England

English Geographic Structure

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England does not have its own devolved parliament and so is entirely subject to the administration of the UK Government in Westminster.

The subdivisions of England are shown in the diagram above.

Note however that the diagram shows the geographic structure rather than the administrative reporting structure.

In practice, neither metropolitan counties nor regions are truly part of the administrative hierarchy, and electoral wards/divisions are simply the 'building blocks' from which higher units are constituted.

Parishes, on the other hand, can have their own council but have been isolated from the geographic structure, as, unlike electoral wards/divisions, they are not found across the whole of England.

Government offices for the regions (GOR) were established across England in 1994.

Reflecting a number of government departments, their aim was to work in partnership with local people and organisations in order to maximise prosperity and the quality of life within their area.

In 1996 the GORs became the primary classification for the presentation of regional statistics.

There were originally ten GORs, but in 1998 Merseyside was merged with the rest of the North West.

GORs were built up of complete counties/unitary authorities, so although they were subject to change, they always reflected administrative boundaries as at the end of the previous year.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were not subdivided into GORs but are listed with them as regions in UK-wide statistical comparisons.

After the Comprehensive Spending Review, it was confirmed that the GORs would close on 31 March 2011, shifting focus away from regions to local areas.

However, there is still a requirement to maintain a region-level geography for statistical purposes.

The GSS Regional and Geography Committee (GSS RGC) agreed that from 1 April 2011, the former GORs should be simply referred to as 'regions'.

These areas retain the names, codes and boundaries of the former GORs.

The Former Standard Statistical Regions (SSR)

SSRs were the primary classification for English regional statistics prior to the adoption of GORs.

They are now rarely used, and are certainly no longer 'Standard'.

The eight SSRs were also based on whole administrative units, but did not have any administrative function.

Most SSRs had the same names and boundaries as the GORs, but there are the following differences:

• The North SSR consisted of the North East GOR together with Cumbria (which was part of the North West GOR).

• London did not exist as an SSR in its own right; instead it was part of the South East SSR.

• The East of England GOR did not exist as an SSR. Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough formed the East Anglia SSR; the rest of the GOR was part of the South East SSR.

• The Yorkshire and The Humber GOR covered the same area as the Yorkshire and Humberside SSR.

Regions, GORs and SSRs use the names and codes listed below.

Note that between 1996 and 1999 there were several changes to the GOR list.

Region boundaries for use in GIS, names and codes, lookup files and pdf maps are available in the Open Geography portal.

From 2011 the region names and codes listing has included the 9 character codes (operative from 1 January 2011).

For more information, please see the Code History Database (CHD) Region boundaries for use in GIS, names and codes, lookup files and pdf maps are available in the Open Geography portal

From 2011 the region names and codes listing has included the nine character GSS codes (operative 1 January 2011).

For more information, please see the Code History Database.

Greater London was established in 1965 as an administrative unit covering the London metropolis. It was not defined as a county but had a two-tier structure, with the lower tier being the London boroughs.

Following the abolition of the Greater London Council (GLC) in 1986 the London boroughs became single-tier authorities, but Greater London was still widely recognised, especially for statistical and mapping purposes. In 2000, however, a two-tier structure was re-established when the new Greater London Authority adopted responsibility for a range of citywide policy areas.

There are 32 London boroughs with a status similar to metropolitan districts, and also the City of London, which is a City Corporation and has a number of additional roles. London boroughs are subdivided into electoral wards.

You can find a full listing of London borough names and codes on the Open Geography portal. The names and codes are in the UK local authority districts downloadable file. Within this file the London boroughs have codes beginning with E09. For more information on the coding, please refer to the Code History Database (CHD).

The London borough nine-character GSS code begins with E09* and a full listing can be found in the LAD names and codes, lookup files and Code History Database. Boundaries for the London boroughs can be found in the local authority district (LAD) boundary files, for use in GIS. There is also a pdf map showing the London boroughs. These files are all available to download free of charge from the Open Geography portal.

In 1974 a two-tier administrative structure of (shire) counties and non-metropolitan districts was set up across England and Wales, except for the Isles of Scilly, Greater London and the 6 metropolitan counties.

Council functions were divided according to the level at which they could be practised most efficiently.

In consequence, counties took on functions including education, transport, strategic planning, fire services, consumer protection, refuse disposal, smallholdings, social services and libraries, whereas the local authority districts (LAD) had responsibility for local planning, housing, local highways, building, environmental health, refuse collection and cemeteries.

Responsibility for recreation and cultural matters was divided between the two tiers.

Following the Local Government Reorganisation in the 1990s, major changes were implemented to create administrations most appropriate to the needs of the area concerned.

The key feature of this change was the introduction of unitary authorities: single-tier administrations with responsibility for all areas of local government.

Between 1995 and 1998 these were established in a number of areas across the country, especially in medium-sized urban areas, whilst other areas retained a two-tier structure.

Further local government reorganisation occurred in 2009 and there are currently 57 unitary authorities in England, and 25 shire counties split into 188 (non-metropolitan) districts.

Note that due to the changes in Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly are considered a unitary authority for coding purposes.

Counties, LADs and unitary authorities are subdivided into electoral wards/divisions.

On 1 January 2011, the GSS Coding and Naming Policy was implemented. This policy led to the creation of a new coding system (the 9 character codes) for all geographies held by ONS. For further information, please refer to the Code History Database (CHD).

In 1974 a new two-tier system of counties and districts was established across England and Wales.

Six of the upper-tier units, all in England and representing heavily built-up areas (other than Greater London), were designated 'metropolitan counties' and were subdivided into 'metropolitan districts'.

As with non-metropolitan areas the respective authorities covered all areas of local government, but the distribution of responsibilities was different to that of the county/local authority district structure.

In 1986 the metropolitan county councils were abolished, although the county areas are still recognised, especially for statistical purposes.

The 36 metropolitan district councils were left as single-tier authorities, a status retained to date, and accordingly have more powers than their non-metropolitan local authority district (LAD) equivalents.

Metropolitan districts are subdivided into electoral wards.

On 1 January 2011, the GSS Coding and Naming Policy was implemented. This policy led to the creation of a new, 9 character, coding system for all geographies held by ONS. For further information, please refer to the Code History Database (CHD).

Introduction

Electoral wards/divisions are the key building blocks of UK administrative geography. They are the spatial units used to elect local government councillors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan districts, unitary authorities and the London boroughs in England; unitary authorities in Wales; council areas in Scotland; and district council areas in Northern Ireland.

Electoral wards are found in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and most of England.

In the Isle of Wight and several of the unitary authorities created as part of the Local Government Reorganisation in 2009, the equivalent areas are legally termed 'electoral divisions', although they are frequently referred to as wards.

Wales changed to using the term 'electoral wards' instead of 'electoral divisions' in August 2013.

The only part of the UK without electoral wards/divisions is the Isles of Scilly, which has its own council but no electoral zoning. For statistical purposes, however, ONS treats the islands' five parishes as electoral wards.

Electoral wards/divisions (and the Scilly parishes) cover the whole of the UK; in addition, all higher administrative units are built up of whole electoral wards/divisions.

They are also used to constitute a range of other geographies such as the Eurostat Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) geographies, health geographies and Westminster parliamentary constituencies.

English local authority districts (LAD) (both metropolitan and non-metropolitan), London boroughs and unitary authorities average around 23 electoral wards/divisions each, Northern Irish district council areas around 22, Scottish council areas around 11 and Welsh unitary authorities about 40.

Population counts can vary substantially, even within a single LAD, but the national average is about 5,500.

More populous electoral wards/divisions tend to occur in large urban areas.

Electoral ward/division boundary changes are usually enacted on the first Thursday in May each year, to coincide with the local government elections.

As of 31 December 2019, the UK has 8,887 electoral wards/divisions.

County Electoral Divisions

Apart from the special cases of the Isles of Scilly and the Greater London Authority (GLA), the English county councils are the only type of LAD in the UK which does not use standard electoral wards/divisions for electing councillors.

Instead they use their own larger units, which are confusingly also termed electoral divisions.

These county electoral divisions must be confined within LAD boundaries, but need not be based on whole electoral wards.

Like electoral wards/divisions, county electoral divisions are defined by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE).

We don't maintain lists of names and codes for county electoral divisions.

Statistical Wards, CAS Wards and ST Wards

Further information on statistical wards, Census Area Statistics (CAS) wards and Standard Table (ST) wards, is available here.

The smallest type of administrative area in England is the parish (aka 'civil parish'); the equivalent unit in Wales is the community. Scotland also has communities but their councils are generally a channel of opinion to other authorities rather than an administration in their own right. Northern Ireland does not have any similar units.

English Parishes

English parishes are a very old form of spatial unit which originally represented areas of both civil and ecclesiastical administration. They used to be significant local government areas but now have very limited functions. Modern parish councils (which may choose to call themselves a town council) can provide facilities such as village halls, war memorials, cemeteries, leisure facilities and playgrounds. They have duties such as maintenance of public footpaths and may also spend money on cultural projects, community transport initiatives and crime-prevention equipment. In addition they must be notified of all planning applications and consulted on the making of certain by-laws. However, not all parishes have a council – if there are fewer than 200 parishioners, or if the parishioners do not want one, decisions can instead be taken at parish meetings. The geography is further complicated by the fact that several smaller parishes may come together to elect a joint council. Parishes are confined within local authority district boundaries but are not contiguous with electoral wards. In some smaller urban areas, successor parishes have been created, but this is not universal. Consequently some areas of the country have parishes and others don't, making them an unsatisfactory unit for producing National Statistics.

Many parishes are a similar size to wards, but some can contain several wards, and ward boundaries need not be followed. As at 31 December 2019 there were 10,472 parishes in England.

English Non-civil Parish Areas

Non-civil parish areas (NCP) refer to the area in a local authority not comprised of parishes, i.e. unparished areas.

Welsh Communities

The Welsh equivalent of parishes are communities, which fit into and change with unitary authorities. Their councils have similar powers to English parish councils and may also choose to call themselves town councils. Unlike parishes in England, communities cover the whole of Wales, and this gives them greater potential as a statistical unit. There are 877 communities in Wales, over 730 of which currently have a council. Prior to 1974 Wales also had parishes, but these were technically abolished when communities were introduced, despite the new communities initially being aligned to the old parish boundaries.

Scottish Communities

All of Scotland has had communities delineated, which fit into and change with council areas. However, community councils (CC) are not statutory and only exist if volunteers are willing to run them. In consequence there are approximately 1,200 such councils, which can represent either single delineated communities or groups of them. There are also nearly 200 communities, mostly in the larger cities, which have no council.

The principal role of CCs is to act as a channel for the views of local communities. They have a legal right to be notified of and respond to planning applications and can be involved in a range of activities, mostly related to local infrastructure and community events (e.g. playgrounds, bus shelters, village halls, footpaths, flower beds, Christmas celebrations). Not all CCs participate, however, and those that do have to rely on voluntary work and fund-raising; many receive council area funding for running costs only. CCs can however obtain grants for specific schemes.

In fact, although some are supportive, many council areas tend to disregard their CCs and do not consider them to be a tier of government, even though they legally can have that role. It is only in Na h-Eileanan Siar (formerly known as "Eilean Siar" / 'Western Isles'), Orkney and especially in Shetland that CCs are viewed as an important tier in the administrative structure and have a correspondingly larger budget. Scotland's network of parishes was abolished for administrative purposes in 1973, when CCs were initiated. Unlike in Wales, these new CCs were not necessarily based on old parish areas. As indicated, CCs fit inside council area boundaries, whereas the old parish geography no longer corresponds with any modern administrative pattern.

We do not hold a list of Scottish communities.