Borough of Halton
Template:Short description Template:Padlock Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox settlement The Borough of Halton (Template:IPAc-en) is a local authority district with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, North West England. It is administered by Halton Borough Council, a unitary authority since 1998.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The borough contains the towns of Runcorn and Widnes and the civil parishes of Daresbury, Hale, Halebank, Moore, Preston Brook, and Sandymoor.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Since 2014, it has been part of the Liverpool City Region and the council is a member of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.
The neighbouring districts (clockwise from west) are Liverpool, Knowsley and St Helens, which are fellow boroughs of the Liverpool City Region, and Warrington and Cheshire West and Chester in Cheshire.
History
The River Mersey marks the boundary of the historic counties of Lancashire (to the north) and Cheshire (to the south). Before 1974, Widnes was administered by the Municipal Borough of Widnes in Lancashire, and Runcorn by Runcorn Urban District Council in Cheshire.
The 1969 Redcliffe-Maud Report 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 (an acronym of South East Lancashire & North East Cheshire), and West Midlands. Runcorn and Widnes would form part of the new Merseyside Metropolitan Area under a district called 'St Helens-Widnes'.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
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.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 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 non-metropolitan county of Cheshire, with Widnes joining Runcorn to create the new non-metropolitan district of Halton. The name of the new district was inspired by the ancient Barony of Halton 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 and the parish of Hale from Whiston Rural District were incorporated into Halton.
On 1 April 1998, Halton became a unitary authority, independent of Cheshire County Council. However, it continues to be served by Cheshire Police and Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service, and forms part of Cheshire for ceremonial purposes. On 1 April 2014, Halton became part of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, 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.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>
Demographics
Population growth
The population of Halton is Template:English district population (Template:United Kingdom statistics year).<ref name=popstats /> Although the borough was only created in 1974, the change in population since 1801 has been calculated by adapting historical census data to modern boundaries.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
| Year | Population | Change as % |
|---|---|---|
| 1801 | 6,460 | — |
| 1811 | 7,491 | +16.0% |
| 1821 | 8,962 | +19.6% |
| 1831 | 10,918 | +21.8% |
| 1841 | 13,364 | +22.4% |
| 1851 | 16,296 | +21.9% |
| 1861 | 17,678 | +8.5% |
| 1871 | — | — |
| 1881 | 46,181 | — |
| 1891 | 58,042 | +25.7% |
| 1901 | — | — |
| 1911 | 56,656 | — |
| 1921 | 61,977 | +9.4% |
| 1931 | 64,979 | +4.8% |
| 1941 | — | — |
| 1951 | 80,072 | — |
| 1961 | 82,119 | +2.6% |
| 1971 | 99,749 | +21.5% |
| 1981 | 129,187 | +29.5% |
| 1991 | 128,525 | −0.5% |
| 2001 | 118,242 | −8.0% |
| 2011 | 125,746 | +6.3% |
| 2021 | 128,478 | +2.2% |
Religion
In the 2021 census, Christianity was the main religion in Halton at 58.6%, above the national average for England of 46.3% but down from 75% in 2011. 35.2% stated that they had 'no religion'. Those stating their religion as Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh or other amounted to 1.6%.<ref name="2021 Nomis"/>
Ethnicity
In the 2021 census, 96.5% of Halton residents identified as White and 3.5% as non-White or mixed. 95.2% were born in the United Kingdom.<ref name="2021 Nomis"/>
Governance
Halton Borough Council 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.<ref name=change>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 1 April 2014, Halton became one of the six constituent local government districts of the Liverpool City Region governed by the Combined Authority.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Since the 2024 general election, the borough has been split into the two constituencies of Widnes and Halewood and Runcorn and Helsby; the former has been held by Derek Twigg of the Labour Party since the election,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> whilst the latter was held by Mike Amesbury of the Labour Party from the election until his suspension for assaulting a man,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> triggering a 2025 by-election which Sarah Pochin of Reform UK won by six votes in the closest by-election result in British history.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Economy
In 2021, the borough's total GVA was £4.0 billion with a total GDP of £4.5 billion.<ref name="ONS GDP">Template:Cite web</ref> GVA per capita in Halton was £31,390 and GDP per capita was £34,985, the highest in the Liverpool City Region.<ref name="ONS GDP"/>
In 2022, there were 67,000 jobs in Halton, including the self-employed.<ref name="Labour Market Profile">Template:Cite web</ref> The borough is an industrial, scientific and logistics hub with a higher proportion of jobs in these industries, and proportionally fewer jobs in hospitality and education compared to Great Britain.<ref name="Labour Market Profile"/> Proportionally more jobs were full-time roles.<ref name="Labour Market Profile"/>
In the period October 2022 to September 2023, the employment rate in Halton was 76.6%, higher than the average rate for Great Britain of 75.8%. Unemployment was 2.9% compared to 3.7% for Great Britain.<ref name="Labour Market Profile"/>
However, people in Halton are qualified to a lower level than the average for the North West or Great Britain.<ref name="Labour Market Profile"/> In 2023, the gross median weekly wage for full time workers living in Halton was £664. Although higher than the regional median of £649, it is lower than the £682.60 for Great Britain.<ref name="Labour Market Profile"/>
Media
Local television content is provided by BBC North West and ITV Granada
Local radio stations include:Template:Citation needed
- BBC Radio Merseyside
- Heart North West
- Smooth North West
- Capital North West & Wales
- Greatest Hits Radio Liverpool & The North West (formerly Wire FM)
- Hits Radio Liverpool
- Dee Radio
- Halton Community Radio, a community based station,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> inactive since 2025<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Local newspapers are The Runcorn & Widnes Weekly News,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Runcorn and Widnes World.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Twin boroughs
Halton is twinned with:
- Marzahn-Hellersdorf, Berlin, Germany (since 25 May 1993)
- Ústí nad Labem, Ústí nad Labem Region, Czech Republic (since 13 October 1993)
- Leiria, Central Region, Portugal (since 1997)
- Tongling, Anhui, China (since 1997)
Following an appeal in 1997, Halton residents donated 1,000 English books to Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> 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.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Engineers from Halton have assisted with chemical decontamination in the city and also when the city flooded in 2002.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
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.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Several roads are named after Halton's twin boroughs, including Leiria Way in Runcorn and Marzahn Way in Widnes.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> 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.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
See also
- List of schools in Halton
- Listed buildings in Daresbury, Cheshire
- Listed buildings in Hale, Halton
- Listed buildings in Moore, Cheshire
- Listed buildings in Preston Brook, Cheshire
- Listed buildings in Runcorn, Cheshire
- Listed buildings in Widnes, Cheshire
References
Template:Cheshire, Borough of Halton Template:Cheshire Template:Navbox Template:Unitary authorities of England Template:Authority control