72-650: The A6121 is a short cross-country road in the counties of Lincolnshire and Rutland , England. It forms the principal route between Bourne and Stamford and the A1 in Lincolnshire, continuing on through Ketton in Rutland to its junction with the A47 at Morcott . Its south-western end is at 52°35.5860′N 0°38.0820′W / 52.5931000°N 0.6347000°W / 52.5931000; -0.6347000 and its north-eastern end
144-423: A metropolitan county or a non-metropolitan county . From 1995 onwards numerous unitary authorities have been established in the non-metropolitan counties, usually by creating a non-metropolitan county containing a single district and having one council perform both county and district functions. Since 1996 there have been two legal definitions of county: the counties as defined in local government legislation, and
216-414: A county basis. For the purpose of sorting and delivering mail, England was divided into postal counties until 1996; they were then abandoned by Royal Mail in favour of postcodes . Most of the historic English counties were established between the 7th and 11th centuries. Counties were initially used for the administration of justice and organisation of the militia, all overseen by a sheriff. The sheriff
288-460: A county council which also performs the functions of a district, or a district council which also performs the functions of a county. The effect is the same, with only marginal differences in terminology; district councils are elected by wards, county councils by electoral divisions . The local government counties are listed below, with the numbers corresponding to the adjoining map. There have been no county councils since 1986; these are governed by
360-509: A county in terms of local government legislation, Greater London is deemed to comprise two counties for the purposes of lieutenancy: the City of London (covering the 'square mile' at the centre of the conurbation) and a Greater London lieutenancy county covering the rest of the area, being the 32 London boroughs. The Council of the Isles of Scilly was formed in 1890 as a sui generis district council. It
432-470: A crossroads for Edith Weston (to the west), and Geeston and Aldgate (to the south). On the eastern exit of the village is the large Ketton Cement Works , to the north. A railway branch line for the factory passes under the road, and further east is a junction with Steadfold Lane , for Great Casterton , to the north. In Tinwell it passes All Saints church, to the south, and the Crown Inn . West of Tinwell,
504-551: A school existed from the beginning of the fourteenth century. Founded as a chantry school, it fell foul of the Protestant reformers and was only saved from destruction under the Chantries Act of Edward VI by the personal intervention of Sir William Cecil (later Lord Burghley) who worked in the service of Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset and who secured a specific Act of Parliament in 1548 ensuring its survival. Apart from
576-403: A school room until the early twentieth century when it was restored and extended and, in 1930, returned to use as a chapel. In 1961, a nineteenth-century Gray and Davison pipe organ was installed although this was removed in the 1990s and replaced with an electronic substitute. Over its history the school has built or absorbed seventeenth-, eighteenth- and nineteenth-century buildings, besides
648-467: A sheriff or lieutenant; the same person was usually appointed to be lieutenant of both Cumberland and Westmorland until 1876, whilst Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire shared a sheriff until 1965. The counties' role as constituencies effectively ceased following the Reform Act 1832 and the associated Parliamentary Boundaries Act 1832 . Most counties were divided into smaller constituencies, with
720-584: A type of subdivision of England . Counties have been used as administrative areas in England since Anglo-Saxon times. There are three definitions of county in England: the 48 ceremonial counties used for the purposes of lieutenancy ; the 84 metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties for local government ; and the 39 historic counties which were used for administration until 1974 . The historic counties of England were mostly formed as shires or divisions of
792-439: A union centred on a nearby town, whether or not that town was in the same county. The unions were administered by elected boards of guardians , and formed the basis for the registration districts created in 1837. Each union as a whole was assigned to a registration county , which therefore differed in places from the legal counties. The registration counties were used for census reporting from 1851 to 1911. The unions also formed
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#1732923510801864-526: A unitary authority performing both county and district functions, and one ( Berkshire ) is governed by six unitary authorities whilst remaining legally one county. For the purposes of lieutenancy England (including Greater London and the Isles of Scilly) is divided into 48 counties, which are defined as groups of one or more local government counties. Counties are also frequently used for non-administrative purposes, including culture, tourism and sport, with many organisations, clubs and leagues being organised on
936-489: Is a sharp bend to the left. Further north of Toft is a left turn for Lound. At Toft Lodge, it crosses over a tunnel of the former Melton Mowbray – Bourne railway ( Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway ). This is now Toft Tunnel Nature Reserve. North of here it enters Bourne, and further north is the junction with the A151, the terminus of the road, east of Auster Wood. Counties of England The counties of England are
1008-502: Is at 52°45.9120′N 0°24.0660′W / 52.7652000°N 0.4011000°W / 52.7652000; -0.4011000 . The road has increased in importance with the rapid expansion of housing in this part of South Kesteven . The road is deemed to start from its junction with the A47 to the west of the A1, therefore it is allocated to Zone 6 and numbered accordingly. It was the only A road in
1080-511: Is now used as the Sixth Form campus, named 'St Martin's'. Since 1885 The Stamfordian has been the school magazine of Stamford School. Currently published annually in the Autumn term, it provides for current pupils and parents as well as Old Stamfordians and prospective parents an account of a year in the life of the school. The school's crest is a stork (the spede bird ) with wings displayed on
1152-541: The Local Government Act 1972 which reorganised local government from 1 April 1974 into a two-tier structure of counties and districts across the whole of England apart from the Isles of Scilly and Greater London (which retained its two-tier structure of the Greater London Council and London boroughs which had been introduced in 1965). The administrative counties and county boroughs were all abolished, and
1224-574: The Metropolitan Board of Works since 1856, which covered the City of London and parts of Middlesex , Surrey and Kent . In those counties where the quarter sessions had been held separately for different parts of the county, separate county councils were created for each part. The area controlled by a county council was termed an administrative county . The 1888 Act also adjusted the county boundaries for all other purposes, including judicial functions, sheriffs and lieutenants, to match groups of
1296-457: The 13th century onwards, the counties formed part of the system for electing members of parliament . Certain towns and cities were parliamentary boroughs sending their own representatives, and the remainder of each county served as a county constituency , with the MPs for such constituencies being known as knights of the shire . From Tudor times onwards a lord-lieutenant was appointed to oversee
1368-656: The A6121 and B672 also follow the Rugby branch of the Syston and Peterborough Railway , which opened in 1851. The road passes through South Luffenham as Stamford Road , with a crossroads for the village and Barrowden (to the south), and the Coach House Inn . To the east of the village is the Wireless Hill roundabout for North Luffenham (to the west) and the A47 (to the south). From here
1440-645: The B1176 to the north. It leaves Ryhall as Essendine Road , and crosses a 400 kV pylon line. It enters Essendine as Stamford Road , where it crosses the East Coast Main Line . As Bourne Road , it crosses the West Glen River . It enters Lincolnshire and South Kesteven south of the Greatford junction. Nearby to the east is the former Stamford to Bourne railway, which the road follows from Stamford. It passes on
1512-629: The River Chater joins the River Welland , a few hundred metres to the south. Entering Tinwell, it meets Casterton Lane to the north (for the A1/ A606 junction). On the eastern side of the A1 cloverleaf junction it enters Stamford, South Kesteven, and Lincolnshire as Tinwell Road . This entry into Stamford has the best view of the Welland Valley. It crosses the former Roman road Ermine Street at
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#17329235108011584-843: The Stamford area that was not a trunk road before the A16 was de-trunked in 2010 to become the A1175 . It begins in Morcott at the staggered crossroads with the east-west A47 and the B672 (its continuation to Caldecott ), becoming Stamford Road near the White Horse Inn . It is crossed here by the Rutland Round and from here to Tinwell, west of Stamford, it follows the River Chater . From South Luffenham to Caldecott,
1656-787: The adjoining new town . Four of the non-metropolitan counties established in 1974 were given names that had not previously been used for counties: Avon , Cleveland , Cumbria , and Humberside . Another was a merger of two former counties and combined both their names: Hereford and Worcester . The pre-1974 counties of Cumberland, Rutland, Westmorland, and Huntingdon and Peterborough were considered too small to function efficiently as separate counties, and did not have their names taken forward by new counties. Cumberland and Westmorland were both incorporated into Cumbria (alongside parts of Lancashire and Yorkshire). Huntingdon and Peterborough became lower-tier districts within Cambridgeshire, and Rutland
1728-445: The administrative counties and county boroughs. As such, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Suffolk and Sussex retained a single sheriff and lieutenant each, despite being split between multiple administrative counties. Yorkshire kept a single sheriff, whilst each of its ridings retained a separate lieutenant and formed their own administrative counties. In 1890 the Isle of Wight
1800-472: The administrative functions of the magistrates. The functions and territories of the counties have evolved since then, with significant amendments on several occasions, notably in 1889, 1965 and 1974. Following the 1974 reforms, England (outside Greater London and the Isles of Scilly ) had a two-tier structure of upper-tier county councils and lower-tier district councils, with each county being designated as either
1872-407: The administrative functions of the quarter sessions. Some towns and cities were considered large enough to run their own county-level services and so were made county boroughs , independent from the new county councils. Urban sanitary districts which straddled county boundaries were placed entirely in one county. A new County of London was created covering the area which had been administered by
1944-547: The basis for the sanitary districts created in 1872, which took on various local government functions. The county of Westmorland was formed in 1227. From then until 1889 there were generally agreed to be 39 counties in England, although there were some liberties such as the Liberty of Ripon which were independent from their host counties for judicial purposes. The Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 formally absorbed Wales into
2016-592: The basis that Stamford had no LEA grammar school (unlike the county's other towns). This local form of the Assisted Places Scheme provided funding to send children to the two schools that were formerly direct-grant grammars . The national Assisted Places Scheme was ended by the Labour government in 1997 but the Stamford arrangements remained in place as an increasingly protracted transitional arrangement. In 2006, Lincolnshire County Council agreed to taper down from 50
2088-414: The boundaries between Gloucestershire, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire were adjusted to transfer 26 parishes between the three counties, largely to eliminate the remaining exclaves not addressed in 1844. The functions of county councils gradually grew. Notable expansions in their responsibilities included taking over education from the abolished school boards in 1902, and taking over the assistance of
2160-627: The boundaries were. Boundaries were recorded by the Ordnance Survey gradually in a process which started in 1841 and was not fully completed until 1888. Many counties had detached exclaves , away from the main body of the county. Most exclaves were eliminated by boundary adjustments under the Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844 . The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 created poor law unions , which were defined as groups of parishes and frequently crossed county boundaries. Parishes were typically assigned to
2232-572: The chantries of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, only those of Eton College , Winchester College , Berkhamsted , St Albans and Stamford schools survived. Teaching is believed to have begun in the Corpus Christi chapel of Stamford's twelfth-century St Mary's Church , but by 1566 was taking place in the remaining portion of the redundant St Paul's Church , originally built no later than 1152. This building continued in use as
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2304-427: The counties as had been adjusted for all other purposes. This lasted until the constituencies were next reviewed in 1918 , when they were realigned to nest within the newer versions of the counties. The 1888 Act used the term 'entire county' to refer to the wider version of the county, including any associated county boroughs or parts which had been made administrative counties. The informal term 'geographical county'
2376-456: The counties for the purposes of lieutenancy (the latter being informally known as ceremonial counties). The local government counties today cover England except for Greater London and the Isles of Scilly. There are six metropolitan counties and 78 non-metropolitan counties. Of the non-metropolitan counties, 21 are governed in a two-tier arrangement with an upper-tier county council and a number of lower-tier district councils , 56 are governed by
2448-499: The earlier kingdoms , which gradually united by the 10th century to become England. The counties were initially used primarily for the administration of justice, overseen by a sheriff . They subsequently gained other roles, notably serving as constituencies and as areas for organising the militia , which was the responsibility of the lord-lieutenant . The county magistrates also gradually took on some administrative functions. Elected county councils were created in 1889, taking over
2520-575: The eastern edge of Carlby , and from near Carlby Hawes wood, is the parish boundary between Witham on the Hill and Toft with Lound and Manthorpe (to the east). There is a crossroads for Witham on the Hill (to the west), and Manthorpe (to the east). South of Toft it crosses the East Glen River. It passes the Toft Country House Hotel, and there is a left turn for Lound (to the north). There
2592-507: The existing counties and districts and having most local government functions exercised by all-purpose unitary authorities. Following the change in government at the 1970 general election , the incoming Conservative administration of Edward Heath abandoned the Redcliffe-Maud proposals, having campaigned against them as part of their election manifesto. Instead, the Heath government produced
2664-480: The former Stamford High School and the coeducational Stamford Junior School, it is part of the Stamford Endowed Schools (SES). From September 2023, Stamford became co-educational. The school was founded in 1532 by a local merchant and alderman , William Radcliffe, who had been encouraged when younger by Lady Margaret Beaufort , (died 1509) mother of Henry VII , though there is evidence to suggest that
2736-558: The foundation of the High School and the further financial endowment of the existing boys' school were appropriated from the endowment of Browne's Hospital by Act of Parliament in 1871. This trust had been established for the relief of poverty by William Browne (died 1489), another wealthy wool merchant and alderman of the town, and his gift is commemorated in the name of a school house. From 1975, Lincolnshire County Council purchased places at Stamford School and Stamford High School on
2808-411: The functions of the abolished councils, with some functions (such as emergency services, civil defence and public transport) being delivered through joint committees. Further reform in the 1990s allowed the creation of non-metropolitan counties containing a single district, where one council performed both county and district functions. These became informally known as unitary authorities . The first
2880-619: The group of constituencies within each county being termed the 'parliamentary county'. County boundaries were sometimes adjusted, for example by some of the Inclosure Acts of the 18th and 19th centuries. County and other boundaries were not centrally recorded with any accuracy before the 19th century, but were instead known by local knowledge and custom. When the Ordnance Survey started producing large scale maps, they had to undertake extensive research with locals to establish where exactly
2952-447: The junction of Roman Bank to the north and Waterfurlong to the south. It leaves the main road ( Rutland Terrace ), following West Street , to the left near a Waitrose . It meets Scotgate (A606 and B1081) at busy traffic lights crossroads, which is the former Great North Road. It passes to the north of Stamford town centre, along North Street and East Street , which passes the police station and Stamford School . It briefly follows
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3024-939: The kingdom of England and completed its division into 13 counties on the English model. Contemporary lists after that sometimes included Monmouthshire as a 40th English county, on account of its assizes being included in the Oxford circuit rather than one of the Welsh circuits . The 39 historic counties were: By the late 19th century, there was increasing pressure to reform the structure of English counties; borough councils and boards of guardians were elected, but there were no elections for county-level authorities. Some urban areas had also grown across county boundaries, creating problems in how they were administered. The Local Government Act 1888 sought to address these issues. It established elected county councils, which came into being in 1889 and took over
3096-521: The loss of judicial functions in 1972, the counties' roles were the administrative functions of local government, plus the limited ceremonial roles of the sheriffs and lieutenants. As part of the reforms under the Local Government Act 1972 the post of sheriff was renamed ' high sheriff ', and both they and the lieutenants were appointed to the new counties created in 1974. Whilst the administrative counties and county boroughs were abolished in 1974,
3168-470: The lower tier of district councils was reorganised. The Heath government also reformed the judicial functions which had been organised by geographical counties; the Courts Act 1971 abolished the quarter sessions and assizes with effect from 1972. The sheriffs and lieutenants continued to exist, but both roles had lost powers to become largely ceremonial by the time of the 1970s reforms. As such, following
3240-440: The metropolitan borough councils with some joint committees. Most now form part or all of a combined authority . Upper-tier county council and multiple lower-tier district councils: County council serving as unitary authority: District council serving as unitary authority: No county council but multiple districts serving as unitary authorities: Greater London and the Isles of Scilly do not form part of any county for
3312-545: The militia, taking some of the functions previously held by the sheriff. Some larger towns and cities were made self-governing counties corporate , starting with London in c. 1132 , with the right to hold their own courts and appoint their own sheriffs. The counties corporate continued to be deemed part of the wider county for the purposes of lieutenancy, with the exception of London which had its own lieutenants. The Ridings of Yorkshire had their own lieutenants from 1660 onwards. Sometimes smaller counties shared either
3384-421: The names of historic counties and were defined by reference to the administrative and geographical counties which preceded them, retaining the same or similar boundaries where practicable. Whilst the Heath government had rejected the more radical Radcliffe-Maud proposals, they did still make adjustments to boundaries where they concluded they were necessary to better align with functional economic areas. For example,
3456-642: The non-metropolitan counties. Since the most recent changes in 2023, England outside Greater London and the Isles of Scilly has been divided into 84 metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties for local government purposes. The 48 ceremonial counties used for the purposes of lieutenancy have been unchanged since 1998. Since the latest changes in 2023 there have been 84 counties for local government purposes, which are categorised as metropolitan or non-metropolitan counties. The non-metropolitan counties may governed by one or two tiers of councils. Those which are governed by one tier (unitary authorities) may either be governed by
3528-471: The north-western part of Berkshire was transferred to Oxfordshire on account of being separated from the rest of Berkshire by the Berkshire Downs hills and having better connections to the city of Oxford than to Berkshire's largest town and administrative centre of Reading . Similarly, Gatwick Airport was transferred from Surrey to West Sussex so that it could be in the same county as Crawley ,
3600-456: The number of county scholarships to the Stamford Endowed Schools so that there would be no new scholarships from 2012. In recent years, the two schools were united under the leadership of a single principal as the Stamford Endowed Schools. This organisation comprised Stamford Junior School, a co-educational establishment for pupils aged between 2 and 11 years and Stamford School and Stamford High School for students aged 11–18. Sixth form teaching
3672-455: The part of Stamford known as Northfields. At Borderville, it re-enters Rutland . There is a staggered junction for Little Casterton (to the west), and Belmesthorpe (to the east). It passes Ryhall (to the east), and crosses the River Gwash , which the road follows from Stamford. There is a cross roads where the road bends to the right, with junctions for Great Casterton (to the west) and
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#17329235108013744-482: The poor from the abolished boards of guardians in 1930. A Local Government Boundary Commission was set up in 1945 which reviewed the structure of local government and recommended a significant overhaul, including extensive changes to counties and county boroughs. The commission was wound up in 1949 when the government decided not to pursue these proposals. A Royal Commission on Local Government in Greater London
3816-512: The post's disproportionately large salary, was shared between the Mayor of Stamford and the Master of St John's College, Cambridge . Both Stamford Town Council and St John's College still have nominees on the school's governing body. Stamford School had a sister school, Stamford High School which was founded in 1877. It closed in 2023 as part of the co-educational merger with Stamford School. The funds for
3888-575: The practice arose of holding the quarter sessions separately for subdivisions of the county, including the Ridings of Yorkshire , the Parts of Lincolnshire and the Eastern and Western divisions of Sussex . The quarter sessions were also gradually given various civil functions, such as providing asylums, maintaining main roads and bridges, and the regulation of alehouses. When parliaments began to be called from
3960-425: The pre-1974 powers in such cases. Whilst these unitary authorities are legally all non-metropolitan counties, they are rarely referred to as counties other than in the context of local government law. The pre-1974 counties of Rutland, Herefordshire and Worcestershire also regained their independence. Rutland was made a unitary authority in 1997, and in 1998 Herefordshire was made a unitary authority and Worcestershire
4032-668: The purposes of local government legislation. Greater London was created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963 as a sui generis administrative area, with the Greater London Council functioning as an upper-tier authority. It consists of the City of London plus 32 London boroughs . It was left unaltered by the 1972 Act. The Greater London Council was abolished along with the metropolitan county councils in 1986. Since 2000, Greater London has had an elected Assembly and Mayor responsible for strategic local government. Whilst not
4104-574: The road follows the main Syston and Peterborough Railway (part of the Birmingham to Peterborough Line ), which it passes under a mile to the east, north of Luffenham Heath Golf Club , and the point where the road crosses the River Chater at Foster's Bridge. On the North Luffenham / Ketton parish boundary there is a junction for North Luffenham (to the west). It enters Ketton as Luffenham Road , passing
4176-426: The site of a further demolished medieval church (Holy Trinity/St Stephen's) and remains of Brazenose College built by the secessionists from the University of Oxford in the fourteenth century. Brasenose College, Oxford bought Brazenose House in 1890 to recover the original medieval brass Brazenose knocker. The right of appointment of the school's master , a position hotly contested in past centuries on account of
4248-566: The trunk road A1175 , then at a mini-roundabout, follows the road to the left as Ryhall Road , with Stamford and Rutland Hospital to the right. Further north is the former site of the Mirrlees Blackstone diesel engine works, on the right hand side, now a retail park. From Stamford School, this is also part of the Macmillan Way . There is a junction with Drift Road to the left (for New College Stamford and Stamford Leisure Centre) in
4320-415: The wider geographical or historic counties were not explicitly abolished by the 1972 Act, albeit they were left with no administrative or ceremonial functions. Following the 1974 reforms there were 45 counties, six of which were classed as metropolitan counties, covering the larger urban areas: The other 39 counties were classed as non-metropolitan counties: Most of the non-metropolitan counties retained
4392-625: Was also used on Ordnance Survey maps to distinguish the wider version of the county from the administrative counties. There were various adjustments to county boundaries after 1889. There were numerous changes following the Local Government Act 1894 , which converted rural sanitary districts into rural districts and established parish councils , but said that districts and parishes were no longer allowed to straddle county boundaries. The number of county boroughs gradually increased, and boundaries were occasionally adjusted to accommodate urban areas which were developing across county boundaries. In 1931
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#17329235108014464-667: Was carried out jointly between Stamford School and Stamford High School. This was referred to as the diamond school model. In 2012 the Memorial Sports Centre was opened by Lord Sebastian Coe. The facility contains a 25m swimming pool, replacing the outdoor Memorial Swimming Pool which opened in 1956. This was followed by the opening of the multi-million pound Wothorpe Sports Centre in 2022, built opposite Stamford Junior School on Wothorpe Road. Stamford Endowed Schools became co-educational from September 2023 and fully co-educational in every year group from 2024. The High School site
4536-565: Was deemed to be two lieutenancy counties (the City of London and the rest of Greater London) under the Administration of Justice Act 1964 . Stamford School Stamford School is a co-educational independent school in Stamford, Lincolnshire in the English public school tradition. Founded in 1532, it has been a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference since 1920. With
4608-534: Was established in 1957 and a Local Government Commission for England in 1958 to recommend new local government structures. The major outcomes of the work of the commissions came in 1965. The County of London was abolished and was replaced by the Greater London administrative area, which also included most of the remaining part of Middlesex (which was abolished as an administrative county) and areas formerly part of Surrey, Kent, Essex and Hertfordshire. Huntingdonshire
4680-475: Was given the "powers, duties and liabilities" of a county council in 1930. Some functions, such as health and economic development, are shared with Cornwall Council . For lieutenancy purposes the islands form part of the ceremonial county of Cornwall. From 1974 to 1996 the local government counties were also used for the purposes of lieutenancy, with the exceptions that the Isles of Scilly were deemed part of Cornwall for lieutenancy purposes, and Greater London
4752-664: Was legally a new non-metropolitan county and a district covering the same area, with the district council also performing county functions. Rather than appoint lieutenants and high sheriffs for these new counties created in 1996, it was decided to resurrect the pre-1974 practice of defining counties for the purposes of lieutenancy and shrievalty separately from the local government counties. Several other unitary authorities were created between 1996 and 1998. Many of these were districts based on larger towns and cities, including several places that had been county boroughs prior to 1974. Being made unitary authorities therefore effectively restored
4824-445: Was made a district of Leicestershire. The metropolitan county councils were abolished in 1986 after just 12 years in operation. The Greater London Council was abolished at the same time. The metropolitan counties and Greater London continued to legally exist as geographic areas and retained their high sheriffs and lieutenants despite the loss of their upper-tier councils. The lower-tier metropolitan boroughs and London boroughs took on
4896-402: Was made an administrative county whilst remaining part of Hampshire for other purposes. Constituencies were not changed by the 1888 Act and so the parliamentary counties continued to be defined as they had been when the constituencies were last reviewed in 1885 , by reference to the counties as they had then existed. This led to a mismatch in some areas between the parliamentary counties and
4968-534: Was merged with the Soke of Peterborough to form Huntingdon and Peterborough , and the original administrative county of Cambridgeshire was merged with the Isle of Ely to form Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely . A Royal Commission on Local Government in England was set up in 1966 and produced the Redcliffe-Maud Report in 1969, which recommended the complete redrawing of local government areas in England, replacing
5040-422: Was re-established as a two-tier county. Berkshire County Council was abolished in 1998 and the county's six districts became unitary authorities, but unusually the non-metropolitan county of Berkshire was not abolished. The six Berkshire unitary authorities are the only ones not to also be non-metropolitan counties. Further reforms in 2009 and between 2019 and 2023 saw more unitary authorities created within
5112-470: Was the Isle of Wight, where the two districts were abolished and the county council took over their functions in 1995. In 1996, Avon, Cleveland and Humberside were abolished after just 22 years in existence. None of those three had attracted much public loyalty, and there had been campaigns to abolish them, especially in the case of Humberside. Those three counties were split into unitary authorities, each of which
5184-521: Was usually appointed by the monarch but in some cases, known as the counties palatine , the right to appoint sheriffs rested elsewhere; for example with the Bishop of Durham for County Durham , and with the Earl of Chester for Cheshire . A county's magistrates sat four times a year as the quarter sessions . For more serious cases judges visited each county twice a year for the assizes . In some larger counties
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