("Industry fills the ship") , image_skyline = Runcorn Bridge - geograph.org.uk - 1701094.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = The

Silver Jubilee Bridge The Silver Jubilee Bridge (originally the Runcorn–Widnes Bridge or informally the Runcorn Bridge) crosses the River Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal at Runcorn Gap between Runcorn and Widnes in Halton, England. It is a through arch bri ...

at dusk , image_flag = , flag_size = , image_seal = , seal_size = , image_shield = , shield_link = , shield_size = , image_blank_emblem = , blank_emblem_size = 200px , blank_emblem_type = Arms of Halton Borough Council , blank_emblem_link = , mapsize = 250px , map_caption = Halton shown within

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county tow ...

, image_map = Halton UK locator map.svg , image_dot_map = , dot_mapsize = , dot_map_caption = , dot_x = , dot_y = , pushpin_map = , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_map_caption = , pushpin_mapsize = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Constituent country , subdivision_name1 = , subdivision_type2 = Region , subdivision_name2 = North West England , subdivision_type3 =

City region City region is a term in use since about 1950 by urbanists, economists and urban planners to mean a metropolitan area and hinterland, often having a shared administration. Typically, it denotes a city, conurbation or urban zone with multiple ad ...

, subdivision_name3 = Liverpool , subdivision_type4 = Ceremonial county , subdivision_name4 = , seat_type = Town Hall , seat = Runcorn , seat1_type = Administrative HQ , seat1 = Widnes , government_footnotes = , government_type = Unitary authority , governing_body =

Halton Borough Council Halton Borough Council is the local authority for the Borough of Halton, incorporating the towns of Runcorn and Widnes and the parishes of Daresbury, Hale, Moore and Preston Brook. It is a constituent council of Liverpool City Region Combined Au ...

, leader_title = Leadership , leader_name = Leader and cabinet , leader_title1 = Executive , leader_name1 = , leader_title2 = Leader , leader_name2 = Mike Wharton , leader_title3 = Mayor , leader_name3 = Mark Dennett , leader_title4 = Chief Executive , leader_name4 = Stephen Young , established_title = Settled , established_date = 10th century , established_title2 = Incorporated , established_date2 = 1974 (borough) , established_title3 = , established_date3 = 1998 (Unitary authority) , total_type = Borough , unit_pref = Imperial , area_magnitude = , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = , area_rank = , area_land_km2 = , area_water_km2 = , area_total_sq_mi = , area_land_sq_mi = , area_water_sq_mi = , area_water_percent = , area_urban_km2 = , area_urban_sq_mi = , area_metro_km2 = , area_metro_sq_mi = , area_blank1_title = , area_blank1_km2 = , area_blank1_sq_mi = , population_as_of = , population_footnotes = , population_note = , population_total = , population_rank = , population_density_km2 = , population_density_sq_mi = , population_metro = , population_density_metro_km2 = , population_density_metro_sq_mi = , population_urban = , population_density_urban_km2 = , population_density_urban_sq_mi = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , population_density_blank1_title = , population_density_blank1_km2 = , population_density_blank1_sq_mi = , population_blank2_title = , population_blank2 = , population_density_blank2_km2 = , population_density_blank2_sq_mi = , timezone = Greenwich Mean Time , utc_offset = +0 , timezone_DST =

British Summer Time During British Summer Time (BST), civil time in the United Kingdom is advanced one hour forward of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), in effect changing the time zone from UTC±00:00 to UTC+01:00, so that mornings have one hour less daylight, and ev ...

, utc_offset_DST = +1 , coordinates = , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = , elevation_ft = , postal_code_type = Postcode area , postal_code = WA4, WA7, WA8, L24 , area_code_type = Dialling code , area_code = 0151 Widnes and Hale Village, 01928 Runcorn, 01925 Daresbury , iso_code = GB-HAL , blank_name_sec1 = GSS code , blank_info_sec1 = E06000006 , blank1_name_sec1 = NUTS 3 code , blank1_info_sec1 = UKD71 , blank2_name_sec1 = ONS code , blank2_info_sec1 = 00ET , blank3_name_sec1 =

Motorways A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

, blank3_info_sec1 = M56 , blank4_name_sec1 = Major railway stations , blank4_info_sec1 = Runcorn ( C1) , blank_name_sec2 = MPs , blank_info_sec2 =

Derek Twigg John Derek Twigg (born 9 July 1959) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Halton in Cheshire since the 1997 general election. Early life Twigg attended Bankfield High School (now Ormiston C ...

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Mike Amesbury Michael Lee Amesbury (born 7 May 1969) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Weaver Vale since 2017. A member of the Labour Party, he was Shadow Minister for Local Government until 2022. He previously served as Shadow ...

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Police area A police area is the area for which a territorial police force in the United Kingdom is responsible for policing. Every location in the United Kingdom has a designated territorial police force with statutory responsibility for providing pol ...

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Fire service A fire department (American English) or fire brigade (Commonwealth English), also known as a fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organization that provides fire prevention and fire suppression s ...

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Ambulance service Emergency medical services (EMS), also known as ambulance services or paramedic services, are emergency services that provide urgent pre-hospital treatment and stabilisation for serious illness and injuries and transport to definitive care. ...

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North West The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...

, website
www.halton.gov.uk
Runcorn bridges aerial

Halton (pronounced ) is a unitary authority district with

borough status Borough status is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district. In Scotland, ...

, North West England. It was created in 1974 as a district of the

non-metropolitan county A non-metropolitan county, or colloquially, shire county, is a county-level entity in England that is not a metropolitan county. The counties typically have populations of 300,000 to 1.8 million. The term ''shire county'' is, however, an unof ...

of Cheshire, and became a unitary authority area on 1 April 1998 under

. Since 2014 it has been a member of the

Liverpool City Region Combined Authority The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) is the combined authority of the Liverpool City Region. The Liverpool City Region includes the City of Liverpool local authority area plus the Metropolitan Boroughs of Knowsley, St Helens, ...

. The borough consists of the towns of Runcorn and Widnes and the

civil parishes In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. ...

Daresbury Daresbury is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Halton and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. At the 2001 census it had a population of 216, increasing to 246 by the 2011 census. History The name means "Deor's fo ...

, Hale,

Halebank Halebank is a settlement and civil parish in the Borough of Halton, Liverpool City Region, England. The area locally referred to as Halebank was officially created by the Halton (Parish Electoral Arrangements) Order 2008. The parish lies in the ...

Moore Moore may refer to: People * Moore (surname) ** List of people with surname Moore * Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador * Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior officer in the British Army * Moore Powell (died c. 1 ...

Preston Brook Preston Brook is a village and civil parish in the borough of Halton, a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Cheshire in North West England. It is located to the south-east of Runcorn and south-west of Warrington, adjacent to the ...

, and

Sandymoor Sandymoor is a civil parish in Runcorn, Halton, Cheshire, England, with a population of approximately 2,678. The majority of housing in Sandymoor was built post-1990 and the parish was formed in 2008 by the ''Halton (Parish Electoral Arrangement ...

. The district borders

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirra ...

, the

Borough of Warrington (God giveth the increase) , image_skyline =Warrington from the Air - geograph.org.uk - 3153500.jpg , imagesize = 280px , image_caption = Aerial view of Warrington , image_flag = ...

and

Cheshire West and Chester Cheshire West and Chester is a unitary authority with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It was established on 1 April 2009 as part of the 2009 local government changes, by virtue of an order under the Local Gover ...

History

Prior to 1974, the

River Mersey The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed part ...

marked the border between the counties of Lancashire to the north and

to the south. Widnes was administered by the

Municipal Borough of Widnes The Municipal Borough of Widnes was a municipal borough centred around the town of Widnes in Lancashire, England from 1892 until 1974. The district was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 when it merged with Runcorn Urban Distr ...

in Lancashire, and Runcorn by Runcorn Urban District Council in Cheshire. The 1969

Redcliffe-Maud Report The Redcliffe-Maud Report (Cmnd. 4040) was published in 1969 by the '' Royal Commission on Local Government in England'', under the chairmanship of Lord Redcliffe-Maud. Although the commission's proposals were broadly accepted by the Labour gov ...

recommended reforms to local government in England, including the abolition of all existing local government areas. They were to be replaced by mostly unitary authorities with the exception of three two-tier metropolitan areas to be called Merseyside, SELNEC and West Midlands. Runcorn and Widnes would form part of the new Merseyside Metropolitan Area under a district called 'St Helens-Widnes'. The proposals were broadly accepted by the then Labour government but set aside by the incoming Conservative government following the 1970 general election which it had fought on a manifesto pledge to introduce a system of two-tier local government. The Local Government Act 1972 created new metropolitan counties around Liverpool (as Merseyside) and Manchester (as Greater Manchester) but Runcorn and Widnes would not be allocated to either. Instead, Widnes and Warrington would be moved into the

of Cheshire, with Widnes joining Runcorn to create the new

non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties (colloquially ''shire counties'') in a two-tier arrangement. Non- ...

of Halton. The name of the new district was inspired by the ancient

Barony of Halton The Barony of Halton, in Cheshire, England, comprised a succession of 15 barons and hereditary Constables of Chester under the overlordship of the Earl of Chester. It was not an English feudal barony granted by the king but a separate class of ...

which had possessed land on both sides of the river. The district was established on 1 April 1974. In addition to Runcorn Urban District and the Municipal Borough of Widnes, parts of

Runcorn Rural District Runcorn was a rural district in Cheshire, England from 1894 until 1974. It was named after but did not include Runcorn, a town on the River Mersey to the north-west of the district, which formed its own urban district. The district was abolis ...

and the parish of Hale from

Whiston Rural District Whiston Rural District was a rural district of the administrative county of Lancashire, England. It was created in 1895 by renaming the Prescot Rural District when the parish of Prescot was removed from that rural district and created a separate ...

were incorporated into Halton. On 1 April 1998, Halton became a unitary authority, independent of

Cheshire County Council Cheshire County Council was the county council of Cheshire. Founded on 1 April 1889, it was officially dissolved on 31 March 2009, when it and its districts were superseded by two unitary authorities; Cheshire West and Chester and Cheshire East. ...

. However, it continues to be served by

Cheshire Police Cheshire Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing the English unitary authorities of Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Borough of Halton and Borough of Warrington. The force is responsible for policing an a ...

and

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service for the English county of Cheshire, consisting of the unitary authorities of Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Halton and Warrington. It operates 28 fire statio ...

, and forms part of Cheshire for

ceremonial A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''. Church and civil (secular ...

purposes. On 1 April 2014, Halton became part of the

, joining the local authorities of Liverpool, Sefton, Wirral, Knowsley and St Helens; the five metropolitan district councils which constitute the county of Merseyside. As a unitary authority, Halton's status is similar to the metropolitan district councils.

Demographics

Population growth

The population of Halton is (). The change in population during the 20th century is shown in the following table.

Religion

In the 2011 census, Christianity was the main religion in Halton at 75%, well above the national average for England of 59.4%. 18.7% stated that they had "no religion". Those stating their religions as Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Islam or Sikh amounted to 0.8%.

Ethnicity

In the 2011 census, 97.8% of Halton residents identified as White and 2% were Non-White. From the 2011 School Census, the main first language apart from English was Polish.

Governance

is a unitary authority responsible for most local government functions within the area. The Labour Party has controlled the council since it was created in 1974. On 1 April 2014, Halton became one of the six constituent local government districts of the

Liverpool City Region The Liverpool City Region is a combined authority region of England, centred on Liverpool, incorporating the local authority district boroughs of Halton, Knowsley, Sefton, St Helens, and Wirral. The region is in the historic counties of ...

under the

Combined Authority A combined authority is a type of local government institution introduced in England outside Greater London by the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009. Combined authorities are created voluntarily and allow a group ...

. Most of the borough is represented in the House of Commons by the member for Halton but Runcorn New Town is in the Weaver Vale constituency.

Economy

Halton is an industrial and logistics hub with a higher proportion of people working in manufacturing (particularly chemicals and advanced manufacturing), wholesale and retail, and transport and storage compared to the average for England. The wages of employees in Halton are slightly higher than the average for England and significantly higher than the average for the North West and the Liverpool City Region. Business survival rates are also significantly higher than both the regional and national averages. In 2018, the GVA per head of population in Halton was £26,988 compared to a regional average of £22,244 in North West England.

Twin boroughs

Halton is twinned with: * Marzahn-Hellersdorf,

Berlin, Germany Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

(since 25 May 1993) * Ústí nad Labem, Ústí nad Labem Region, Czech Republic (since 13 October 1993) *

Leiria Leiria (; cel-x-proto, ɸlāryo) is a city and municipality in the Central Region of Portugal. It is the 2nd largest city in that same region, with a municipality population of 128,640 (as of 2021) in an area of . It is the seat of its own dist ...

, Central Region, Portugal (since 1997) * Tongling,

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

, China (since 1997) Following an appeal in 1997, Halton residents donated 1,000 English books to

Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem ( cs, Univerzita Jana Evangelisty Purkyně v Ústí nad Labem, abbreviated as UJEP) is a public university in Ústí nad Labem in the Czech Republic. The institution was established on 28 ...

. In 1999, an historic Halton Transport bus was restored and gifted to the Czech Republic to mark the centenary of public transport in the city. Engineers from Halton have assisted with chemical decontamination in the city and also when the city flooded in 2002. The first crazy golf course in Berlin, created in Marzahn-Hellersdorf in 2005, contains several Halton landmarks and was constructed with the assistance of exchange students from the borough. Several roads are named after Halton's twin boroughs, including Leiria Way in Runcorn and Marzahn Way in Widnes. A Chinese friendship garden was created in the grounds of Runcorn Town Hall in 2006, including a bronze statue gifted by the twin city of Tongling.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halton (Borough) Liverpool City Region Unitary authority districts of England Districts of Cheshire Districts of England established in 1974 Boroughs in England