indication of the number of women in East Sussex who may be pregnant or on maternity.

Protected characteristic: Pregnancy and maternity	East Sussex	Eastbourne	Hastings	Lewes	Rother	Wealden
Live births – 2023	4,321	779	838	765	622	1,317
Births per 1,000 females aged 15 to 44 – 2023	49.2	43.2	51.3	49.7	47.6	52.9

Source: ONS

Population change

The latest ONS population estimates suggest that the East Sussex population increased by 0.8% between 2022 and 2023, while in England and the South East the increase was 1.0%. Over this period the population grew fastest in Eastbourne, up 1.4%, and grew slowest in Hastings, up 0.2%. Wealden has seen the fastest population growth over the past 10 years, with an increase of 8.4%, while Hastings has seen a slight decline of -0.2% since 2013.

Based on the information currently available we estimate that around 560,000 people live in the county in 2025. We expect that to increase to around 577,700 people in 2029, an increase of 3.2%.

We expect the increase in population to be driven by people moving into the county from elsewhere in the UK. Many of the people who choose to come to East Sussex are older adults, and, together with the aging of the baby boomer generations, this means that the over 65 age group is growing much faster than younger age groups. In 2029 we expect that just over half of our population will be aged 18-64 (53%), with nearly 30% aged 65 and over.

Between 2025 and 2029 we are expecting that there will be around 17,300 births in the county and around 26,400 deaths. This reflects the fact that we have a larger population of older adults in East Sussex. Over the same period, we are expecting around 140,800 people to move into the county, offset by around 114,000 people moving out of the county.

Overall, these changes mean that compared to 2025, we estimate that by 2029 there will be:

• A decline of 1.4% (1,440 people) in the number of children and young people

• An increase of 0.8% (2,570 people) in the working age population

• 9.5% more people aged 65-84 (12,350 people)

• 18.3% more people aged 85+ (4,200 people)

Note: These dwelling-led population projections (sometimes known as policy-based projections) are constrained to reflect the number of additional dwellings being planned for future years by local authorities in East Sussex. They are also based on the latest 2023 data on population estimates and migration released by ONS in June 2024. This year’s projections also use fertility rates which more closely reflect those used by the ONS in their latest national, 2022-based, trend-based population projections.

Projected Population in 2029

Age Range	East Sussex	England
0-17	17.6%	19.1%
18-64	53.0%	60.9%
65-84	24.7%	17.2%
85+	4.7%	2.8%

Population Change: 2025-2029

Age Range	2025	2029	Actual change
0-17	103,000	101,570	-1,430
18-64	303,700	306,270	2,570
65-84	130,420	142,760	12,340
85+	22,880	27,080	4,200
All people	560,000	577,680	17,680

Source: ESCC data: ESCC 2023-based population projections (dwelling-led), March 2025. National Data: ONS 2022-based trend-based projections, published February 2025. All figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 and therefore may not sum.

District population change

We expect that how our population changes will be different in different parts of the county. By 2029 our projections suggest:

· An increase of 23% (1,500) more people aged 85+ in Wealden; the smallest percentage increase in this age group will be in Eastbourne, 15% (600)

· 11% (4,200) more people aged 65-84 in Wealden, and 10% (1,700) more people in Hastings. Lewes will see the smallest rise of 8% (1,900)

· Wealden is projected to see a rise in the working age population (18-64) of 3% (3,000), and Lewes 2% (1,300)

· Eastbourne is projected to see a fall in the working age population over this period, with numbers declining by 3% (1,600 fewer people)

District population change 2025 – 2029

Source: ESCC data, ESCC 2023-based population projections (dwelling led), March 2025.

Children and young people

Early Years

East Sussex received 1,100 applications for a funded place for eligible 2-year-olds in the spring 2025 funding period. Of these, 297 children were not eligible to receive funding. 73.5% (808) of those who applied have accessed a place with an early years provider, compared to the England average of 74.8% (Source: ESCC Children’s Services).

Attainment

Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

At early years, children in East Sussex achieve above the national averages for Good Level of Development which is the expected standard for: communication and language; physical development; personal, social and emotional development; literacy and mathematics. 69.0% of pupils achieved a good level of development in East Sussex in 2023/24, compared to 67.7% nationally.

In 2023 the percentage point gap between children eligible for free school meals achieving a good level of development and their peers was -23.2, which is above the England average gap for this cohort of -20.5.

Key Stage 2 Attainment

The percentage of pupils working at the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined at Key Stage 2 is 58%, which is below the England average of 61%.

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils working at the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined at Key Stage 2 is 41%, which is below the England average of 46%.

Key Stage 4: Attainment 8

Attainment 8 is the students’ average achievement across eight subjects: English, mathematics, three English Baccalaureate (EBacc) subjects (from sciences, computer science, geography, history and languages), and three further subjects, from the range of EBacc subjects, or any other GCSE or approved, high-value arts, academic, or vocational qualifications. All pupils in East Sussex, including disadvantaged pupils, achieved 43.1, lower than the England average of 46.1. Disadvantaged pupils achieved 30.1, lower than the England average of 34.7.

Key Stage 4: Progress 8

Progress 8 is a measure of students’ progress across the Attainment 8 subjects from the end of primary school (Key Stage 2) to the end of secondary school (Key Stage 4). Scores for East Sussex are -0.18 which is below the England average of -0.03.

Attendance

The pandemic had a significant adverse impact on school attendance, both nationally and locally. The percentage of children persistently absent from school, defined as missing 10% or more of sessions, is 24.6%, above the England average of 20%. The overall percentage of sessions missed out of all available sessions due to pupil absence is 8.4% in East Sussex, compared to the England average of 7.1%. In August 2024 the Government published attendance statutory guidance to clarify responsibilities for local authorities, schools, parents and carers. This outlines the expectation that all councils should strengthen their oversight of attendance through regular individual dialogue with all schools, and provide whole family early help support, free of any charge, to schools and all families of children whose attendance is less than 50%.

Absence for academic year 2023-2024:

Source: Department for Education

East Sussex has high levels of suspension and exclusion, and these are rising further, in line with national trends. School leaders are experiencing increased levels and complexity of need in their school populations and the demand for support services remains high.

Academic Year 2023-24
The percentage of exclusions in primary schools per school population in that year:
(i) Fixed term	2.90%
(ii) Permanent	0.10%
The percentage of exclusions in secondary schools per school population in that year:
(i) Fixed term	37.01%
(ii) Permanent	0.33%

Young people in education, employment and training

At the end of 2023/24 95.6% of 16 years old and 94% of 17 year olds were participating in some form of education, training or employment – this includes those in employment without Department for Education regulated training, or part-time/temporary employment. Local Authority comparisons data indicate East Sussex is slightly above the South East and national averages. There are ongoing concerns about the impact for young people of the national Traineeship programme which ceased in summer 2023, as well as European Social Fund not in education, training or employment (NEET) provision.

While the figures for the percentages of young people aged 16 and 17 who are known to be NEET are higher than the regional and national averages these need to be considered alongside the figures for young people whose activities were not known. We have a smaller percentage of young people whose activities were not known and it is likely that a significant proportion of the people across the South East and nationally whose activities were not known were actually NEET.

Source: ESCC Children’s Services

Source: ESCC Children’s Services

School places

The overall population of under 18s is expected to decline slightly over the period 2025 to 2028, and while growth is expected in the number of young people aged 16-17, numbers of children aged 0-3, 4-10 and 11-15 are expected to decrease, with the largest fall among the 4-10 age group.

Age/year	2025	2028	% change 2025-2028	2029	2033	% change 2029-2033
0-3	18,920	18,860	-0.3%	18,750	18,360	-2.1%
4-10	39,380	38,520	-2.2%	38,370	37,660	-1.8%
11-15	31,670	31,240	-1.4%	31,100	30,230	-2.8%
16-17	13,040	13,430	3.0%	13,350	12,990	-2.7%

Source: ESCC data, ESCC 2023-based population projections (dwelling led) March 2025, numbers rounded to 10. Note: Care should be taken when using the projected population figures above.

The total numbers of pupils in primary schools peaked in 2018/19 and are now in decline. As a result, some of the temporary additional capacity in schools that was created to accommodate the peak is being removed. This, together with the closures of Holy Cross CE Primary School on 31 December 2023 and St Pancras Catholic Primary School on 31 August 2024, led to a net reduction in capacity of 405 places between the start of the 2023/24 academic year and the start of the 2024/25 academic year.

Secondary pupil numbers had been rising but are expected to have peaked around 2024/25. 105 additional permanent places and 30 additional temporary places will have been added between 2023/24 and 2025/26 to meet forecast demand in local areas.

Source: ESCC Pupil Forecasts and Pupil Model

Source: ESCC Pupil Forecasts and Pupil Model

Child Protection (CP) Plans

At the end of March 2025, the number of CP plans was 614, a rate of 59.3 per 10,000 children aged 0-17. This is significantly above the expected rate benchmarked for child deprivation using the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI). However, the rate was lower than that recorded for the last two years.

We continue to see significantly higher levels of demand and complexity due to the effects of the pandemic, the impact of cost-of-living pressures and an increase in child and adult mental health concerns. We have a continued emphasis on enabling children to live safely at home where possible, resulting in relatively lower rates of looked after children.

Source: ESCC Children’s Services

Looked After Children

At the end of March 2025, there were 690 Looked After Children, a rate of 66.6 per 10,000 children. Of the 690 children, 70 are Separated Children. There was a 5% increase in the number of Looked After Children (not including Separated Children) compared to the previous year. The rate of Looked After Children is below the expected rate benchmarked for child deprivation using the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI).

 Source: ESCC Children’s Services

The age profile of Looked after Children was similar between March 2024 and March 2025, with the majority of children aged over 10.

Source: ESCC Children’s Services

The 4 categories of need, Families in Acute Stress, Family Dysfunction, Abuse and Neglect and Absent Parenting accounted for 97% of Looked after Children in March 2025. The number of children in the remaining groups is very low in comparison, which is a similar picture to last year.

Source: ESCC Children’s Services

Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND)

In line with the national picture, East Sussex continues to see significant increases in demands for statutory assessments and specialist provision for children and young people with SEND.

41.6% of all children and young people aged 0-25 with Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) in East Sussex are placed in special schools which is over nine percentage points higher than the England average. 59.7% of all new EHCPs were placed in mainstream schools, compared to 70.9% nationally. Council funded high-cost placements at Independent and Non-Maintained Special Schools have increased significantly since 2015 and account for 9.7% of all EHCPs – greater than the England average of 6.3%.

EHCPs of SEND maintained by the Council increased by 87% from 2015 (2,645) to 2025 (4,940). Most of the increase since 2015 has been in the Key Stage 5 and Post 19 groups; this is predominantly due to young people retaining EHCPs Post-16.

The number of pupils with an EHCP is currently forecast to rise in East Sussex by 22.7% over the next three years, having increased by 32.2% in the last three years.

Source: ESCC Children’s Services

There have been increases in the number of pupils receiving Home to School Transport since 2021. These increases have been particularly acute with regards to children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) due to a 71% increase in the number of children requiring transport. There have also been significant increases in the cost of providing transport due to inflationary pressures on fuel and staff. The increased number of SEND pupils receiving Home to School Transport and the inflationary pressures has led to a 106% increase in costs of transporting SEND children since 2021.

Source: ESCC Children’s Services

Health and wellbeing

Life course summary

Key (compared to England):

Source: ESCC Adult Social Care and Health department

This chart shows a timeline for the population of East Sussex, from having a good start in life, through living well and ageing well, to a good end of life. This is called a life course approach. It shows the protective factors and risk factors that can influence a person’s physical and mental health and well-being throughout their life. There are many indicators that can be measured, but this chart selects a few key ones to paint a picture of the East Sussex population. Each indicator is compared to England where possible. For most indicators in East Sussex the results are similar to or better than England overall. There are two indicators where the County is significantly worse, which are educational achievement in English and Maths at GCSE, and admissions to hospital for falls amongst older people.

Life expectancy at birth

Life expectancy at birth is an estimate of the average number of years that a person born can expect to live. East Sussex has consistently had a higher life expectancy for both men and women than the national average. Life expectancy has generally increased gradually since the early 2000s, however this increase has plateaued, or begun to reduce, in recent years.

Source: ONS

Wealden has the highest levels of life expectancy at birth for men in the county, the highest levels for women are in Lewes. The lowest levels are in Hastings. Countywide life expectancy levels are slightly higher at birth for both men and women than nationally.

Source: ONS

On average, people living in the most deprived communities in England have over 18 years less of their lives in good general health than those living in the least deprived areas. In East Sussex, this gap is 14.9 years for males between the most and least deprived quintiles, and 13.4 years for females.

Healthy life expectancy in East Sussex increased from 2011 to 2021 in males across all deprivation quintiles. For females, healthy life expectancy in 3 out of 5 quintiles (including the most and least deprived areas) slightly decreased in 2021. Also, for the first time, in 2021 healthy life expectancy for those in the least deprived areas was higher in males than females.

Excess Weight

Overall, the percentage of adults in East Sussex who were overweight or obese in 2023/24 was lower than the national average, however the picture varied across the county.

Source: Public Health Outcomes Framework

Rother had the highest percentage of adults overweight or obese in East Sussex in 2023/24, at 68.6%. The lowest percentage in the county was for Wealden, 58.0%.

Prevalence of Smokers

Rother has the highest prevalence of smoking in East Sussex in 2023/24 at 15.3%. Wealden had the lowest prevalence at 8.5%.

Source: Public Health Outcomes Framework

Prevalence of Hypertension

East Sussex has a higher prevalence of diagnosed high blood pressure (17.9%) compared to the national average for England (14.8%).

Public Health Outcomes Framework

Physical Activity

Over 69% of people in East Sussex did 150 or more minutes of physical activity per week in 2023/24. Nearly 21% did less than 30 minutes per week with the remaining 10% falling in between these categories (source: Public Health Outcomes Framework).

Sexual Health

East Sussex has fewer new Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) diagnoses per 100,000 population compared to England. Within the county rates are lower than for England in all areas.

Note: This data does not include diagnoses of Chlamydia and only represents people aged 25 or younger. Source: UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA)

Mental health

It is estimated that 1 in 6 people will have a mental health condition at any one time. Latest survey figures show a higher percentage of adults in East Sussex reported high anxiety and low satisfaction with life compared to the national average.

Indicator (persons aged 16+ years) 2022/23	East Sussex	England
Self reported low satisfaction with life	7.5%	5.6%
Self reported low worthwhile score	3.5%	4.4%
Self reported low happiness score	13.0%	8.9%
Self-reported high anxiety score	24.1%	23.3%

Source: Public Health Outcomes Framework

Loneliness

For East Sussex, 25% respondents reported feeling lonely often (5%) or some of the time (20%), with feelings of loneliness not changing markedly from the 2015 (24%) and 2017 (25%) East Sussex Community Surveys.

Note: Percentages are derived by combining the number of people who answered as feeling lonely often and some of the time. Source: East Sussex Community Survey 2019

Data from the 2019 survey shows that feelings of loneliness are more prevalent among groups who are more likely to spend more time at home (e.g. due to mobility issues) workless residents (56% vs. 20% of those in work); those in poor health (55% vs. 18% of those in good health); those with a disability (44% vs. 19% of those without); single person households (38%) and single parents (47% vs. 25% overall). Other groups who are more likely to feel lonely include: social tenants (46%) and private renters (39% vs. 20% of owner occupiers); People with no qualifications (34% vs. 25% overall) and women (26% vs. 24% of men). At district and borough level, those in Hastings and Eastbourne are more likely than average to feel lonely often or some of the time (both 29% vs. 25% overall). The population in these areas are more likely to be comprised of the groups listed above. Those living in Rother and Wealden are more likely to say they hardly ever/never feel this way (77% and 78% respectively).

Multiple long term health conditions

The number of people with multiple long-term conditions (multi-morbidity) in the East Sussex population is expected to increase in line with the growth in the general population over the next ten years. Multi-morbidity is the presence of 2 or more conditions, and therefore greatly increases the complexity (and overall costs) of managing care for people, families and services.

For the purposes of looking at health problems at a population level these can be classified using the Cambridge Multimorbidity Score into three groups: people with no illness, some illness and major illness.

Source: Ref Watt T, Raymond A, Rachet-Jacquet L, Head A, Kypridemos C, Kelly E, Charlesworth A. Health in 2040: projected patterns of illness in England. The Health Foundation; 2023 (https://doi.org/10.37829/HF-2023-RC03). Population figures based on East Sussex population projections 2022 rounded to the nearest 10.

The Cambridge Multimorbidity Score (CMS) assigns a weight (score) to 20 conditions based on how the illness is likely to affect people’s use of primary care and emergency health services and the likelihood of their death.

Adults

Long Term Illness

It is estimated that in 2023 there are 69,650 older people (age 65+) in East Sussex who are living with a long-term illness which limits their day-to-day activities. 39,450 of these people are ‘limited a little’ in their day-to-day activities, while the other 30,200 are ‘limited a lot’.

These figures are projected to rise to an estimated 80,360 older people living with a long-term illness which limits their day-to-day activities in 2030, an increase of 15.4% compared to 2023. 45,410 of these people are projected to be ‘limited a little’ (up 15.1% compared to 2023), and the other 34,950 are projected to be ‘limited a lot’ (up 15.8% compared to 2023).

Source: POPPI. Note: These figures are based on population projections produced before the latest population figures from the 2021 Census were available

Dementia Projections

13,960 older people (age 65+) are projected to have dementia by 2030, an increase of 18.4% from 2023.

Source: POPPI. Note: These figures are based on population projections produced before the latest population figures from the 2021 Census were available.

People receiving long term support

The total number of Adult Social Care clients receiving long term support increased by 7.2% in 2024/25 to 10,925, continuing the trend seen since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic. The majority of clients receiving long term support are older adults (those aged 65 and over).

Source: East Sussex SALT Return

The percentage of women receiving long term support is higher than the number of men for older people, especially those above the age of 85. This reflects the fact that women on average have a longer life expectancy than men and make up a higher proportion of the population among older age groups. The percentage of men receiving long term support is slightly higher than women for the working age population.

Source: East Sussex SALT Returns

People receive long-term support for a variety of different needs. The percentage of people receiving long term support due to Learning Disability Support and Mental Health Support reduces as you move up the age ranges, whilst the percentage of people needing support for Physical Support, Sensory Support and Support with Memory and Cognition increases.

Source: East Sussex SALT Return

Permanent admissions of older people to residential and nursing homes (those aged 65 and over) per 10,000 population slightly decreased in East Sussex in 2023/24.

Source: NHS Digital Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework data ASCOF 2A2

Permanent admissions of working age people (18-64) to long term residential care increased in East Sussex in 2023/24 and was above the national rate.

Source: NHS Digital Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework data ASCOF 2A1

The proportion of older people (age 65+) still at home 91 days after discharge from hospital into reablement/rehabilitation services in 2023/24 was 90.4%, above the national figure of 83.8%.

Source: NHS Digital Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework ASCOF 2B1

Access contacts

The Access team in Health and Social Care Connect (HSCC) handled 89,456 contacts in 2024/25, an increase of 4,923 (5.8%) compared to 2023/24.

Source: East Sussex Adult Social Care and Health department

Carers receiving support

The total number of carers receiving support from Adult Social Care and Health (ASCH) in East Sussex decreased slightly in 2024/25. There continues to be a significant number of carers being supported by Care for the Carers, a partner organisation who provide, support, guidance and information to carers in East Sussex.

Source: East Sussex SALT Return

Unpaid Carers

Data from the 2021 Census suggests that 9.9% of the population in East Sussex provides any form of unpaid care, compared to the national average of 8.8%.  Compared to the 2011 Census however, the proportion of unpaid carers has decreased by 1.8 percentage points within East Sussex. Furthermore, the proportion of people providing 19 hours or less of unpaid care a week decreased from 7.5% in 2011 to 5.0% in 2021, those providing 20 to 49 hours of unpaid care increased from 1.3% to 1.9% and those providing 50 or more hours of unpaid care increased from 2.5% to 3.0%.

Note: Percentages are representative of the population aged 5 years or above. Source: ONS

The percentage of people providing unpaid care varies by age. 16.1% of those aged 50 to 64 provided some unpaid care a week, with the majority providing 19 or less hours unpaid care a week. Although the percentage of those aged 65 and over providing unpaid care is lower, people in this age group were more likely to be providing 50 or more hours unpaid care a week.

Note: Percentages are representative of the population aged 5 years or above. Source: ONS

Adult safeguarding

We have made improvements to how we report on safeguarding concerns over the past year. These figures now include all contacts and referrals linked to safeguarding. 15,392 concerns were raised during 2024/25. Due to the changes in reporting these figures are not comparable to those reported for prevoous years.

As part of safeguarding enquiries desired outcomes for the adult concerned are identified. In 2024/25, performance remained steady, sustaining the improvements seen in the previous year.

Source: East Sussex Adult Social Care and Health department. Note: Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding issues

Adult social care workforce

As the demand for support for adult social care increases it is important that we have a sufficient supply of highly skilled workers for the sector. The adult social care workforce includes all staff working in adult social care settings, in both the independent sector and for the Council. There were 20,500 posts filled in the adult social care workforce in East Sussex in 2023/24, with 1,100 posts vacant. Projections show that to meet the anticipated demand for social care in 2040 the  workforce would need to grow by 29%.

The vacancy rate in the adult social care workforce in East Sussex was lower than both the South East and England averages in 2023/24.

However, the rate of staff turnover was higher than the South East and England averages.

The average number of sick days taken by adult social care staff in East Sussex in 2023/24 was similar to the average across the South East and for England.

Only 9% of people working in the adult social care sector in East Sussex in 2023/24 were under 25, while 27% were over 55. It is expected that 4,700 workers in the sector will reach retirement age in the next 10 years.

Housing

Housing affordability

East Sussex is an attractive area to live, however this means that house prices are higher than the national average. In 2024 in East Sussex the average (median) house price was £340,000, 9.6 times the average annual earnings of residents, which were £35,300. In comparison the average house price in England was £290,000, 7.7 times average annual earnings, which were £37,600 in 2024.

The average ratio of median house prices to median earnings in East Sussex is higher than for England and is the same as the South East average.

Source: ONS

The median average house prices were over 10 times the average annual earnings of residents in Lewes, Rother and Wealden.

Source: ONS

Rented housing is a significant sector in East Sussex, making up 21.9% of housing in Wealden and 42.9% in Hastings.

Source: Census 2021.

Rented housing is a significant sector in East Sussex, making up 21.9% of housing in Wealden and 42.9% in Hastings. The cost of private rented housing rose by up to 29% between 2019 and 2024. Average private rents ranged from £217 to £282 a week across districts.

Source: ONS/Valuation Office Agency

The cost of private rented housing in East Sussex continued to rise during 2024 to 2025, while the cost of house purchases across the county fell by up to 9.6%.

Source: Price index of Private Rents and UK House Prices from the ONS

Households and housing delivery

2,079 new dwellings were completed across the county in 2023/24. Of these, 659 (31.7%) were classed as affordable.     

Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Homelessness

There was an increase in the number of households in East Sussex in temporary accommodation in September 2024 compared to the previous year. The rate of households in temporary accommodation per 1,000 households shows Hastings having the highest rate in East Sussex at 12.91. Hastings shares with Brighton & Hove City Council the fourth highest rate of local authorities outside London. The highest rate in the country outside of London was for Slough at 19.73.

District/Borough	Number of households in temporary accommodation (30 September 2024)
Eastbourne	313
Hastings	567
Lewes	75
Rother	182
Wealden	72

Source: ONS

The Council’s Children’s Services Department have a duty to help children whose families face destitution. As some immigrant families with children have no recourse to public funds the Council provides assistance to prevent them from becoming homeless. The total number of people assisted with accommodation over the last four years has fluctuated, but the number of households has been very consistent.

Year	Number of adults	Number of children	Total households
2020/21	23	40	22
2021/22	31	53	22
2022/23	21	34	21
2023/24	30	51	23

Source: ESCC Children’s Services department

Refugees and asylum seekers

The rate of immigrants who have arrived in East Sussex as refugees, asylum seekers or displaced persons of another type was comparable to the regional and national averages at the end of 2024. However, the rates differed across the county, with Wealden having a higher rate than both the regional and national average.

Source: ONS. Note: the groups above include those who have arrived as part of the Homes for Ukraine, Afghan Resettlement Programme and as part of Supported Asylum.

Individuals arriving through the Homes for Ukraine scheme accounted for 88% of arrivals in East Sussex. 7% came through the Afghan Resettlement Programme and 5% were those being supported by the Home Office following claims for asylum.

Deprivation

The Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) 2019 measures relative deprivation for small areas in England. It takes into account a number of factors including health, access to services, environment, crime and housing, however income and employment have the greatest effect on the deprivation score given to an area.

East Sussex has a significant variation across the county in levels of deprivation. Hastings is the 13 most deprived Lower Tier Local Authority (LTLA) out of 317 LTLAs in the country, with similar levels of deprivation as Newham, and Blackburn with Darwen. Wealden is the least deprived LTLA in East Sussex, with a rank of 254, which means it has similar levels of deprivation as Sevenoaks and Hambleton.

Overall, as a county East Sussex is ranked 93 out of 151 Upper Tier Local Authorities (UTLA) on the IMD rank. This is a similar level of deprivation as Lincolnshire, Somerset and Kent. Blackpool is the most deprived UTLA, whilst Wokingham is the least deprived.

The map shows how deprived individual parts of the county are compared to the national average.

The IMD is calculated for small areas called LSOAs, as shown on the map, each of which have approximately 1,500 residents. In East Sussex there are 329 LSOAs, 22 are in the most deprived 10% nationally. 16 of these are in Hastings, four in Eastbourne, and two in Rother. 21 LSOAs are in the least deprived 10%, 13 are in Wealden, six in Lewes, and two in Eastbourne.

Areas of high deprivation correlate with some areas of predominately rented housing. This includes concentrations of social rented properties (up to 70%) and private rented properties (up to 68%), and both (up to 81%). Measures of deprivation include the indoor living environment, and in these areas, more properties (excluding social housing) may be in poor condition or without central heating, leading to higher heating costs and other negative outcomes.

People living in more deprived areas often face multiple challenges and therefore may be more likely to access Council and other public services. However, it is important to note that the IMD is based on averages across an area, so it is possible to have people with low levels of deprivation in an area classified as being more deprived and vice versa.

The relationship between multiple deprivation, low income and poor-quality housing means it can be hard to change relative deprivation for people living in an area of predominantly low-cost housing without addressing housing quality.

Lower Tier Local Authority	Rank of average rank out of 317 (1=most deprived)
Blackpool	1
Newham	12
Hastings	13
Blackburn with Darwen	14
Northampton	105
Eastbourne	106
Dover	107
Westminster	133
Rother	135
Crawley	136
Exeter	193
Lewes	194
Watford	195
Sevenoaks	253
Wealden	254
Hambleton	255
Hart	317

At the Lower Super Output Area (LSOA) level the picture across the county is even more nuanced. The most deprived LSOA in the county, Hastings 005A within Baird Ward, is within the most deprived 1% of LSOAs in England. Whereas the least deprived LSOA, Wealden 012D in Uckfield, ranks amongst the least deprived 3%.

	Most deprived LSOA	Least deprived LSOA
England	1	32,844
Eastbourne	2,352	31,476
Hastings	147	23,407
Lewes	5,233	31,476
Rother	754	28,840
Wealden	4,812	32,075

Some of the data that the IMD is based on is now several years old. However, the latest child poverty data, relating to children living in families with relative low-income, shows a similar pattern in income deprivation across the county.

In 2023/24, there were 20,519 children in East Sussex living in families with relative low-income, which was 18.0% of all children and young people aged 0-19. This is a slightly lower rate than the national average of 21.9%, but in Hastings 27.3% of children and young people lived in relative low-income families. 72% of all children in relative low-income families in East Sussex were in families where at least one adult was in work. This compares to the national picture, where 69% of children in relative low-income families were in working families. Only 28% of East Sussex children in low-income families were in households where no-one worked.

24.8% of East Sussex pupils were known to be eligible for Free School Meals in 2024. For England the figure was 24.6% (Source: Department for Education).

As the data on deprivation shows some parts of the coastal region of the county face greater challenges. The previous Government established the Levelling Up Fund to address areas of high need. At the time 4 out of 5 local authorities in East Sussex were identified as having locations with priority need for ‘levelling up’ funding, to be used in projects that address economic recovery and growth, improved transport connectivity, and need for regeneration. Eastbourne, Hastings, Lewes, and Rother have all been identified as having specific locations with the greatest priority need for ‘levelling up’.

The allocation of funding from one of the levelling up funding streams, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund was informed by an economic resilience index. This looked at a range of factors including economic productivity, employment rates, wage levels and skills. The map shows that all of the district and borough areas in East Sussex scored above the national average, indicating higher levels of need for support. The map also shows most lower tier local authorities in the South East scored lower than the national average.

Source: data from DLUHC, Local authority boundary information from Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0

Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2024. Note that Cornwall and the City of London were not included in the index.

Economy

GVA per hour

Gross Value Added (GVA) per hour is used to assess the productivity of an area. It measures the value of goods or services produced in an area per hour worked in that area. GVA per hour for East Sussex in 2022 was £31.90, 20.8% below the England level of £40.30.

Source: ONS

Employment

75.2% of the East Sussex working age population (age 16-64) were in employment between April 2023 – March 2024. This was lower than the national average of 75.7% and the average across the South East of 79.6%.

Sources: Annual Population Survey/Labour Force Survey, NOMIS/ONS

Wealden had an increase of 9 percentage points since 2023, giving it the highest rate of employment at 82.2%. Meanwhile, Rother had the lowest at 64.6%,  showing a dip of over 15 percentage points compared to the previous year.

Sources: Annual National Survey/Labour Force Survey, NOMIS/ONS

Note: The Annual Population Survey (APS) can have very small sample sizes at district and borough levels which can result in the data changing significantly year on year and having very broad confidence intervals. The confidence intervals have been added to the chart above, the actual figure may fall anywhere between the lower and higher level.

A higher proportion of people work part time in East Sussex (34.8%) than in the South East (29.5%) or England (29.8%).

Sources: Census 2021

Unemployment

The unemployment rate includes people who are economically active and not in employment. People who are classified as economically inactive include those in full-time education, people who are looking after their family or home full-time, people who are unable to work for health reasons and those who have retired.

The unemployment rate for March 2025 was 3.8% for East Sussex, lower than the national average of 4.3%, but above the regional average of 3.3%. Hastings had the highest rate of the districts and boroughs at 5.3%.

Source: Office for National Statistics/NOMIS - claimants of Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) or Universal Credit (UC) who are searching for work age 16 – 64

Youth unemployment (age 18-24) is normally higher than the overall rate and this trend is greater at time of economic stress. At March 2024 youth unemployment for East Sussex was 6.1%, whilst the England rate was 5.1%. Hastings had the highest district and borough rate at 10.1%. Rates in East Sussex increased for March 2025 at 6.4%, compared to an increase nationally to 5.7%. Youth unemployment in Hastings fell, but remained higher than the county average at 9.7%.

Within this female unemployment is usually lower than male unemployment. For example, in March 2025 female youth unemployment for Hastings was 7.3%, while the male rate was 11.9%.

A higher proportion of males are categorised as economically active than females, which means that if the unemployment rate is the same for males and females there will be a higher number of males unemployed than females. 575 young people were unemployed in Hastings in March 2025, 205 were female and 370 were male.

Source all: Office for National Statistics/NOMIS

Earnings

East Sussex residence based earnings increased for full-time employees in 2024, and are now close to the England average. East Sussex workplace based earnings for full-time employees increased but remained lower than the regional and national averages. Earnings for residence based part-time employees rose in 2024 and are now at a higher level than workplace based employees in the county, and above the average earnings for England and the South East. Residence based earnings are those of people living within East Sussex, some of whom have workplaces outside East Sussex; workplace earnings are those of people whose workplace is within East Sussex.

Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), Office for National Statistics

Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), Office for National Statistics. Note: The ASHE can have very broad confidence intervals, so changes in data year on year may not be reflective of a real change in earnings.

Gross Disposable Household Income

Gross disposable household income in 2022 was below the average in the South East, but above the England rate. There is a time lag with the release of this data so it is unclear how the inflationary rises over the last few years have affected  current levels of gross disposal household income.

Source: ONS

Skills

There were 22,740 apprenticeship starts in East Sussex between 2017 and 2024.  Apprenticeship starts in East Sussex in 2023/24 were up 2% on the previous year.  Higher level apprenticeship starts in 2023/24 increased by 8% compared to the previous year.

Source: Department for Education further education data library, apprenticeships

Qualification levels across the county are broadly in line with the regional and national averages. Both Lewes and Wealden have a significantly higher proportion of better qualified people compared to the rest of districts and boroughs in the county.

	Qualifications of working age population 2021 (16-64)
	None	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3	Level 4+	Other
Eastbourne	12.2%	11.6%	16.7%	20.6%	32.2%	6.7%
Hastings	14.1%	11.9%	17.4%	19.8%	30.6%	6.2%
Lewes	9.2%	10.7%	16.5%	20.4%	37.4%	5.7%
Rother	11.0%	11.7%	17.5%	21.1%	32.6%	6.1%
Wealden	8.1%	10.5%	17.9%	22.1%	35.3%	6.0%
East Sussex	10.6%	11.2%	17.2%	21.0%	33.8%	6.1%
SE region	10.0%	9.9%	15.3%	20.1%	38.8%	5.9%
England	12.4%	9.9%	14.8%	19.5%	37.1%	6.3%

Source: Census 2021

Employment by industry

Across East Sussex as a whole the proportion of people employed in different industries is broadly similar to the national picture. We have a higher proportion of people employed in human health and social work and a lower proportion employed in professional, scientific and technical, and manufacturing than the national average. However, employment by industry varies significantly across the county, with the percentage of people working in human, health and social work highest in Eastbourne at 22%, and those working in professional, technical and business support lowest in Hastings at 9%.

Source: Census 2021

Businesses

The latest data we have for businesses is for 2023 when the economy was still affected by the impact of the pandemic and increases in the rate of inflation which will have affected both decisions to start new businesses and business survival rates. In 2023 in East Sussex there were 2,145 business starts and 2,095 business closures. The East Sussex new business registration rate per 10,000 people decreased between 2022 and 2023 to 38.6. The highest rate was in Wealden at 45.6, whilst the lowest was in Lewes at 33.1.

Source for all: ONS Business Demography

Broadband

Over 99% of East Sussex premises had access to superfast broadband in 2024 with 65.7% having access to Gigabit capable broadband, compared to 78.9% in the South East and 82.5% in England. 0.42% of properties have less than the Legal Universal Service Obligation (at least 10Mbps).

Digital Inclusion

As more businesses and services use digital channels to engage with residents those people who are digitally excluded are likely to face increasing challenges. Access to broadband is one part of being able to access digital services. People also need to have the necessary skills and confidence to use digital services, as well as being able to afford the devices and data connections needed for these.

A digital exclusion risk index has been developed by the Greater Manchester Office of Data Analytics that shows where people at higher risk of digital exclusion live. This index is based on a range of data including data on population, relative deprivation and broadband coverage. Areas where people have a higher risk of digital exclusion have a higher score, for East Sussex the areas with the highest risk of digital exclusion scores are in the south of the county. It should be noted that the index includes the proportion of population aged over 65 as one of the risk factors due to national research indicating lower digital skill levels in this age group. We have a large population of over 65s in East Sussex, many of whom will have strong digital skills.

Source: Digital Exclusion Risk Index (Greater Manchester Office of Data Analytics)

Highways, transport and infrastructure

Transport network

As a rural county transport connectivity is important to residents and businesses in East Sussex. The county has 38 national rail stations and 3,264 bus stops. There is an extensive Public Rights of Way network covering a combined distance of around 2,000 miles. There are also several National Cycle Network routes within the county.

At the time of the 2021 Census 89% of households in Wealden had at least one car or van, compared to 71% of households in Hastings. Car ownership is affected by a number of factors including income, parking availability and the availability of pubic transport. The rail services in the county traverse the coast and link the eastern and western parts of the county to London as is shown in the map.

Bus passenger numbers have increased in East Sussex each year since Covid-19 restrictions, with passenger journeys almost reaching pre-pandemic levels by the end of March 2024. In 2023/24 there were 16.2 million bus passenger journeys in total, compared to 16.3 million in 2018/19. Bus passenger journeys per person in East Sussex have historically been lower than the average for the South East region or England. In 2023/24 there were 29.2 bus journeys per head of population, compared to 39.5 per head of population for the South East or 62.9 per head of population in England.

The percentage of bus journeys that were made using concessionary fares for elderly and disabled people in East Sussex in 2023/24 was 31.5%. This is significantly higher than the averages for both the South East (22.8%) and all England (16.8%). However, the percentage of journeys made by elderly or disabled people using concessionary fares has decreased each year since 2019/20 (42.8%) showing that more people are making journeys without a concessionary fare.

Recovery in bus passenger numbers has also been supported by a government programme of reduced fares since January 2023. Bus fares were capped at £2 for a single journey until December 2024, rising to £3 in January 2025. This aimed to reduce the cost of living particularly for low-income households, by reducing the cost of travel, and to support recovery in bus use following the pandemic.

Infrastructure

The latest Department for Transport data from 2019 shows there was good access to services by car across the county. However, accessing services by public transport or walking can be more challenging in rural areas.

Access to employment centres (100-499 jobs) within 30 minutes by public transport/walking.

The county has 3,375km of carriageway and 2,481km of footways and cycleways. Traffic volumes in East Sussex are highest along its major roads, some of which are managed by East Sussex County Council (for example, A26 Lewes to Tunbridge Wells and A259 Peacehaven to Pevensey) and others by National Highways (namely the A21, A26 (Newhaven to Lewes), A27 and A259 Pevensey to the county boundary with Kent via Bexhill, Hastings, and Rye). The latest road condition survey indicated that 5% of the length of the principal road network (‘A’ roads) requires maintenance and 6% of the length of the non-principal road network (‘B’ and ‘C’ roads), based on the standards set out by the Department for Transport.

This table details the projects which will improve the infrastructure in East Sussex in the coming years.

Area	Project	Value
Countywide	Local Transport Improvements	£12.681m
Countywide	Developing EV infrastructure provision across the county	£4.4m
Countywide	Broadband - Superfast coverage (>30 Mbps) 99% Ultrafast coverage (>100Mbps) 68% Building Digital UK (BDUK) has awarded a contract for East & West Sussex, Brighton & Hove, to Cityfibre as part of their Project Gigabit programme.	£100m (please note this is for Sussex overall, not just East Sussex)
Countywide	East Sussex Bus Service Improvement Plan - Bus priority measures in Eastbourne and Newhaven	£5.9m
Countywide	A259 Major Road Network South Coast Corridor Package	£28m
Countywide	Exceat Bridge Levelling Up Fund Round 1	£19.1m
Countywide	Potential A27 offline solution	Not allocated at present
Countywide	A22 Major Road Network Junction Improvement Package	£46.5m
Countywide	Centres of Digital Excellence across Sussex	£2.3m
Countywide	Greener Sussex land management & Decarbonisation Academies	£7.2m
Countywide	College Condition Allocations	£3.4m
Bexhill	North Bexhill Access Road (Local Growth Fund)	£18.6m
Bexhill	Bexhill Enterprise Park North (Local Growth Fund)	£1.9m
Bexhill	Bexhill Enterprise Park Development	£46.0m
Bexhill	Plan for Neighbourhoods (over ten years)	£20m
Eastbourne	Eastbourne Town Centre Movement and Access Package (Terminus Road) (Local Growth Fund)	£11.3m
Eastbourne	Eastbourne and South Wealden walking and cycling package (Local Growth Fund)	£6.6m
Eastbourne	Hailsham, Polegate and Eastbourne Movement and Access Corridor (Local Growth Fund)	£2.1m
Eastbourne	Levelling Up Fund (including £4.7m ‘Victoria Place’ pedestrianisation project)	£19.9m
Eastbourne	Plan for Neighbourhoods (over ten years)	£20m
Hastings	Skills Capital Fund	£0.5m
Hastings	Bexhill and Hastings Movement and Access Package (Local Growth Fund)	£9.0m
Hastings	Potential HS1 rail extension (also to Bexhill and Eastbourne)	Not allocated at present
Hastings	Town Deal (includes the £10m Hastings Green Connections public realm project)	£24.3m
Hastings	Plan for Neighbourhoods (over ten years)	£20m
Hastings	Levelling Up Partnership (LUP) (including £2.5m for Queensway Gateway Road infrastructure)	£15m
Newhaven	Future High Streets	£5.0m
Newhaven	Town Deal	£19.3m
Newhaven	Levelling Up Fund	£12.7m
Rother	Skills Capital Fund	£0.5m
Rother	Levelling Up Fund	£19.2m
Rother	Levelling Up Partnership (LUP)	£17.5m
Rother	Rural Business Capital Fund (Local Growth Fund)	£1m
Uckfield	Bus station improvements	£0.7m
Wealden	Rural Business Capital Fund (Local Growth Fund)	£1.5m

Environment

The Cumulative CO_2e emissions budget

Emissions of the main greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide (CO2), in East Sussex fell by 42% between 2005 and 2021, while the population grew by about 8%. This excludes emissions that occur outside the area due to demand for goods and services that are consumed in the county. This reduction is similar to the decrease seen nationally and driven by the same changes (e.g. the switch from coal to gas and renewables to generate electricity).

The Tyndall Centre for Climate Change has calculated the emissions reductions necessary for East Sussex (and other local authority areas) to make a fair contribution towards keeping the increase in global average temperature below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. This requires cutting emissions from the county area by an average of about 13% per year, which roughly equates to halving total emissions every 5 years.

Source: Tyndall Centre for Climate Change, 2022.

Emissions from domestic properties and transport are the greatest contributors to overall emissions across the county. Domestic emissions fell by nearly 48% between 2005 and 2022. Transport emissions also fell, but at a slower pace. Emissions from all sectors, but especially transport, fell sharply in 2020 due to pandemic impacts, before rebounding in 2021.

Land use (and land use changes) both absorb and emit carbon, however on an overall (net) basis carbon emissions from land use in East Sussex are negative. Carbon is absorbed by forests and grasslands, while carbon losses occur on existing cropland and when natural land (e.g. grassland) is converted to croplands or settlements. Lewes, Rother and Wealden all have significant (net) negative land use emissions, whilst land use emissions in the urban boroughs of Eastbourne and Hastings are negligible.

Source: DESNZ

Domestic emissions make up a larger share of emissions in the county’s two urban areas – Eastbourne and Hastings - than the three more rural areas, whilst transport emissions are lower. This is due to the smaller road networks in the urban areas, and smaller, higher density housing. Total per capita domestic emissions are higher in the rural areas, as houses tend to be larger, and many properties use higher carbon forms of heating such as oil.

Source: DESNZ

Climate adaptation

Even if global warming can be limited to 1.5ºC, significant additional investment will be needed in measures to adapt to the effects of climate change that are already locked in due to past emissions of greenhouse gases.

Source: Met Office

UK Met Office predictions of the effects of climate change in East Sussex include hotter and drier summers, milder and wetter winters, more droughts, more flooding, and more intense and frequent storms. This is predicted to lead to an increase in heat-related deaths, particularly amongst the elderly, damage to essential infrastructure, increased cost of food, disruption to supply chains and service provision, greater coastal erosion, and impact on coastal habitats.

Water quality

Water pollution is mostly caused by land management practices (e.g., agricultural run-off), wastewater treatment plants, and urban and highway run-off. The most recent data available for groundwater bodies is for 2019. The quality of water bodies in East Sussex has deteriorated slightly in recent years. The number of groundwater bodies in East Sussex rated as good reduced from three to two between 2016 and 2019. The quality of some ground waters, which provide about 70% of drinking water, have deteriorated due to rising nitrate levels, mostly due to historic farming practices.

Source: Environment Agency

The quality of bathing waters improved slightly in 2024 with 5 of the 10 monitored beaches being rated ‘excellent’ compared to 4 the year before. Although the situation has improved it is still below that reported for 2017 when 6 beaches were ‘excellent’ and 4 were ‘good’.

Source: Environment Agency

Air quality

Air quality has improved considerably across most of the UK over the last 30 years. However, up to 36,000 deaths per year in the UK are still attributable to exposure to outdoor air pollution (Public Health England, 2017). This makes air pollution the top environmental risk to human health in the UK, and the fourth greatest threat to public health after cancer, heart disease and obesity. The concentration of pollutants in the air is determined by the emission of air pollutants and factors such as building layout and weather conditions.

In East Sussex, the 3 main pollutants of concern for health are nitrogen dioxide, particulates and ozone. These are monitored by a small number of automatic monitoring stations in the county and the data are published on the Sussex Air website. The latest available data are from 2022. 

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)

The main sources of NO₂ are road vehicles and domestic combustion. In 2022 the levels of NO₂ monitored at all sites in East Sussex were compliant with the short and long term health-based national air quality strategy objectives. Annual mean NO₂ has trended downwards over the past 5 years, largely due to effective controls on newer road vehicles.

Annual mean NO2 at four East Sussex monitoring stations

Note that no annual mean was available for Lullington Heath in 2021

Particulate matter

Particulate matter is everything in the air that is not a gas and so consists of a wide range of chemical compounds and materials.  The main sources of particulates are road vehicles and solid fuel combustion, notably wood. Particulates are measured as either ‘PM₁₀’ or ‘PM_2.5’, which refers to the diameter of the particulates; the smaller they are the further they can penetrate into the lungs and, potentially, the blood stream. There are no safe levels of particulates.

Figure 6 shows that annual mean PM₁₀ fell at most sites between 2018 and 2021 but rose at 3 sites during 2022. Nevertheless, the levels monitored at all sites in 2022 complied with the health-based national air quality strategy objectives, whilst the PM_2.5 levels complied with the health-based interim standards required to be met by 2028, as set out in the Environment Act of 2021.

Annual mean PM10 at four East Sussex monitoring stations

Ozone (O₃)

Ozone is a secondary pollutant, created when other pollutant gases react in sunlight. It is a long-lived pollutant and tends to affect urban background and rural locations, rather than roadside sites.

Annual mean concentrations of O₃ levels have shown no clear trend between 2018 and 2022, albeit with significant year-on-year variation, largely due to the impact of the weather on O₃ formation.

The government’s Daily Air Quality Index divides air pollution levels into ‘low’, ‘moderate’, ‘high’ and ‘very high’, based on the potential impact on health. In 2022 there were no days when O₃ levels were measured as being either ‘very high’ or ‘high’, and one monitoring site measured ‘moderate’ levels on 7 days.

Environmental designations

East Sussex has a rich natural environment, with over two thirds of the county covered by one or more environmental designations. The table below shows how much of the county is covered by which type of designation.

	Designated sites and reserves	Area (ha)
	Ramsar	6,442
International	Special Area of Conservation (SAC)	7,193
	Special Protection Area (SPA)	5,546
	Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)	87,980
National	National Nature Reserve (NNR)	321
	National Park	24,365
	Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)	15,380
	Country Park	692
	Local Geological Site (LGS)	766
Local	Local Nature Reserve (LNR)	1,435
	Local Wildlife Site (LWS)	9,382
	Notable Road Verge	47
	Environmental Stewardship Agreement	20,121
	National Trust	1,841
Reserve/ Property	RSPB Reserve	284
	Sussex Wildlife Trust Reserve	1,118
	Woodland Trust	484

Source: Sussex Biodiversity Record Centre

Habitats

The key habitats in East Sussex are grassland, arable farmland and woodland.

Habitat	% of East Sussex
Water bodies	1.5%
Arable	22.7%
Grassland	40.0%
Heathland	0.9%
Intertidal	0.7%
Coastal	0.4%
Built up Areas and Gardens	9.1%
Woodland	19.9%
Other	4.8%

Ecology

Protected Areas

Over half of the county is designated for its landscape value, either as part of a National Park or an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. There are 65 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), covering about 8% of the county, which recognises and protects their biological and or geological value. About half of these SSSIs are additionally designated as being internationally important for biodiversity, either as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) under the Habitats Directive, a Special Protection Area (SPA) under the Birds Directive, or a Ramsar site (an internally important wetland site).

There are 26 Local Nature Reserves (LNRs), four National Nature Reserves (NNRs) – considered to be the “jewel in the crown” of SSSIs, and 285 Local Wildlife Sites (LWSs). About a third of the county supports priority habitats, which are identified as being of principal importance for conservation.

About three quarters of the SSSIs are in favourable or favourable recovering condition and the rest have either been partially destroyed or are in unfavourable condition. About half of the LWSs are currently known to be in positive conservation management.

Assets at Risk

The 2019 Sussex Nature Partnership Natural Capital Investment Strategy identifies some priority habitats as being at high risk, because they:

a) Are not adequately protected under existing mechanisms.

b) Are fragile or vulnerable and/or already highly fragmented.

c) May be of particular significance in a Sussex context.

d) Are irreplaceable or not easily recreated (either on-site or elsewhere) if destroyed.

The priority habitats most at risk in Sussex are:

· Lowland heath – particularly significant in East Sussex, notably at Ashdown Forest, due to small amounts present in the south of England, the fragmentation of the habitat type (especially outside Ashdown Forest) and it provides a range of benefits, notably clean water.

· Mudflats and saltmarsh – these habitats provide a range of benefits yet are under increasing pressure from climate change, development, and construction of hard sea defences. The national picture is one of medium risk, but the East Sussex context (with high levels of coastal squeeze) increases the risk to these habitats and the benefits they provide. There are small amounts at Newhaven Tide Mills, Cuckmere Estuary and Rye Harbour.

· Vegetated shingle – a globally restricted and internationally important habitat, for which East Sussex is a stronghold in the UK, mostly at Rye Harbour.

· Reedbed, fen and grazing marsh – small and highly fragmented areas remain in East Sussex, notably at Pevensey, yet they have the potential to provide a wide range of benefits, particularly flood risk mitigation in flood plains and provision of clean water.

· Floodplain woodlands – a fragmentated habitat type which plays a very important role in floodplain function.

· Species rich grassland – highly fragmented and those areas outside formal designated areas have little/no protection from further loss. These areas are a priority for loss to development.

Marine Conservation Zones

There are 2 Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) off East Sussex, with two other offshore sites under consideration. Designated under the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009, MCZs protect areas that are important to conserve the diversity of national rare, threatened, and representative habitats and species. These are Beachy Head West, which stretches along the coastline from Brighton Marina to Beachy Head, with a gap at Newhaven, and Beachy Head East which contains two marine Sites of Nature Conservation Importance: the Royal Sovereign Shoals and the Horse of Willingdon Reef. This large inshore area runs to Hastings, out to just beyond 6 nautical miles from the coast at its furthest points.

Nature Recovery Network Mapping

The map below shows the fragmented state of the most important species rich habitats that are to be conserved under section 41 of the National Environment and Rural Communities Act.

Local Nature Recovery Strategies

The Council has been appointed as the Responsible Authority to produce a Local Nature Recovery Strategy for East Sussex and Brighton & Hove, under the Environment Act 2021. Local Nature Recovery Strategies are a mandatory new system of spatial strategies for nature. They are designed to work closely alongside other measures in the Act and will help support delivery of mandatory biodiversity net gain, provide a focus for a strengthened duty on all public authorities to conserve and enhance biodiversity, and will underpin a national Nature Recovery Network.

Waste

The volume of household waste collected rose slightly in 2023/24 compared to the previous year, 241,864 tonnes compared to 233,386 tonnes. This equates to 432.3kg of household waste per person living in the county.

Source: Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs

In 2023/24 42% of our waste was reused, recycled or composted. 55% of our waste was sent for energy recovery (Energy from Waste, or EfW). Newhaven Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) supplies power for over 25,000 homes. East Sussex sent less than 1% of collected waste to landfill in 2022/23.

Source: Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs

Flooding

Flooding is a natural process that shapes our environment, but it can also pose a threat to the safety and wellbeing of communities. Flooding can be caused by major rivers, the sea, groundwater and surface water. Overall flood risk is highest to the south of the county and on river flood plains. The highest risk of surface water flooding is in Eastbourne and Hastings.

Settlement	Residential Properties at Risk
Eastbourne	Greater than 1,000
Seaford	500 to 1,000
Newhaven	50 to 150
Peacehaven	150 to 500
Lewes	50 to 150
Hailsham	150 to 500
Bexhill	500 to 1,000
Battle	50 to 150
Hastings	Greater than 1,000
Rye	Fewer than 50
Heathfield	50 to 150
Crowborough	50 to 150
Uckfield	Fewer than 50
Forest Row	Fewer that 50

Note: A comparison of residential properties at risk from a 1 in 30 year surface water flood event (3% chance in any given year) between 2016-2026 Assessments of Local Flood Risk. Source: ESCC Flood Risk Strategy

Settlement	Non-Residential Properties at Risk
Eastbourne	Greater than 200
Seaford	25 to 50
Newhaven	Fewer than 25
Peacehaven	Fewer than 25
Lewes	Fewer than 25
Hailsham	25 to 50
Bexhill	25 to 50
Battle	Fewer than 25
Hastings	Greater than 200
Rye	Fewer than 25
Heathfield	Fewer than 25
Crowborough	Fewer than 25
Uckfield	Fewer than 25
Forest Row	Fewer than 25

Note: A comparison of non-residential properties at risk from a 1 in 30 year surface water flood event (3% chance in any given year) between 2016-2026 Assessments of Local Flood Risk. Source: ESCC Flood Risk Strategy.

Civil Society

Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector and volunteering

We have a diverse range of VCSE organisations working at every level, neighbourhood, town/parish, and district/borough, there are over 3,000 not-for-profit groups and organisations providing activities and support to residents and communities that bring about positive change and improve people’s lives.

Some of the organisations the Council funded or supported during 2024:

Source: East Sussex Adult Social Care and Health department

A quarter of the population volunteer at least once a month in East Sussex, giving their time to local causes, groups, and communities that aim to make communities a better place where helping people themselves is part of everyday life. The sense of community that volunteering brings enables people to feel connected and that they are making a positive difference.

Community Safety

Drug and alcohol-related harm

In 2023/24 there were 2,650 adults in treatment in East Sussex for problematic drug and/or alcohol use, this is an increase of 2.12% (+55 adults) on the previous year compared to a 6.96% increase nationally.

There has been a significant increase since 2019/20 as a result of the additional investment from Government following the Dame Carol Black Review. In East Sussex there has been a 28% increase in adults in treatment from 2019/20 to 2023/24.

In East Sussex, the largest cohort were in treatment for opiate use (1,080, 40.75%). The number in treatment for non-opiates increased by 4.79% (+35); this was notably lower than both the national figures (19.69%) and the local increase the previous year (14.96%, +95). The number in treatment for alcohol has remained the same from 2022/23 to 2023/24, while the numbers for England increased by 9.18%. The number in treatment for opiate use in East Sussex increased by 1.89% (+20) following a decrease the previous year of 4.07% (-45), compared to England where the number in treatment decreased for the third consecutive year.

Source: National Drug Treatment Monitoring System

Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking

The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is a framework for identifying and referring potential victims of modern slavery and ensuring they receive appropriate support.

Nationally, 19,125 potential victims of modern slavery were referred to the Home Office in 2024, representing a 13% increase compared to the preceding year (16,990).

In East Sussex in 2024, 2 adults and 21 children who were potential victims of modern slavery and human trafficking were referred by the local authority through the NRM. This compares to 5 adults and 24 children in 2023.

Sussex Police made 86 NRM referrals during 2024, this compares to 98 for 2023. Please note this is for the whole of Sussex. (Source: National Referral Mechanism statistics).

Violent Crime

Violent crime is under increasing national scrutiny. Despite rates remaining low in East Sussex, the Council has an active focus on this through the Violence and Exploitation Reduction Partnership.

There was a slight increase in violent crime in East Sussex over the period October 2023 to September 2024, when compared with the period October 2022 to September 2023. There was a 16.5% (+46) increase in robbery crimes, a 7.7% (+450) increase in violence without injury crimes (mostly assault without injury), and a 3.3% (+161) increase in violence with injury crimes. However, there was a decrease in the number of homicides.

Source: Police recorded crime, Community Safety Partnership Open Data tables

Child criminal exploitation and child sexual exploitation

Between April 2024 and March 2025, 65 East Sussex children were experiencing either criminal or sexual exploitation or both. This is in line with the number of children experiencing exploitation in the same period the previous year. 

Two thirds of children experiencing exploitation were male and 82% were aged 14 or older. 43 children were removed from the Safeguarding Adolescents From Exploitation and Risk (SAFER) group during the year and the average time it took for a child to be removed from SAFER due to a lowering of their risk level was just under seven months.

Domestic violence and abuse

Multi-Agency Risk Conferences (MARACs) are meetings that discuss the highest risk domestic abuse cases. East Sussex has historically had a high number of referrals into MARAC and both county MARACs remain over the recommended number of 40 cases per 10,000 population.

During 2024 there was a 5% increase in the number of cases discussed at MARACs compared to the previous year.

Although the Eastbourne, Lewes & Wealden MARAC saw a 2% decrease in the number of cases discussed from 2023 to 2024, Hastings & Rother saw a 19% increase.

Source: ESCC Adult Social Care and Health Department

Neighbourhood Crime

Neighbourhood crime rates in East Sussex are lower than the national average across all categories. Neighbourhood crime includes residential burglary, vehicle offences, theft from the person and robbery of personal property.

Source: ESCC Adult Social Care and Health Department

Road Safety

The rate of people being killed or seriously injured (KSI) in road traffic collisions in East Sussex has historically been higher than the average for England. For the three-year period 2017-2019 (the latest period not impacted by the national lockdowns) the average rate of people killed or seriously injured for East Sussex was 68.1 per 100,000 population compared to 43.2 in England. Note that standard road safety reporting is based on a three-year reporting period. 2017-2019 has been used as this is the last period not affected by COVID-19.

Although East Sussex has had higher rates of people killed or seriously injured than the national average and many other areas, direct comparisons between rates are uncertain due to both methods of data collection and recording across police forces, and the differences in road networks and infrastructure.

The number of people killed or seriously injured in East Sussex has fluctuated in recent years. Please note the 2020 and 2021 figures were affected by COVID-19 restrictions/lockdowns. The figures also include crashes on the Strategic Road Network which is managed by National Highways.

Number of people killed or seriously injured in East Sussex

Year	Seriously injured	Fatalities	Total
2024	383	21	404
2023	352	13	365
2022	378	20	398
2021	321	18	339
2020	279	17	296
2019	395	14	409
2018	334	21	355

Source: Sussex Safer Roads Partnership

Data

We use a wide range of data to help us understand the context for our plans and the impact we are having through our work and in partnership. A selection of this data is listed below. Years are financial (April-March) or academic (September-August) unless otherwise stated.

Key: CY – calendar year (January-December), NA – data not available.

Measure	2021/22 Outturn	2022/23 Outturn	2022/23 England
Percentage of working age residents (16-64 year olds) with a level 3 or higher qualification (HNC, HND, degree etc.) (CY)	N/A	33.8% (Census 2021)	37.1% (Census 2021)
Percentage of working age residents (16-64 year olds) with no qualifications or qualified only to NVQ1 (CY)	N/A	10.6% (Census 2021)	12.4% (Census 2021)
Annual gross full-time earnings, median average (residence based)	£31,259 (2022)	£34,028 (2023)	£35,100 (2023)
Percentage of working age population (16-64 year olds) in employment	77.1% (2022)	73.1% (2023)	75.7% (2023)
People claiming unemployment benefits (JSA and Universal Credit) percentage of population 16-64 year olds at March	3.6% (2023)	3.5% (2024)	3.9% (2024)
New business registration rate per 10,000 people over 16 (CY)	52.2 (2021)	47.5 (2022)	64.6 (2022)
New houses built, total completed / total affordable	1,129 /423	1,735 / 681	N/A
Average Attainment 8 score per pupil state funded secondary schools	46.5	43.6	46.4
Average Progress 8 score for state funded secondary schools	-0.11	-0.19	-0.03
Percentage of pupils who achieved a 9-5 pass in English and maths GCSEs	46.3%	41.0%	45.3%
Average point score (APS) per entry for level A levels (age 16-18)	36.19	32.46	34.16
Attainment of A level students (age 16-18) average point score (APS) per entry, best 3	34.81	31.27	34.68
Attainment of A level students (age 16-18) % achieving grades AAB or better at A level, of which at least two are in facilitation subjects	12.3%	9.18%	15.8%
Rate per 10,000 (aged 0-17 population) of Looked After Children	61	62	71
Rate per 10,000 (aged 0-17 population) of children with a Child Protection Plan	50.1	64.8	43.2
Percentage of children who ceased to be looked after adopted during the year ending 31 March	8%	7%	9%
Proportion of people (65 and over) who were still at home 91 days after discharge from hospital	89.7%	91.2%	82.3%
Suicide rate per 100,000 of population, three-year average	12.1 (2019 - 2021)	11.6 (2020 – 2022)	10.3 (2020 – 2022)
Hospital admissions caused by unintentional and deliberate injuries in children aged 0-14 years, rate per 10,000 resident population	99.8 (2020/21)	107.6 (2021/22)	84.3 (2021/22)
Percentage of children aged 4-5 years with excess weight (overweight or obese) LA by postcode of child	19.8%	22.1%	21.3%
Percentage of children aged 10-11 years with excess weight (overweight or obese) LA by postcode of child	32.8%	32.6%	36.6%
Percentage of adults (aged 18+) classified as overweight or obese	64.9%	62.7% (2021/22)	63.8% (2021/22)
Percentage of children aged 4-5 years who are underweight	0.7%	0.5%	1.2%
Percentage of children aged 10-11 years who are underweight	1.6%	1.3%	1.6%
Long-term support needs of younger adults (aged 18-64) met by admission to residential and nursing care homes, per 100,000 population per year	10.8	13.9	14.6
Long-term support needs of older adults (aged 65 and over) met by admission to residential and nursing care homes, per 100,000 population per year	494.2	488.2	560.8
Proportion of older people aged 65 and over who received reablement services following discharge from hospital	1.6%	1.4%	2.9%
The outcome of short-term services: sequel to service: proportion of people who received short-term services during the year, where no further request was made for ongoing support or support of a lower level	93.7%	94.7%	77.5%
Emergency hospital admissions due to falls in people aged 65 and over per 100,000	2,314 (2020/21)	2,523 (2021/22)	2,100 (2021/22
Number of people killed or seriously injured on the roads (CY)	399 (CY 2022)	362 (CY 2023)	N/A