The Borough of Warrington is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The borough is centred around the town of Warrington, and extends out into outlying villages of Lymm and Great Sankey and the town of Birchwood.

Borough of Warrington
Aerial view of Warrington
Aerial view of Warrington
Motto(s): 
Latin: Deus Dat Incrementum, lit.'God giveth the increase'
Warrington shown within Cheshire
Warrington shown within Cheshire
Coordinates: 53°23′22″N 2°35′27″W / 53.3895°N 2.5909°W / 53.3895; -2.5909
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
CountryEngland
RegionNorth West
Ceremonial countyCheshire
Historic counties
Incorporated1 April 1974
Unitary authority1 April 1998
Named forWarrington
Administrative HQWarrington Town Hall
Government
 • TypeUnitary authority
 • BodyWarrington Borough Council
 • ExecutiveLeader and cabinet
 • ControlLabour
 • LeaderHans Mundry (L)
 • MayorWendy Johnson (LD)
 • MPs
Area
 • Total
70 sq mi (181 km2)
 • Rank151st
Population
 (2022)[3]
 • Total
211,580
 • Rank91st
 • Density3,030/sq mi (1,171/km2)
DemonymWarringtonian
Ethnicity (2021)
 • Ethnic groups
List
Religion (2021)
 • Religion
List
Time zoneUTC 0 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC 1 (BST)
Postcode areas
WA1–5, WA13
Dialling codes01925
ISO 3166 codeGB-WRT
GSS codeE06000007
Websitewarrington.gov.uk

The borough is geographically located to the north and northeast of the Cheshire West and Chester and Halton districts in Cheshire, the metropolitan borough of St Helens in Merseyside to the northwest and north and the metropolitan boroughs of Wigan and Trafford in Greater Manchester to the northeast, east, and southeast. Additionally, to the south-east, the borough borders Cheshire East. The borough is also located between the cities of Liverpool, Salford, Manchester, Chester and Preston. The district straddles the historic counties of Cheshire (the southern part of the district includes Lymm and Stockton Heath) and Lancashire (the northern part including Warrington itself and Latchford).

Civil parishes

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The borough contains the unparished area of Warrington and 18 civil parishes:[5]

History

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The borough was historically split between the historic counties of Cheshire and Lancashire.[7][8][9]

The whole part of the borough (north of the River Mersey) was within the historic boundaries of the county of Lancashire which includes the town of Warrington, and the areas of Latchford, Great Sankey, Culcheth, Glazebury, Burtonwood and Birchwood.

The whole part of the borough (south of the River Mersey) was within the historic boundaries of the county of Cheshire which includes the villages of Lymm, Stockton Heath, Appleton Thorn and Stretton.

In 1974, local government reforms saw many old counties and districts abolished and new counties and districts were created. Warrington along with the neighboring town of Widnes was moved into the county of Cheshire (which saw the entire area from the border with Speke/Widnes to Glazebury/Cadishead moved into the county of Cheshire). The current borough was formed from the County Borough of Warrington, the wards of Culcheth and Newchurch in Golborne Urban District, Warrington Rural District and part of the parish of Bold in Whiston Rural District, in Lancashire and Lymm Urban District and the parishes of Appleton, Grappenhall, Hatton, Stockton Heath, Stretton and Walton from Runcorn Rural District in Cheshire.[10] The M62 motorway forms a border with both Greater Manchester and Merseyside.[11]

The borough became a unitary authority in 1998 alongside Halton[12] making it separate from the-then Cheshire County Council before the 2009 restructuring of local government which saw the county council abolished and replaced by two new unitary authorities, Cheshire East and Cheshire West (and Chester). All four unitary authorities still form Cheshire for ceremonial purposes and share local services.[13][14]

References

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  1. ^ "Democracy, elections and civic". Warrington Borough Council. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  2. ^ "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  4. ^ a b UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Warrington Local Authority (E06000007)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  5. ^ "Warrington". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  6. ^ "Birchwood Town Council | Warrington | Cheshire". www.birchwoodtowncouncil.org.uk. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  7. ^ "Council rules out new signs to show town 'located' in Lancashire". Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  8. ^ "Old Maps of Warrington history". www.alangodfreymaps.co.uk. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  9. ^ "History of Warrington in Lancashire". A Vision of Britain Through Time. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  10. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  11. ^ "Genuki: Warrington Parish Boundaries, Lancashire". www.genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  12. ^ "The Cheshire (Boroughs of Halton and Warrington) (Structural Change) Order 1996". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  13. ^ Fire, Cheshire. "Unitary Performance Area Profiles". Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  14. ^ Norbury, David (13 October 2018). "Have Cheshire's Unitary Authorities worked?". CheshireLive. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
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