West Lavington is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

on the edge of

Midhurst Midhurst () is a market town, parish and civil parish in West Sussex, England. It lies on the River Rother inland from the English Channel, and north of the county town of Chichester. The name Midhurst was first recorded in 1186 as ''Middeh ...

in the

Chichester Chichester () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publi ...

district of

West Sussex West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ...

, England. It contains a small private nursery school and the (now deconsecrated) church of St Mary Magdalene. The church was constructed for

Henry Edward Manning Henry Edward Manning (15 July 1808 – 14 January 1892) was an English prelate of the Catholic church, and the second Archbishop of Westminster from 1865 until his death in 1892. He was ordained in the Church of England as a young man, but conv ...

who was at the time rector of Woolavington, now East Lavington, with West Lavington forming a detached portion of that parish until 1851. The churchyard contains the grave of

Richard Cobden Richard Cobden (3 June 1804 – 2 April 1865) was an English Radical and Liberal politician, manufacturer, and a campaigner for free trade and peace. He was associated with the Anti-Corn Law League and the Cobden–Chevalier Treaty. As a you ...

although he lived in the neighbouring parish of

Heyshott Heyshott is a village and civil parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It is approximately three miles south of Midhurst. Like many villages it has lost its shop but still has one pubthe Unicorn Inn The hamlet of Hoyle is to t ...

. In the 2001 census there were 111 households with a total population of 298 of whom 115 were economically active. At the 2011 Census the population of the civil parish was 276. As a result of falling congregations and the church's poor condition, St Mary Magdalene church was closed in September 2008 and the congregation transferred to neighbouring Cocking. The two parishes were subsequently united and are now known as "The Parish of Cocking with West Lavington". In 2013, the former church at West Lavington was offered for sale, although the graveyard will continue to belong to the parish with public access.

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{{authority control Villages in West Sussex Chichester District