Subdivisions of England

Categories: Geography of England | Subdivisions of the United Kingdom

For local government purposes England is divided into as many as four levels of subnational entities. Various legislation has created alternative types of subnational entities at some levels.

Region level

Main article: Regions of England

At the top level England is divided into nine regions each containing one or more county level entities. The regions were created in 1994 and from 1996 have been used as England's European Parliament constituencies. All have the same status however London is the only region with any substantial devolved power.

County level

England is divided into four types of county level subnational entities.

Metropolitan county

Main article: Metropolitan county

There are six metropolitan counties, divided into metropolitan districts, which cover large urban areas outside London. They were created in 1974. In 1986 their county councils were abolished.

Shire county

Main article: Shire county

The shire counties were also created in 1974 and were originally known as non-metropolitan counties. They are divided into non-metropolitan districts and cover much of the country.

Unitary authority

Main article: Unitary authority

Unitary authorities were created in the 1990s and are single-tier authorities which combine the functions of county and district councils. They are defined either as counties consisting of a single district or districts of a county such as Berkshire that has no county council. The Isle of Wight is the exception, being a county council with no districts.

Greater London

Main article: Greater London

Greater London was created in 1965 and is sometimes considered as a metropolitan county but it is not defined as such. It is divided into London Boroughs.

District level

Districts in England may also have the status of borough, city or royal borough.

Metropolitan district

Main article: Metropolitan district

The metropolitan counties were divided into metropolitan districts which are usually called boroughs. When the county councils were abolished the metropolitan districts gained much of their powers and have a similar status to the unitary authorities.

Non-metropolitan district

Main article: Non-metropolitan district

Shire counties are divided into non-metropolitan districts. Power is shared with the county council but shared differently to the metropolitan counties when first created.

London Borough

Main article: London Borough

In Greater London the 32 London borough councils have a similar status to the unitary authorities, although the Greater London Authority exists to coordinate their activities.

Parish level

Main article: Civil parish

The civil parish is the lowest unit of local government in England. Under the legislation that created Greater London, they are not permitted within its boundary.

Changes proposed in 2004

Main article: Northern England referendums, 2004

A referendum was held on November 4, 2004 in North East England, about whether an elected regional assembly should be introduced. As part of the referendum, voters were to be asked to choose which system of unitary authorities they would like to see in the existing county council areas if the regional assembly was approved. In the event, the vote in the North East was a decisive "No", making the proposed local government changes moot.

Similar referendums in North West England and Yorkshire and the Humber have been postponed indefinitely: on 8 November 2004 the Deputy Prime Minister announced "I will not therefore be bringing forward orders for referendums in either the North West, or Yorkshire and the Humber". *Statement by Deputy Prime Minister

Most of the proposed changes would have required no change in the county level entites, as they could have been be implemented by merging districts and abolition of the county council. Where borders were crossed, however, changes would have been needed. This impacted Lancashire, where various parts were proposed for combination with Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen (both unitaries), Sefton (in Merseyside), Wigan (in Greater Manchester), and southern Cumbria; it also affects one proposal for North Yorkshire, which would have merged the district of Selby with the East Riding of Yorkshire. Few of the boundary changes would have involved creating new borders - only the proposals to combine Blackpool with parts of Wyre, and to split West Lancashire between Wigan and Sefton would do this.

References

• CIA World Fact Book 2002 (Note however data used in the CIA's article on Great Britain is older than the publication date, updated information is recorded here)

See also

• List of subdivisions of England
• List of articles about local government in the United Kingdom