Month: December 2021

Top 10 Refill Shops in Sussex

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Updated July 2023

One great change to make is to cut down on the amount of plastic we use on a daily basis. Increasing our usage of refill shops is a great place to start and there are a surprising number of fantastic refill shops right on our doorstep in Sussex.

Not only do a lot of these refill shops have an extensive selection of plastic-free products, but many of their products are also sourced locally and ethically, making them great supporters of the local community. Most shops accept any clean containers you have in which to fill with the items of your choice or they usually have paper bags should you forget! We have rounded up a list of our favourite refill shops across East and West Sussex so why not find one close to you and pop along to see what they offer!

Wonderfill (St Leonards on Sea)

Wonderfill is owned by Hannah Robbins, who opened the plastic-free shop in July 2019. The shop is located on King’s Road in St Leonards, just west of Hastings and sells a range of food, toiletries and cleaning products. You can also pick up a range of reusable or lower waste items such as refillable water bottles and eco-friendly soaps, candles and washing up brushes.

Address: Wonderfill Ltd, 35 King’s Road, St Leonards on Sea, East Sussex, TN37 6DX

Harriet’s of Hove

Harriet’s of Hove is a little gem on a small shopping street in Hove, selling an array of foods, including a good selection of organic and vegan food. They also sell household products, toiletries and have some great gift ideas. You can visit their store, click and collect, or they offer local delivery on all their items in-store and UK wide delivery on most items in store!

Address: Harriet’s of Hove, 48 Blatchington Road, Hove, East Sussex, BN3 3YH

Best Health Food (Uckfield, Shoreham, Worthing)

Best Health Food has three stores across Sussex, in Uckfield, Shoreham-by-Sea and in Worthing. All stores contain zero waste stations and sell an array of vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and organic products.

Address (Uckfield): Best Health Food Shop, 90 High Street, Uckfield, East Sussex, TN22 1PU

Address (Shoreham): Best Health Food Shop, 33 East Street, Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, BN43 5ZD

Address (Worthing): Best Health Food Shop, 27 Broadwater Street West, Worthing, West Sussex, BN14 9BT

Scrapless (Burgess Hill)

Scrapless, founded by Meg, is bursting full with over 250 refill items, sourced from local producers and growers where possible. Simply bring whatever containers you can find, from Tupperware and containers, to bottles and jars and fill these up with their plastic-free goodies.

Address: Scrapless, Trading Spaces, 25-29 Martlets Shopping Centre, Burgess Hill, RH15 9NN

Refilled (Chichester)

Refilled Chichester is located on North Street in the heart of Chichester city centre. They stock a range of dried goods, chocolate, teas and coffees and they also stock a good selection of Zest for Taste oils and vinegars. Pick up in-store or they also offer home deliveries.

Address: Refilled Chichester, 30 North Street, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 1LX

The Greenhouse (Pulborough)

The Greenhouse is located just north of Pulborough along Stane Street and sells a range of fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as refills for dried goods, cleaning products, household products and toiletries. Visit in store or you can order online and collect in store.

Address: The Greenhouse at Stane Street, Stane Street Nurseries, Stane Street, Codmore Hill, Pulborough, RH20 1BQ

Buy The Weigh (Ticehurst)

Buy The Weigh was founded by Susan and Rob, at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020. Located in the heart of Ticehurst village, Buy The Weigh sells a good selection of dried goods, oils and vinegars, fresh locally made bread and pastries, cleaning products, toiletries, and homeware items. Their stocked items aim to be a least one of the following: locally sourced, organic, gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan, ethically sourced, or biodegradable. Buy The Weigh also picked up the Best Zero-Waste Retail Enterprise – UK award in The Global Green Business Awards 2021 and the Muddy Stilettos Best Covid Start-Up Business 2021 award – not bad!

Address: Buy The Weigh, 28 High Street, Ticehurst, Wadhurst, East Sussex, TN5 7AS

Simply Weigh (Hailsham)

Located just off the High Street in Hailsham, Simply Weigh stocks an extensive range of refill products, many of which are also vegan or gluten-free. They also have a great range of Faith in Nature refill liquids, including shampoos, conditioners, and body washes. Pick up in-store or they also offer a click and collect service.

Address: Simply Weigh, 2b St Mary’s Walk, Hailsham, East Sussex, BN27 1AF

EcoSwap (Bognor Regis)

EcoSwap was founded by Gemma Hawkins with the shop opening in Bognor Regis just a few weeks before the first Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020. The shop is stocked full of local produce, refill items, pet supplies, gifts and homeware and garden items. Not sure if they’ll have what you need? Then check out their website where you can have a virtual tour of their shop!

Address: EcoSwap CIC, 1 Sussex Place, High Street, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO21 1EG

Veganuary: Vegan Restaurants in Sussex

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As we roll into 2022, one of the most popular New Year’s Resolutions is to eat more plant-based food or to tackle ‘Veganuary’, an annual challenge to encourage people to follow a vegan lifestyle for the month of January.

With vegan restaurants on the rise and the expansion of restaurant menus that incorporate more plant-based dishes, we have rounded up a list of some of the best vegan restaurants or restaurants serving a good selection of vegan dishes in Sussex!

Sage Vegan Café (Crawley)

Sage is a family run vegan café located in Crawley town centre. Breakfast is served until 1pm with menu choices including the ‘Full Vegan’ breakfast or their delicious banana bread with toffee sauce. There are also plenty of lunch options to choose from including burgers, pasta, salads, and sandwiches.

Address: Sage Vegan Café, 36 High Street, Crawley, RH10 1BW

Food for Friends (Brighton)

Food For Friends is an award-winning vegetarian and vegan restaurant that use fresh and responsibly sourced produce to create some delicious and beautifully presented dishes. They offer a delicious brunch menu served from 10am – 12pm on Saturdays & Sundays and a selection of vegan and vegetarian small and large plates served for lunch and dinner.

Address: Food For Friends, 17-18 Prince Albert Street, Brighton, BN1 1HF

Purezza (Brighton, Hove)

Purezza is located in St James’s Street in Brighton and Western Road in Hove and is the UK’s first vegan pizzeria, founded in 2015. They won the Best Vegan Restaurant 2021 award and they are National Pizza of the Year winners too! Their pizzas are made using sourdough which is made fresh on a daily basis and matured for 48 hours, and you can choose from a wholegrain, hemp or a gluten-free base. There are plenty of organic toppings to choose from to make the perfect vegan pizza!

Address: Purezza, 12 St James’s Street, Kemptown, Brighton, BN2 1RE

Address: 86-87 Western Road, Hove, BN3 1JB

NRG Cavern (Worthing)

NRG Cavern is a health café and coffee house located just over the road from Worthing Pier. Whilst not solely a vegan café, they do serve a great selection of vegan options including their vegan breakfast, avocado on toast, vegan salads and vegan sandwiches. They are also a dog-friendly café!

  Address: NRG Cavern, 6 Bath Place, Worthing, West Sussex, BN11 3BA

The Smorl’s Café (Brighton)

Located in Brighton’s Open Market is The Smorl’s Café which is dedicated to all things houmous.  Their entire menu is vegan and includes options such as falafel pittas, burgers, salad boxes and paninis all of which are finished off with a generous helping of their delicious houmous.

Address: The Smorl’s Cafe, Unit 33-34, Open Market, Marshall’s Row, Brighton, BN1 4JU

Trading Post Coffee Roasters (Lewes)

Located on Lewes High Street, the Trading Post Coffee Roasters, has a great selection of vegan options including their vegan chilli bowl, pulled-jack sandwich, vegan rarebit, tofu on toast, Asian noodle salad and rainbow falafel salad.

Address: Trading Post Coffee Roasters, 18 Cliffe High Street, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 2AH

5 Walks on the South Downs Way

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The South Downs Way National Trail offers stunning countryside views and there are many ways to enjoy the trail. If you are wanting shorter or circular walks along the route, without wanting to walk from one end to the other, then we’ve listed 5 walks you can do incorporate the Way.

1. Cheesefoot Head to Winchester (same route there and back)

Parking: Cheesefoot Head car park is in Hampshire – view the what3words location at ///foam.jabs.amending. 

Distance: 7.4 miles to Winchester and back

From the car park, cross the main road you turned in from and you can follow the South Downs Way signs into Winchester (very easy to follow). The South Downs Way from here is a nice gentle descent from Cheesefoot Head (can be muddy at times) and then you cross over the bridge over the M3. The path then brings you out on Petersfield Road in Winchester and from here you are almost at the city centre.

Once in the city centre, in Winter you can enjoy the Winchester Christmas Markets and Winchester Cathedral is a must-visit. There are many restaurants and pubs here to get food before you retrace your steps back to the car park.

This is a great little walk if you don’t want the hassle of parking in Winchester, and you can enjoy a well-deserved meal (or drink!) afterwards before walking back!

winchester south downs way sign

2. Ditchling Beacon

Parking: Jack and Jill Windmills, Mill Ln, Clayton, Hassocks BN6 9PG – view the what3words location at ///incursion.gravy.chain.

From the Jack and Jill Windmill car park take a left and follow the South Downs Way signs as the path gently ascends. You will eventually reach Ditchling Beacon and the dew pond on your right and can enjoy stunning views of Brighton and the Weald.

When you reach Ditchling Beacon car park, you can carry on along the ridge along the South Downs Way. When you have walked enough, retrace your steps back to the car park.

This is a great spot for a walk as you can enjoy Jack and Jill windmills at the start of the walk and then enjoy the far-reaching views the further on you go. There is usually a coffee van at the car park on weekends, but we always recommend bringing snacks and drinks with you!

ditchling beacon

3. Chanctonbury Ring Loop

Parking: Washington South Downs Way car park, nearing Washington Bostal – view the what3words location at ///corrects.blotchy.targeted. 

This circular 3-mile walk starts in Washington, West Sussex and takes you up to Chanctonbury Ring. The car park in Washington is free, there are full route directions on our Chanctonbury Ring walk page for you to follow. At the top, you can experience wonderful views and also walk around the ring of trees at the top which is an old Iron Age fort.

chanctonbury ring thumb

4. Bignor Hill

Parking: Whiteways, Bury Hill, Houghton, Arundel, BN18 9FD – what3words location at ///gems.nurse.falls.

This walk starts at Whiteways car park, just off the roundabout from London Road, Arundel. From the car park and the main road behind you, ascend through the forest. There are many footpaths to take through the forest – our Bignor Hill walk has a map with the actual route we took through the forest and a full route guide.

When you leave the forest, you end up walking along The Denture. A right here will take you to the Bignor Hill car park. From there, you walk up Bignor Hill with spectacular views and the path then loops around to bring you back to Whiteways car park.

The route takes approximately 5.5 miles to do and is lovely on a sunny day where you can enjoy a picnic at Bignor Hill.

5. Chantry Post/Kithurst Hill, Storrington

Parking: Chantry Post Car Park, Storrington, RH20 4AB – what3words location at ///fine.headless.unity.

This walk begins at the Chantry Post Car Park on the South Downs Way. It is a circular walk of about 3.5 miles and has a gentle decline anti-clockwise before heading upwards to Kithurst Hill.

This walk starts at the Chantry Post Car Park on the South Downs Way, just south of the village of Storrington. From here you head South, off the South Downs Way down to Lee Farm, before heading over to Kithurst Hill and back on a short stretch of the South Downs Way, returning to the car park.

For a full walk guide, see our Chantry Post walk guide.

For more ideas for walks, check out our walks in Sussex page, full of our favourite tried and tested walks! If you are walking the South Downs Way, we have a full guide!