Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England.

The town is also the westernmost settlement of the 15th largest urban area in England and Wales, the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation, a region encompassing 474,485 people (2011 census).

[3] The South Downs National Park commences 3 miles (4.8 km) north of the town: Littlehampton links to Amberley and Arundel by footpaths and railway as well as by roads.

A human settlement at Littlehampton can be traced back to prehistoric and Roman times, while it appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as the hamlet of 'Hantone'.

Littlehampton began to develop as a port as a result of constant silting of the River Arun, perhaps leading to the prefix of 'Little' being added to 'Hampton', in order to distinguish it from the larger Southampton further along the coast.

[4] The expansion of port activities led to a new river mouth being cut in 1735, alongside the building of a wooden harbour.

[5] As the eighteenth century progressed, the town developed from a fishing community to a holiday destination, with Lord Byron, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Percy Bysshe Shelley and John Constable all believed to have spent time there.

[4] The town's status as both a port and a holiday resort led to economic success in the nineteenth century, with a railway line and a cross-channel ferry to Honfleur in France being introduced.

Littlehampton currently has 10 seats on the district council, spread across five wards – Beach, Brookfield, Ham, River and Wick with Toddington.

For younger children there are five primary schools — Lyminster, River Beach, St. Catherine's, White Meadows and Georgian Gardens.

Littlehampton is connected to the A27 south coast trunk road by the A284, which also provides the main north–south route out of the town and links to the A29 and A24.

The ferry operates from 31 March to 30 September between 10 am and 5 pm, although has been closed in recent years due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Littlehampton is also a commercial port, handling around 50–60 ships a year from Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and France with cargo including marine aggregates, stone, marble chippings and timber.

[35] It was designed based on initial ideas by children from Littlehampton's Connaught Junior school and was funded by Anita Roddick's husband Gordon and from a CABE grant from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

[35][37] The bench is a continuous structure stretching 324 metres along the majority of Littlehampton's east beach promenade and is constructed of tropical hardwood slats reclaimed from coastal groynes and landfill.

[38] The bench is described by Studio Weave as "a charm bracelet gifted to the town as a delicate piece of jewellery that can accommodate new and varied additions.

[39] Harbour Park is at the entrance of the River Arun with two restaurants, two arcades, a rollercoaster, log flume and other attractions.

The site includes a 9-hole pitch and putt course, a refurbished 9-hole adventure golf course renamed Buccaneer Bay, tennis and bowls, and a café.

[50] Littlehampton's police station is situated just outside the town centre with a CID building and the head major incidents unit in West Sussex adjoining.

[58] Littlehampton Rugby Club plays in the Sussex Intermediate League, National Level 10, after promotion at the end of the 2010–11 season.

The club is also involved in the local community, including the carnival, bonfire night, dragon boat racing and other charitable events.