Work to begin on refurbishment of empty Southwick council homes
Released: Tuesday, 02 June 2026
Up to £2 million is to be spent refurbishing and improving our council homes in Southwick for Adur families in need of somewhere to live.
We're investing in our 44 empty flats in the town to bring them up to a good standard so new tenants can move in.
The first homes to be renovated will be in Watling Court, Grange Court and Coates Court. Teams will then carry out similar work in Sea House, Locks Court, Rock Close, Albion House, Harbour Court, Wyck Court and Channel View.
The amount of work required varies between properties, but some homes could need a new kitchen and bathroom as well as upgraded heating and insulation, plus new fans and ventilation systems. They will also be redecorated throughout.
Three different contractors are being used at the same time, which should allow the project to be completed in as little as six months.
As soon as the work on each individual home is completed, we'll seek to move in new tenants from the housing register. We hope the first refurbished flats could be occupied by the end of June.
Councillor Lee Cowen, Adur's cabinet member for housing, said:
“Every one of our tenants deserves a home that is safe, secure and sustainable.
“This work will mean scores of our Adur residents in need of somewhere to live can soon move into good quality social housing in their area, while we invest millions of pounds to improve our other Adur Homes properties.”
Whenever tenants move out of Adur District Council properties, the homes are reviewed to assess how much work is needed to be done to them before new tenants can move in.
Priority is given to those properties that require the least work, so that homes can be brought back into use as quickly as possible for Adur families. However that approach has led to a build-up of properties sitting empty because they require more intensive programmes of work, which this investment is designed to resolve.
This work forms part of our focus on improving homes for residents to meet national standards.
Our long-term intention is to redevelop the whole of the area bounded by Grange Road in the west, the A259 to the south, Colebrook Road in the east and Butts Road and Rock Close to the north, to create new, better-quality council homes and community facilities. The sites of Watling Court and Grange Court are also included in the plan.
Discussions with tenants and leaseholders suggest the majority of residents support this approach, which has an estimated cost of more than £150 million and would take a number of years to plan, design and fund.
In the meantime, the government intends to merge councils in Sussex together to improve services for residents, which will mean Adur District Council will cease to exist.
We have therefore paused any plan for widescale redevelopment of the Southwick blocks until there is some certainty about the new authority that will replace Adur.
Instead, with the significant investment needed for that large-scale regeneration likely to be a number of years away at best, we're investing millions of pounds to improve our properties in the area for its tenants.
Photos: Southwick council homes (Coates Court, Sea House and Locks Court)
(PR26-047)
Page last updated: 03 June 2026