West Sussex is genuinely elite competition country — Hickstead, home of British showjumping, sits here, and that has shaped a serious, well-resourced equestrian scene with excellent facilities and producers used to competing at a proper level. For a family aiming toward showjumping or eventing, ponies produced in this county often carry real, checkable competition history.
The South Downs run through the county too, giving good downland hacking around Chichester and the Goodwood estate alongside the competition yards, so it is not purely an arena-focused culture. Prices reflect the quality on offer — expect to pay a premium for anything with a genuine Hickstead-adjacent competition record, and ask for specifics on results and level rather than accepting vague claims of "competition experience." Further from the coast, toward the Surrey border, the county quietens down into more everyday family-pony territory at correspondingly gentler prices.