ABSTRACT
Roman baths, while the Pallant House Gallery, behind its distinctive ‘dodo’ gateposts, houses one of the best collections of 20th-century modern art and won the 2007 Gulbenkian Prize for museums and galleries. The University of Chichester and Chichester College add a lively student population into the mix and the area’s creative economy has been fuelled by the South Coast Design Forum, chaired by Wayne Hemingway. A twice-monthly farmers’ market enlivens the central pedestrianised streets and has introduced independent food retailers as an antidote to the dominance of fashion retailing and national chains. The mix of culture and shops, and proximity to the South Downs and the coast, as well as the Goodwood racetrack, make the town a desirable place to visit and to live. The number of retirees has created challenges, with an ageing population and house prices that are 20% higher than the south-east average. The council has responded by promoting mixedtenure developments, the largest being a 750-home zero-carbon development on the site of the former Graylingwell Mental Hospital through the agency of a Community Development Trust. The environment was rated as the best thing about living in Chichester in a survey by MORI. The district’s Biodiversity Action Plan aims to improve parks (each of which has a local friends group), adapt to climate change and create green corridors. Peregrines have nested in the cathedral and the skies are full of swifts encouraged by the council through the inclusion of nest boxes in its buildings. As with many towns in this book, people use words like ‘unique’, ‘lovely’ and ‘beautiful’ to describe Chichester. It attracts people, often in their retirement, who bring with them skills and experience, creating an articulate, engaged community. The city may have grown beyond the point where everyone can fit into the cathedral, but the community is keen to preserve its intimacy and human scale. As one resident told MORI; ‘a nice friendly place with a sense of ease’ a place where ‘people come and never go back’.
