Chichester Council House

The Council House stands on North Street in the heart of Chichester, one of the city's most striking Georgian buildings. Completed in 1731 to a design by Roger Morris, it was built as the meeting place for the city's corporation and continues to serve as a civic building today, hosting council meetings, mayoral events and ceremonial occasions.

The façade is dominated by a first-floor loggia carried on Tuscan columns, sheltering the pavement below and framing an entrance approached by a broad flight of steps. Above sits the Assembly Room, added later in the 18th century, which is finished with fine plasterwork, tall sash windows and a set of civic portraits. Set into the wall of the ground-floor arcade is the Neptune Stone, a Roman dedication slab discovered in Chichester in 1723 and one of the most important Roman inscriptions found in Britain.

Because the building is still in active civic use, interior access is usually limited to guided tours, Heritage Open Days and occasional public events. From the outside it is worth pausing to take in the arcaded front, the coat of arms above and the position at the crossing of Chichester's four principal streets, close to the Market Cross and Cathedral.