 Westhampnett was listed in the Domesday Book (1086) in the ancient hundred of Boxgrove as having 16 cottager households, woodland, land for pigs and a mill, and a value to the lord of the manor of £3.Westhampnett Poor Law Union was established in 1835, encompassing many surrounding parishes.Westhampnett's own workhouse was in existence until a fire destroyed it in 1899.