List of places of worship in Worthing

A Classical style, stuccoed building whose façade is dominated by four tapering columns supporting a pediment. The side wall is yellow brick. Partly hidden behind the columns are two red round-headed doors. Above the pediment is a partly hidden cupola. A modern extension is partly visible to the right.
St Paul's Church was Worthing's first Anglican church. Built in 1812, it endured budget overruns, criticism of its distinctive Classical architecture and its pew rent policies, and structural problems; the last caused its closure in 1995.[1][2]
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The borough of Worthing, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex, has 43 extant, operating churches and other places of worship. Twenty-one other former places of worship are still in existence but are no longer in religious use. The district, on the south coast of England, is mostly urban:[3] it consists of the seaside resort of Worthing, established in the 19th century, and its residential suburbs, ranging from ancient villages absorbed by the growing town to housing estates built after World War II.[4]

Although not forming a majority, the largest proportion of the borough are Christians, and there is only one non-Christian place of worship, a mosque. The Church of England, the country's officially established church, is represented by more churches than any other denomination, but Worthing's first church was an Independent chapel. Protestant Nonconformism flourished in the early 19th century during the town's early development, while Roman Catholic worship (after the Catholic Emancipation) took root somewhat later.

English Heritage has awarded listed status to 12 of Worthing's extant churches and two former church buildings. A building is defined as "listed" when it is placed on a statutory register of buildings of "special architectural or historic interest" in accordance with the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.[5] The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, a Government department, is responsible for this; English Heritage, a non-departmental public body, acts as an agency of the department to administer the process and advise the department on relevant issues.[6] There are three grades of listing status. Grade I, the highest, is defined as being of "exceptional interest"; Grade II* is used for "particularly important buildings of more than special interest"; and Grade II, the lowest, is used for buildings of "special interest".[7]

  1. ^ Elleray 1998, p. 50.
  2. ^ Williamson et al. 2019, p. 728.
  3. ^ Salzman, L. F., ed. (1980). "A History of the County of Sussex: Volume 6 Part 1 : Bramber Rape (Southern Part). Worthing: Growth of the town". Victoria County History of Sussex. British History Online. pp. 97–103. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
  4. ^ Elleray 1998, p. 96.
  5. ^ "Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (c. 9)". The UK Statute Law Database. Ministry of Justice. 24 May 1990. Archived from the original on 18 April 2010. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
  6. ^ "History of English Heritage". English Heritage. 2010. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  7. ^ "What does Listing mean?". English Heritage. 2008. Retrieved 27 September 2009.