Latest stats released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show the city has the highest concentration of over-60s, with more than 32 per cent.

Mayor David Siggs said the milestone was a cause for celebration.

"I think it is great the older population is growing and people are living a lot longer," he said.

"I think it is because Chichester is personal without being too overbearing. Everything people need is within easy walking distance.

"We are on flat level ground, have good communication links and a good climate, in the main."

The rise in pensionable residents has been reflected across West Sussex and the country as a whole, and accredited to a fall in the annual number of pensioner deaths largely due to medical advances which have improved survival rates.

Numbers of 60 to 64-year-olds in the county rose by 4,300 (9.3 per cent) between 2006 and 2007, the ONS said. This helped raise the population by around 5,500 to an estimated 776,300, largely due to migration.

Nationally for the first time pensionable age residents are outnumbering under-16s.

Councillor Siggs expressed concern that adequate infrastructure was in place for both older and younger generations.

"I think there are problems with the downgrading of St Richard's Hospital and the number of developments which are being built for the over 50s which could be pushing out the younger, first-time buyers," he said.

He added: "I think careful planning needs to be put in place (to ensure adequate infrastructure is in place for older people) but at the same time we need facilities for the younger population because they are the people that are going to be supporting the older people."

West Sussex County Council Leader Henry Smith called on the government to hand over more cash to enable the council to target resources where they were needed.

He said: "These figures are vital to us in terms of planning our services for the future. They help show where and when we will need to meet a particular demand.

"They also illustrate how, with increasing numbers requiring services, we should be better funded by central government rather than, as now, receiving the lowest possible amount from Whitehall."

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