68-550: Bickford is a village in Staffordshire , England. For population details taken at the 2011 census see Penkridge This Staffordshire location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Staffordshire Staffordshire ( / ˈ s t æ f ər d ʃ ɪər , - ʃ ər / ; postal abbreviation Staffs .) is a landlocked ceremonial county in the West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to
136-544: A Greater Manchester Combined Authority as an indirectly elected, top tier, strategic authority for Greater Manchester . In 2014 similar indirectly elected combined authorities were established for the metropolitan counties of South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, and two combined authorities were established which each covered a metropolitan county and adjacent non-metropolitan districts: the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority for Merseyside and
204-474: A daily basis. Metropolitan county Metropolitan counties are a subdivision of England which were originally used for local government . There are six metropolitan counties: Greater Manchester , Merseyside , South Yorkshire , Tyne and Wear , West Midlands and West Yorkshire . The metropolitan counties were created in 1974 as part of a reform of local government in England and Wales. They were
272-603: A decade after they were established, the mostly Labour -controlled metropolitan county councils (MCCs) and the Greater London Council (GLC) had several high-profile clashes with the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher about overspending and high rates . Government policy on the issue was considered throughout 1982, and the Conservative Party put a "promise to scrap the metropolitan county councils", and
340-572: A factory and the UK headquarters of Bostikon Common Road, in the north of the town. Numark Pharmacy is at Tamworth . Bristan based in Dordon and Baddesley Ensor on the Birch Coppice Business Park south-west of Tamworth, next to a new Ocado distribution centre, is the UK's largest supplier of kitchen and bathroom taps; Volkswagen Group (VAG UK) have their main UK distribution facility there,
408-640: A native of Stoke-on-Trent, at a public gathering in the village of Mow Cop . He originally followed the Wesleyan form of Methodism but in 1801 he reformed the Methodist service by conducting it outside. By 1811 with his brother he founded the first chapel in the Tunstall area of Stoke-on-Trent. The most popular synagogue in the county is on London Road in Newcastle-Under-Lyme , which opened in 2006 and replaced
476-613: A new metropolitan county of West Midlands. County boroughs were abolished, with Stoke becoming a non-metropolitan district in Staffordshire, and Burton forming an unparished area in the district of East Staffordshire . On 1 April 1997, under a recommendation of the Banham Commission , Stoke-on-Trent became a unitary authority independent of Staffordshire once more. In July 2009, the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever found in Britain
544-419: Is a NUTS 3 region (code UKG22). Staffordshire operates a cabinet-style council . There are 62 councillors for Staffordshire. The Full Council elects a cabinet of 10 councillors, including the council leader, from the majority party. Each cabinet member has their own portfolio about which they make the "day to day" decisions. Some settlements were formerly governed as part of the county, these are now under
612-495: Is covered by the archdeaconries of Stoke-upon-Trent and Lichfield . The current Bishop of Lichfield is Michael Ipgrave and the current Bishop of Stafford Geoff Annas . There are 298 Church of England churches in the county. Staffordshire is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham . The current archbishop is Bernard Longley . Primitive Methodism was founded in Staffordshire by Hugh Bourne ,
680-536: Is followed by Irish, making up 0.6%. Non-White citizens make up 2% of the population. The largest Non-White ethnic group are British Pakistanis . 94% of the population was born in England, and those born in Scotland and Wales together make up 1% of the total population. The brewing companies such as Coors Brewers are in Burton on Trent , as well as Marmite , Marston's Brewery , GNC UK ( health supplements ). Branston
748-635: Is hilly to the north and south. The southern end of the Pennines is in the north, containing part of the Peak District National Park , while the Cannock Chase AONB and part of the National Forest are in the south. The River Trent and its tributaries drain most of the county. From its source, near Biddulph , the river flows through Staffordshire in a southwesterly direction, meeting
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#1732856000682816-687: Is in Tamworth and the motorway heads southwest towards Birmingham. The M6 runs north–south through the county, which contains junctions 10A–16. The M6 Toll , the UK's first toll motorway , runs through the county with junctions in Weeford near Lichfield, Cannock and joins the M6 south of Stafford. The A5 and A34 run through the county. The former has been significantly widened to a dual carriageway at several sections, although much of it remains single carriageway. There are currently no airports with scheduled flights in
884-528: Is represented in Minor counties cricket by Staffordshire County Cricket Club who have played in the Minor Counties Championship since 1895, a competition which it has won outright eleven times, making it the most successful Minor counties team. Famous international cricketers produced by the county include Sydney Barnes , Bob Taylor and Dominic Cork , all of whom went on to represent England . In
952-573: Is served by long-distance CrossCountry and Avanti West Coast trains to Manchester. This station is also the terminus of the North Staffordshire line to Derby via Uttoxeter, which narrowly avoided closure in the 1960s. Stone railway station reopened in 2008. The county has relatively good links to the national roads network. Several major roads intersect the county, making it a popular location for commuters working in Birmingham. The M42 junction 10
1020-580: Is situated at Festival Park in Etruria , and is Stoke-on-Trent's largest private sector employer. Dechra Pharmaceuticals makes veterinary pharmaceuticals at Talke . Churchill China is at Sandyford near Tunstall . Sumitomo Electrical Wiring Systems (Europe) , which supplies wiring for the automotive industry, is at Silverdale . At Kidsgrove , Converteam make variable speed drives (VSDs); AAH Pharmaceuticals has its Enterprise and Trident divisions in Talke , in
1088-533: Is still produced in Stoke-on-Trent. Historically, Staffordshire was divided into five hundreds : Cuttlestone , Offlow , Pirehill , Seisdon , and Totmonslow . The historic boundaries of Staffordshire cover much of what is now the metropolitan county of West Midlands . An administrative county of Staffordshire was set up in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888 covering the county, except for
1156-752: Is the original home of Branston Pickle , where the original factory can still be seen on Burton Road. Spirit Pub Company is near the A5121/A38 junction, with Punch Taverns slightly further north. Newell Rubbermaid UK (owner of Parker Pen , Berol , Paper Mate and DYMO ), a large RDC of Tesco, and Zytek (motorsport) is at Fradley Park, on an old airfield . Norgren was an international pneumatic technology company on Eastern Avenue, Lichfield. Michelin Tyres are made at Sideway in Stoke-on-Trent. Royal Doulton and Wedgwood were/are based at Burslem and Barlaston respectively. Portmeirion Pottery , which owns
1224-782: The Borough of Halton unitary authority, and the North East Combined Authority for Tyne and Wear and the unitary authorities of County Durham and Northumberland . In 2017 the West Midlands Combined Authority was established for the West Midlands county. Many of these new combined authorities have elected or are in the process of electing authority-wide regional mayors. Since 1995, the cities of Birmingham, Bristol , Leeds , Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle , Nottingham and Sheffield have assembled together in
1292-738: The Britannia Building Society which is based in Leek . JCB is based in Rocester near Uttoxeter and Bet365 which is based in Stoke-on-Trent. The theme park Alton Towers is in the Staffordshire Moorlands and several of the world's largest pottery manufacturers are based in Stoke-on-Trent. The town of Burton upon Trent is known for its beer brewing industry with several major brands such as Carling , Cobra and Marston's brewed there. The ceremonial county of Staffordshire (including
1360-820: The Lieutenancies Act 1997 they remain as ceremonial counties (sometimes called 'geographic counties') which have an appointed Lord Lieutenant . They are also used in certain government statistics, although they no longer appear on Ordnance Survey maps, which show the individual metropolitan boroughs. Some local services are still run on a metropolitan county-wide basis, administered by statutory joint boards and special joint arrangements; these include policing (by joint police authorities ), fire services , public transport (by passenger transport executives ) and waste disposal (in Merseyside and Greater Manchester). These joint boards are made up of councillors appointed by
1428-689: The Local Government Act 1985 ; the MCCs and the GLC were abolished at midnight on 31 March 1986. The last elections to the councils were held in May 1981; elections that would have been held in 1985 were abandoned under the Local Government (Interim Provisions) Act 1984 ; the original plan had been for councillors' terms to expire in April 1985, and for councillors to be replaced by nominees from borough councils until 1986. While
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#17328560006821496-638: The North East Combined Authority . The six metropolitan counties and their metropolitan districts are: The idea of creating administrative areas based upon the large conurbations outside London , modelled on the County of London or Greater London , was mooted several times in the 20th century. In 1948, the Local Government Boundary Commission proposed several new counties, including ' South East Lancashire North East Cheshire ' ("Selnec"), and ' South West Lancashire North West Cheshire '. In
1564-600: The Royal Worcester brand, is in Stoke. Steelite International (pottery) is based at Middleport , in west Burslem, next to the Trent and Mersey Canal . Wade Ceramics is at Etruria to the east of Wolstanton, near the HQ of The Sentinel newspaper ( Harmsworth Printing ). Premier Foods make Mr Kipling slices and Cherry Bakewells at Trent Vale in the south of Stoke-on-Trent. Bet365
1632-561: The Sow just east of Stafford; it then meets the River Tame and turns north-east, exiting into Derbyshire immediately downstream of Burton upon Trent. Staffordshire contains a number of Iron Age tumuli and Roman camps, and was settled by the Angles in the sixth century; the oldest Stafford knot , the county's symbol, can be seen on an Anglian cross in the churchyard of Stoke Minster . The county
1700-508: The Thames Gateway ) was also proposed. The metropolitan counties were created by the Local Government Act 1972 . The county councils were first elected in 1973, and were formally established in April 1974. The metropolitan counties were first created with a two-tier structure of local government. Local government functions were divided between the metropolitan district councils as lower tier authorities and metropolitan county councils as
1768-489: The West Midlands , and were first drawn up from the 1950s. All the county's districts contain some portion of belt. According to the 2001 Census the population of the Non-metropolitan Staffordshire is 806,744 and the population of Stoke-on-Trent was 240,636 making a total population of 1,047,380. In non-metropolitan Staffordshire, White British is the largest ethnicity, making up 96% of the population. This
1836-568: The county boroughs of Wolverhampton , Walsall , and West Bromwich in the south (the area known as the Black Country ), and Hanley in the north. The Act also saw the towns of Tamworth (partly in Warwickshire) and Burton upon Trent (partly in Derbyshire) united entirely in Staffordshire. In 1553, Queen Mary made Lichfield a county corporate , meaning it was administered separately from
1904-470: The 1960s the Local Government Commission for England proposed such an arrangement for Tyneside and draft proposals considered it for Selnec. For the West Midlands conurbation , the commission proposed instead a group of contiguous county boroughs with no overall metropolitan authority. The Redcliffe-Maud Report of 1969 proposed the creation of three large "metropolitan areas" based upon
1972-569: The English league, they finally reclaimed their top flight status in 2008 by securing promotion to the Premier League . Stoke City reached their first FA Cup final in 2011 , but lost 1–0 to Manchester City . Port Vale, who like Stoke City play in Stoke-on-Trent, were formed in 1876 and became members of the Football League in 1892. After more than 70 years at various stadiums around the city,
2040-479: The GLC, in their manifesto for the 1983 general election . The exact details of the reform caused problems. In October 1983, Thatcher's government published a white paper entitled Streamlining the cities which set out detailed plans for the abolition of the MCCs, together with the abolition of the GLC. The bill was announced in the Queen's Speech and was introduced into Parliament soon afterwards. It became
2108-559: The Shropshire boundary. Ornua , best known for the Kerrygold brand, have a large cheese production site in Leek on Sunnyhills Road. This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire at current basic prices by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British pounds sterling. Some nationally and internationally known companies have their base in Staffordshire. They include
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2176-429: The West Midlands county: In the 2011 United Kingdom census , the population of Staffordshire reported their religion as follows: The only cathedral in the county is Lichfield Cathedral in the city of Lichfield. The Diocese of Lichfield covers the whole county with the exception of Stapenhill and Amington , the north of the nearby county of Shropshire and the Black Country area of the West Midlands . The county
2244-496: The abolition of the GLC was highly controversial, the abolition of the MCCs was much less so. The Liberal Party leader David Steel had supported abolition of the MCCs in his 1981 conference speech. The government's stated reasons for the abolition of the MCCs were based on efficiency and their overspending. However the fact that all of the county councils were controlled by the Labour Party led to accusations that their abolition
2312-558: The administrative county of Staffordshire having a thin protrusion passing between the county boroughs (to the east) and Shropshire, to the west, to form a short border with Worcestershire. Under the Local Government Act 1972 , on 1 April 1974, the county boroughs of the Black Country and the Aldridge-Brownhills Urban District of Staffordshire became, along with Birmingham, Solihull, and Coventry and other districts,
2380-687: The area. At the 2001 census there were 7,658 Muslims in Stoke-on-Trent and 6,081 in the rest of Staffordshire, with a total of 13,739 making up 1.3% of the population. 62.9% (3823) of the Muslims in the rest of Staffordshire are from the town of Burton-upon-Trent. Staffordshire has an extensive network of canals including the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal , Caldon Canal , Coventry Canal , Shropshire Union Canal , Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and Trent and Mersey Canal . Staffordshire has several railways that pass through and serve settlements within
2448-522: The boroughs. Since 2000, the metropolitan counties have been used as the areas of joint local transport plans . In 1999, following a successful referendum, the Labour government under Tony Blair legislated to create a strategic authority for London (the Greater London Authority ). Despite some talk of doing so, no bodies were established to replace the MCCs. The Blair government instead pursued
2516-434: The club has been less successful since the turn of the 21st century, and suffered relegation to League Two – the fourth tier of the English league – in 2008. The club has seen an upturn in its fortunes as the club was promoted to League One in the 2012–13 season. In the 2016–17 season Port Vale were relegated back to League Two. West Bromwich Albion , Wolverhampton Wanderers and Walsall are also notable clubs based in
2584-595: The club moved to its present home, Vale Park , in 1950. In early 1936, they had eliminated First Division champions Sunderland from the FA Cup. Another FA Cup success came in February 1988 when they eliminated seven-time winners Tottenham Hotspur from the competition . Promotion to the Second Division for the first time since the 1960s was secured in 1989, and Vale would spend nine of the next 11 years at this level. However,
2652-555: The conurbations surrounding Manchester , Liverpool and Birmingham (Selnec, Merseyside , and West Midlands ), which were to have both metropolitan councils covering the entire areas, and district councils covering parts. Harold Wilson 's government published a white paper broadly accepting these recommendations, and adding South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire as metropolitan areas. The proposals were radically altered when Edward Heath 's Conservative government came to power in 1970. The Conservatives' local government white paper
2720-593: The county are once significant coalfields , including the South Staffordshire coalfield . In the southern part, there are also rich iron ore deposits. The largest river is the Trent . The soil is chiefly clay and agriculture was not highly developed until the mechanisation of farms. Staffordshire is home to the highest village in Britain, Flash . The village, in the Staffordshire Moorlands, stands at 1,519 ft (463 m) above sea level. This record
2788-502: The county borough of Southport , was added to Merseyside in the bill, at the local council's request. Several other proposals for metropolitan counties were made during the bill's passage, including a revival of the proposal for Hampshire (either the southern part or all of it) and central Lancashire . A Thamesside metropolitan county, covering areas of north Kent and south Essex on the Thames Estuary (and now considered part of
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2856-459: The county, Keele University , west of Newcastle-under-Lyme , and the University of Staffordshire , which has campuses in Stoke-on-Trent, Stafford, London, Lichfield and Shrewsbury . The modern county of Staffordshire currently has three professional football clubs – Stoke City and Port Vale , both from Stoke-on-Trent, and Burton Albion , who play in Burton upon Trent . Stoke City, one of
2924-498: The county, with the nearest ones being Birmingham , East Midlands and Manchester . Depending on the location, there is, however, Wolverhampton Airport in Bobbington and Tatenhill Airfield near Burton-upon-Trent, both of which are small airports catering for general aviation. Services within the county are chiefly provided by Arriva Midlands , D&G Bus and First Potteries . National Express coaches serve towns and cities on
2992-490: The county. The most important of these is the West Coast Main Line , which facilitates through services between London and Scotland. Few, if any, of these stop inside the county's borders. Stafford railway station is at a junction with the line to Birmingham New Street , a major hub, and is predominantly served by London Northwestern Railway . Stoke-on-Trent railway station is the busiest station in Staffordshire and
3060-532: The creation of an area of contiguous county boroughs. The County Borough of Warley was formed by the merger of the county borough of Smethwick and municipal borough of Rowley Regis with the Worcestershire borough of Oldbury : the resulting county borough was associated with Worcestershire. Meanwhile, the county borough of Dudley , historically a detached part of Worcestershire, expanded and became associated with Staffordshire instead. This reorganisation led to
3128-518: The former Birch Terrace synagogue in Hanley. According to the 2001 census there were 407 Jews in the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire, and 83 in Stoke-on-Trent. There are 15 mosques in Stoke-on-Trent, 5 in Burton-upon-Trent and 1 in both Stafford and Lichfield. As of 2019 a new mosque has finished construction in the Hanley area of Stoke-on-Trent and is the first purpose-built mosque in
3196-457: The historic county boundaries. The county's other professional football team is Burton Albion , based in Burton upon Trent , who currently play in League One . The county has a number of non-league football clubs, including Tamworth , Stafford Rangers , Hednesford Town and Leek Town . In cricket , Staffordshire is one of the nineteen Minor counties of English and Welsh cricket . It
3264-622: The idea of elected regional assemblies , although after an unsuccessful referendum in the most positive region, the North East, this idea now has few proponents. The idea of city regions has been proposed subsequently, although the 2006 local government white paper had no firm proposals for formal recognition of this concept. This changed in 2010 when the Government accepted a proposal from the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities to establish
3332-496: The largest settlements are Tamworth (78,646), Newcastle-under-Lyme (75,082), Burton upon Trent (72,299) and Stafford (71,673); the city of Lichfield has a population of 33,816. For local government purposes Staffordshire comprises a non-metropolitan county , with nine districts, and the unitary authority area of Stoke-on-Trent. The county historically included the north-west of the West Midlands county, including Walsall , West Bromwich , and Wolverhampton . Staffordshire
3400-510: The metropolitan boroughs belong to combined authorities , which are statutory bodies introduced in 2011 that allow local authorities to voluntarily pool responsibilities and collaborate. The combined authorities for Greater Manchester, South Yorkshire, West Midlands and West Yorkshire cover the same areas as the metropolitan counties; the boroughs of Merseyside are part of the Liverpool City Region , and those of Tyne and Wear are part of
3468-528: The metropolitan county councils was as follows: The metropolitan counties are sometimes referred to as "former metropolitan counties", although this description is not entirely correct. The county councils were abolished, but under the Local Government Act 1972, the counties themselves remain in existence, although they no longer exist in ISO 3166-2:GB as extant administrative subdivisions. By virtue of
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#17328560006823536-493: The north and in the south, the county is hilly, with the southern foothills and uplands of the Pennines in the north, with parts of it in the Peak District National Park. Most of the northern upland terrain is in the Staffordshire Moorlands district. Cannock Chase , an area of natural beauty, and part of the National Forest are in the south. In the middle regions, the landscape is low and undulating. In parts of
3604-416: The north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the south-east, the West Midlands county and Worcestershire to the south, and Shropshire to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Stoke-on-Trent , and the county town is Stafford . The county has an area of 1,713 square kilometres (661 sq mi) and a population of 1,131,052. After Stoke-on-Trent (258,366),
3672-420: The oldest professional football clubs in existence, were founded in 1863 and played at the Victoria Ground for 119 years from 1878 until their relocation to the Britannia Stadium (now named the Bet365 Stadium ) in 1997. They were among the 12 founder members of the Football League in 1888. By the late 1930s, they were established First Division members and boasted arguably the finest footballer in England at
3740-413: The rest of Staffordshire, remaining so until 1888. Handsworth and Perry Barr became part of the county borough of Birmingham , and thus Warwickshire , in 1911 and 1928 respectively. Burton, in the east of the county, became a county borough in 1901, and was followed by Smethwick , another town in the Black Country in 1907. In 1910 the six towns of the Staffordshire Potteries, including Hanley, became
3808-403: The single county borough of Stoke-on-Trent . A significant boundary change occurred in 1926 when the east of Sedgley was transferred to Worcestershire to allow the construction of the new Priory Estate on land purchased by Dudley County Borough council. A major reorganisation in the Black Country in 1966, under the recommendation of the Local Government Commission for England , led to
3876-438: The site of Birch Coppice Colliery before 1987. Ansell UK ( medical gloves , from Australia) is on Tamworth Enterprise Park. Whittington Barracks (DMS Whittington) near to the west is the home of the Defence Medical Services , Defence Dental Service , and the Defence Medical Services Training Centre . Premier Foods make Bird's Custard , Angel Delight and Marvel powdered milk in Knighton , west of Eccleshall near
3944-419: The time in right-winger Stanley Matthews , who had two spells with the club between 1930 and his retirement in 1965 at the age of 50. In 1972, the club finally won a major trophy when they lifted the Football League Cup , but after relegation from the First Division in 1985 they would not experience top flight football for 23 years. After spending some two decades bouncing between the second and third tiers of
4012-488: The top tier of a two-tier system of counties and metropolitan boroughs , and were created to govern large urban areas. In 1986 their county councils were abolished, and since then the metropolitan counties have had no local government role. The local government functions were largely taken over by the metropolitan boroughs, with joint boards created to co-ordinate some county-wide services. The metropolitan counties are all ceremonial counties which share their borders. All of
4080-409: The unitary authority of Stoke-on-Trent) is represented by twelve Members of Parliament (MPs) in the House of Commons . Eleven of the MPs represent the Conservative Party and one sits as an independent . The results of the 2019 general election in the county are as follows: Staffordshire County Council is the top-tier local council for the non-metropolitan county. For Eurostat purposes, it
4148-673: The upper tier. The structure differed from the non-metropolitan counties in the allocation of powers between the county and district councils. The metropolitan districts had more powers than non-metropolitan districts , in that they were additionally responsible for education and social services, responsibilities allocated to county councils elsewhere. The metropolitan county councils were intended to be strategic authorities that ran regional services such as main roads, public transport, emergency services, civil protection, waste disposal, and strategic town and country planning . The metropolitan county councils functioned between 1974 and 1986. Just
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#17328560006824216-410: The west of Kidsgrove. Andritz UK is at Wolstanton, in the north of Newcastle. Mann+Hummel UK, at Featherstone , make air and oil filters . Armitage Shanks (owned by Ideal Standard International) is to the east of Rugeley in Armitage with Handsacre ; JCB Cab Systems was next to the A51 on the Riverside Industrial Estate. The UK headquarters of GE Grid Solutions is based at Stafford as well as
4284-421: Was confirmed in 2007 by the Ordnance Survey after Wanlockhead in Scotland also claimed the record. The BBC 's The One Show investigated the case in a bid to settle the argument and Flash was confirmed as the higher of the two. The highest point in Staffordshire is Cheeks Hill . Staffordshire contains sectors of three green belt areas, two of which surround the large conurbations of Stoke-on-Trent and
4352-505: Was discovered in a field near Lichfield. The artefacts, known as The Staffordshire Hoard , have tentatively been dated to the 7th or 8th centuries, placing the origin of the items in the time of the Kingdom of Mercia . Staffordshire has a completely comprehensive system with eight independent schools. Most secondary schools are from 11 to 16 or 18, but two in Staffordshire Moorlands and South Staffordshire are from 13 to 18. Resources are shared where appropriate. There are two universities in
4420-403: Was formed in the early tenth century, when Stafford became the capital of Mercia . The county was relatively settled in the following centuries, and rapidly industrialised during the Industrial Revolution , when the North Staffordshire coalfield was exploited and fuelled the iron and automobilie industries in the south of the county. Pottery is the county's most famous export; a limited amount
4488-424: Was motivated by party politics: the general secretary of the National and Local Government Officers' Association described it as a "completely cynical manoeuvre". Merseyside in particular put up a struggle against abolition. Most of the functions of the MCCs passed either to the metropolitan borough councils, or to joint boards. Some assets were given to residuary bodies for disposal. The split of functions from
4556-475: Was practicable, and the new white paper proposals generally reduced the metropolitan counties to the continuously built up area. Many areas on the edges were excluded from the metropolitan counties when the bill was passed: Easington , Harrogate , Knaresborough , Ellesmere Port , Neston , New Mills , Whaley Bridge and Glossop ; other areas were excluded during the bill's passage, such as Seaham , Skelmersdale and Holland , Poynton and Wilmslow . One area,
4624-556: Was published in February 1971, naming the metropolitan areas "metropolitan counties", and giving them as "Merseyside, south-east Lancashire and north-east Cheshire, the West Midlands, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, and the Tyne and Wear area". The proposed counties were also far smaller than in the original proposals; they were trimmed at each successive stage. The Redcliffe-Maud Report had included Chester in Merseyside and Redditch and Stafford in West Midlands. The Conservative policy favoured retaining historic boundaries as far as
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