Election of West Sussex County Councillor for Tilgate and Furnace Green 7 May 2026

 

At County Hall Chichester after the last Full Council meeting in March 2026

This Thursday is polling day for this year’s local elections. This set of elections has the unusual backdrop of local government reorganisation, meaning the terms of office are due to be under one year 11 months, but this is still an important set of elections. Those elected will oversee the dissolution of our existing local authorities and the setting up of a new Unitary Authority covering Crawley. I strongly believe Crawley will need our best and most experienced councillors to lead this.

While some parties are campaigning on national issues and coming out with all sorts of dubious claims, the fact remains these are local elections and it’s about who will represent you and our area going forward.

I’ve been proud to serve as Tilgate and Furnace Green’s County Councillor since 2005. Many residents will testify as to how dedicated I am to the area, how hard I work, and how committed I am to support our whole community. I believe in bringing people together - not seeking division.

As the County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Support and Fire & Resue since 2019, I’ve provided effective political leadership and support, overseeing ongoing improvement in our fantastic West Sussex Fire Service. My responsibilities also include our award-winning Library Service and West Sussex Trading Standards, where we’ve had good results in Crawley tackling underage vape sales.

But my favourite part of being a county councillor will always be my local role in serving Tilgate and Furnace Green, which I do with great dedication.  

So why vote for me on Thursday? Here are a few good reasons to consider.

·       A Strong voice for you: I not only show up, but I also always actively participate. I have an unmatched attendance record at WSCC meetings over the last 21 years, and I consistently take part, seeking to ensure council decisions are the best they can be.

·       Active all year round: I work hard for Tilgate and Furnace Green throughout the year, not just when an election is coming. Do scroll through my Facebook page to see this, which I positively use to help keep residents informed of what’s happening locally.

·       Tried, tested and trusted: A vote for me means no risk of electing a councillor who turns out to be a disappointment. You may not always agree with me every single time, but you know I am consistently an effective councillor - trusted to deliver for our area.

·       Proactive in caring for Tilgate & Furnace Green: For me, my role is more than just representing our area, it’s caring for it too. I love walking around both neighbourhoods and seeking to ensure everything is as it should be. Often, the smalls wins are the best.

·       Support for the whole community: It feels more important than ever to make this very clear. Whatever your background, I will support you as a councillor as best I can, and I will never stand idly by if any of our local communities are being demonised in any way.

·       Putting people before politics: I will always proudly be a Conservative, but while some councillors and candidates always put their party politics first, I will always seek to put our area and residents first. At local level, being pragmatic works best.

·       The most experienced at a crucial time: It takes a full year for any new councillor just to learn the basics. We only have one year left before elections setting up the new Unitary Authority. Crawley need our most experienced councillors right here, right now.

 

Yours sincerely, Duncan

Promoted by Jonathan Purdy on behalf of Duncan Crow, both of 6 Pine Shaw, Crawley, RH10 7TN

Good council services at risk in West Sussex from Government funding changes

AI image of what a protest could look like

 I was delighted to see the recent findings from the Care Quality Commission (CQC), that West Sussex County’s Adults Services have been officially rated as Good. Care services to adults is the largest service provided by the County Council, affecting literally thousands of lives.

The assessment of the council was earlier this year, and the regulator found strong leadership within adult social care teams and effective support that enables people to live healthier lives. While further improvements to address gaps in service are still needed, the findings are strong evidence that solid progress has been made, and that the council is effective at making a real difference to people’s lives.

This strong progress in Adult Services is the latest in very positive assessments that have been made of different services provided by West Sussex County Council. The second largest service, Children’s Services has also been seeing strong official recognition of improvements. Last month, the inspections of three children’s homes by Ofsted were announced, with two being rated as Good and another one that’s in Crawley, being rated as Outstanding.

Additionally, the West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service has seen significant ongoing progress in its last two official inspections. All eleven of the grading judgements from the last inspection last year were either Good or Adequate. A clear positive trend among all the main services that have external inspections has emerged.

But what about the roads you may say? A significant amount of investment has been ploughed in and it has been very noticeable how much road resurfacing and treatments have been taking place in Crawley over the last couple of years. This continues and from later this month, I’m pleased to see that there will be resurfacing on Hawth Avenue and on the Squareabout.

West Sussex County Council is performing well but has service pressures causing financial strain. Services are at risk of being impacted if the Labour Government doesn’t ensure adequate funding to meet those pressures, and if it diverts millions of pounds away from West Sussex to other parts of the country, under it’s so-called ‘fairer funding’ plans.

Rising government borrowing costs will impact us all - now at 5.72%

The cost of UK government borrowing may feel like a boring subject and not relevant to us as individuals, but one would be wrong on both counts. The finances of any government have a very material impact on all our lives, and the costs to borrow for any government that isn’t living within its means, has a major impact on those finances.   

Over the last few months, UK borrowing costs have risen sharply, increasing the cost of financing government debt to more than £100 billion a year - almost 10% of the annual budget. To put this in perspective, our entire annual defence budget is £62 billion.

Many economists are warning the UK faces a unique strain on its financial position, caused by the government’s tax and spend policies, concurrent with projections that our aging society will place greater demand on public spending. We have also (rightly) pledged to increase defence spending due to global threats.

The interest rate on the UK’s 30-year bond rose last week to 5.62%, which is almost a 27-year high. To also put this in perspective, after the mini-budget during Liz Truss’ very short and disastrous time in office, the 30-year bond yield jumped to 5%, before falling back to about 3.5% after many of the mini-budget measures were reversed. Labour were relentless in the general election campaign, in saying that “the Conservatives crashed the economy” meaning the hike in borrowing costs, and yet now after a year of being in office, Labour are manging to make the days of Liz Truss look positively tame.     

This all puts the country in the same position as last year, dreading the upcoming autumn budget. Between 30 to 50 billion pounds needs to be found in either more taxes, higher borrowing, or reduced spending. The Chancellor has been boxed in by back-bench Labour MPs (including Crawley’s) who won’t allow her to slow down the future growth in the burgeoning welfare bill or reduce spending in any meaningful way. Reducing spending is the best way but Labour won’t do it, leading to us being on the road to ruin.