February to November 2027

Sussex And The City 2027 tour

In 2027 Sussex And The City is taking the conversation about devolution on the road.

Question Time-style public events in towns across East and West Sussex through to November, each one chaired by Richard Freeman.

Sussex now has a strategic authority, a mayor is on the way and local government is being reorganised. Each event will be a chance to hear informed, contrasting voices on what that could mean for your area, and to put your own questions to them.

Submit a question  ·  Get involved

The route

One launch event in Brighton & Hove and 12 public events across East and West Sussex. 

English Channel WEST SUSSEX EAST SUSSEX L Hove 3 February 1 Chichester Late February 2 Hastings Early March 3 Crawley Mid-March 4 Worthing June 5 Newhaven June 6 Horsham June 7 Eastbourne July 8 Midhurst September 9 Bexhill September 10 Haywards Heath October 11 Uckfield October 12 Bognor Regis November
Venue confirmedVenue to be announcedLaunch

L3 February

Hove (launch)

Brighton & Hove
The Old Market

Venue confirmed

Chair Richard Freeman

On the panel

Panellists will be announced here as they're confirmed.

Dates and venues will be added as they're confirmed.

How the events will work

Every event will be chaired by Richard Freeman, host of the Sussex And The City podcast.

There'll be a short piece of local context, then a panel taking questions from Richard, from questions sent in advance and from the room.

Panels will change from place to place, bringing together informed decision-makers; local, regional and national perspectives, people with lived experience and  subject experts. No event will be limited to a single subject, but each will have a local lens on the impact of devolution in that place. The conversation will follow the questions people actually want to ask.

Who it's for

Anyone who lives or works in Sussex and wants to understand what's changing. That includes residents, businesses, community organisations, public services, education and civic leaders.

What's up for discussion

The focus will be what the new mayoralty and strategic authority will be able to do, and what that could mean where you live.

What could a mayor for Sussex change?

  • Transport

    Buses, roads and how we get around

  • Housing

    Homes, land and where we build

  • Skills

    Adult skills, training and good jobs

  • Economy and regeneration

    Investment, town centres and growth

  • Environment

    Climate, nature and energy

  • Health

    Wellbeing and closing health gaps

  • Public safety

    Safer streets and communities

  • Culture

    Arts, heritage and creative life

  • Rural and coastal communities

    The countryside, the coast and the places in between

We'll also look at how these powers sit alongside the changes to councils across Sussex.

Ask a question about any of these →

 

Independent by design

Sussex And The City is an independent, non-political project. Richard Freeman will chair every event, and we're responsible for the format, the panels and the questions.

Partners and supporters help make the tour possible. They can suggest people, perspectives and issues, but they don't buy panel places, questions or editorial control.

Can't make it in person?

The weekly Sussex And The City podcast will run alongside the tour all year, including longer conversations with panellists that go deeper into the questions raised in the room.

After each event we'll publish a short record of what was asked, what was answered and what's still open. We're also working towards filming and livestreaming events, and we'll share details here as they're confirmed.

Submit a question

What do you want to know about devolution in Sussex? Send us your question in advance and we will use it to shape the conversation at the event nearest you.

Partners and supporters

Venue partners

Business partners

Network partners

Become a partner

Get involved

We're looking for organisations that want to be part of the tour.

  • Programme partners supporting the whole year
  • Local event partners backing the event in their own town
  • Venue partners hosting an event
  • Supporting networks helping get the right people into the room

Tell us a little about your organisation and we'll send you our partner pack.

Questions about the tour

  • Richard Freeman chairs every event on the tour. Richard hosts the Sussex And The City podcast and founded Always Possible, which runs the project.

  • The launch will be free, with places booked in advance. We'll confirm booking details for each tour event here as venues are confirmed.

  • No. Sussex And The City is an independent, non-political project. Panels will bring together a range of informed voices, and the chair will keep the conversation balanced.

  • We'd like every event to include people who can speak to how the new arrangements will work in practice, and we're inviting the Sussex and Brighton Strategic Authority to take part.

  • We're keeping April clear around the elections, and leaving August as breathing space.

  • Yes. If you'd like to bring a group from your organisation, school, college or university, get in touch and we'll do our best to help.

  • Sign up to the Sussex And The City newsletter and we'll let you know as each event opens for booking.

Stay in touch

Sign up to Sussex And The City to hear as soon as dates, venues, panellists and booking are confirmed.