People associated with the chapel include William Hale White (the author "Mark Rutherford"),[1] Henry Acton, Adrian Boult—who was married there—and G. K.

[4] This trend was seen throughout Sussex, and by the late 17th century "the all-embracing medieval Church" existed alongside dozens of newly established groups and denominations.

[5] Ditchling was a local centre for Protestant Dissent: 64 residents of the parish declared themselves Nonconformists in a religious census of 1676.

[8] His unorthodox, rapidly changing beliefs had caused a schism in the Assembly, and its response to his new theology was significant in the development of Unitarianism in the 18th century.

[9] Worshippers apparently came to the village from all over Sussex and neighbouring counties: attendance and baptism records identify church members from such distant places as Sevenoaks and Cranbrook (Kent), Charlwood and Godstone (Surrey) and Battle, Walberton, Crawley and Pulborough (Sussex) as well as neighbouring villages such as Keymer, Westmeston and Streat.

The Jointure, a timber-framed 16th-century building on the site of a Wealden hall house (of which some traces remain), was owned by a family of Dissenters.

)[12] The present chapel was founded by Robert Chatfeild [sic] of nearby Streat, who was born and baptised in Ditchling in 1675.

[13][14] Some sources suggest he built the chapel on to the side of the house in 1740,[15] but his will of 24 February 1734 indicated that it already existed by then,[13] and William Evershed preached there in 1736.

[18] This move from Baptist beliefs towards Unitarianism, influenced by Matthew Caffyn's teachings in the late 17th century, was seen in many General Baptist congregations in Sussex in the 18th century;[7] at Ditchling it was already underway by the time Chatfeild built the chapel, and by 1762 a wholly Unitarian character had been adopted.

[19][20] Declaring that he would "tear [the Ditchling] church to pieces",[20] he and several other members seceded from it and founded a new Strict Baptist chapel at nearby Wivelsfield.

[1] This means that members do not adopt a particular statement of faith or set of beliefs: the Bible and personal interpretation of it are considered the sole authority for their views.

[2] The chapel was registered for marriages on 29 December 1837,[25] and people married here include the conductor Sir Adrian Boult in 1933.

[28] According to Lewes District Council, the local authority which designated Ditchling village centre as a conservation area, its "special architectural and historic interest" derives in part from its long history of Nonconformism and the three surviving places of worship—a Quaker meeting house and the Emmanuel Evangelical Fellowship Chapel as well as the Unitarian chapel.

[32] Historically, the standard building materials used for Nonconformist chapels in Sussex were brick and tiles for the walls and roof respectively.

[11] The entrance was originally on the north side and has a blocked doorway (bricked up in 1819) and two timber-framed windows with segmental arches.

[11] Fixtures include a 17th-century moulded oak Communion table, wooden pews with straight backs in the gallery, and an 18th-century clock which was originally in Southwick General Baptist Chapel in Wiltshire.