Seaside village sails into a storm with ‘snobbish’ new name to make it sound wealthier

‘Come and enjoy our lovely high street … if you want betting shops, charity shops and takeaways, it’s a must’

A SUSSEX village has been mocked by its residents over plans to add “on Sea” to its name to make it sound wealthier.

The parish council in Lancing, on the south coast, has begun designing signs to attach to lamp posts on its high street with the slogan “Lancing-on-sea – Be at the centre”.

But there has been derision locally, with residents claiming the main delights are “betting shops, charity shops and takeaways”. Lancing is one of the largest villages in Britain, with 18,000 residents.

The banners feature a colourful picture of blue skies, some of the prettier village buildings and the South Downs looking out on to the sea.

If the banners are approved, they will be used to direct tourists arriving from the A259 to the village centre.

The initial plan was to have bunting hanging across roads but this was “too complicated to overcome”, according to a council spokesman.

Dan Allday, 33, who has lived in Lancing nearly all his life, said he was not against the scheme but the council needed to make sure as many people as possible had a say before a final decision was made, and pointed out that Shoreham-by-sea was very close.

“I personally don’t like the sound of the suggested new name, also as the town next door has “by-sea” in its name. We can be our own place and not have to copy our neighbours.

“Having a promotional name for our village that is different from what people have on their address seems nonsensical, unless the intention would be to eventually change that as well – something people should consider.”

The lamppost banners were thought up by the parish council-led Lancing Vision Group, which has been working on ways to help promote the village centre as a place to visit following a consultation carried out in 2017.

People on social media accused Lancing of indulging in “snob tactics”.

One user, called Whatone, suggested: “Dump-by-the-sea?”, while another called Biker Marty posted: “Come and enjoy the delights of our lovely village high street … if you only want to browse betting shops, charity shops and takeaways, it is a must.”

Gloria Eveleigh, the council chairman, promised to listen to the community’s wishes, adding: “The Lancing Vision Group is trying to fulfil the results of the consultation by following through the suggested ways to improve the village.”