City of Wakefield
City of Wakefield | ||
---|---|---|
Old Town Hall | ||
Ceremonial county West Yorkshire | | |
Founded | 1974 | |
Admin. HQ | Wakefield | |
Government | ||
• Type | Metropolitan borough, City | |
• Governing body | Wakefield Council | |
• Leadership | Leader & Cabinet | |
• Executive | Labour | |
• MPs: | Yvette Cooper (L) Andrea Jenkyns (C) Simon Lightwood (L) Jon Trickett (L) | |
Area | ||
• Total | 130.7 sq mi (338.6 km2) | |
• Rank | 108th | |
Population (2021) | ||
• Total | 353,802 | |
• Rank | Ranked 25th | |
• Density | 2,700/sq mi (1,000/km2) | |
Ethnicity (2021) | ||
• Ethnic groups | ||
Religion (2021) | ||
• Religion | List
| |
ONS code | 00DB (ONS) E08000036 (GSS) | |
NUTS | 3 | |
Website | wakefield.gov.uk |
Wakefield,[2] also known as the City of Wakefield, is a local government district with city status and a metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Wakefield, the largest settlement, is the administrative centre of the district. The population of the City of Wakefield at the 2011 Census was 325,837.[3]
The district includes the Five Towns of Castleford, Featherstone, Knottingley, Normanton and Pontefract.[4] Other towns include Hemsworth, Horbury, Ossett, South Elmsall and South Kirkby (also forms the civil parish of South Kirkby and Moorthorpe). The city and district are governed by Wakefield Council from the County Hall.[5] In 2010, Wakefield was named as the UK's third most musical city by PRS for Music.[6]
Economy
The economic and physical condition of several of the former mining towns and villages in Wakefield District have started to improve due to the booming economy of Leeds – and an increase in numbers of commuters to the city from the sub-region – and a recognition of undeveloped assets. For instance Castleford, to the North East of Wakefield is seeing extensive development and investment because of the natural asset of its outlook on to the River Aire, its easy access to the national motorway network and the availability of former mining land for house-building. In Ossett, house prices have risen from an average of £50,000 in 1998 to £130,000 in 2003.
Although unemployment was amongst the highest in the country for most of the 1980s, and 1990s, Wakefield District now has below-average unemployment. The "Wakefield East" ward had 4.7% unemployment in May 2005 (source: Office for National Statistics)—which was more than 1% higher than any other ward. The eastern half of the district remains considerably less prosperous than the western half, with several deprived wards
The district is mainly made out of old
History
The former Borough of Wakefield was raised to
Geography
Green belt
The district is within a
Governance
The district is divided into 21
Sports
The city district is home to three professional
The district has a strong heritage of cricket with former Yorkshire and England captain Geoffrey Boycott born in Fitzwilliam and former Yorkshire and England cricketer Tim Bresnan from Pontefract.
Pontefract Racecourse in Pontefract, is the longest continuous horse racing circuit in Europe at 2 miles 125 yards (3,333 m; 16.57 furlongs).[11]
Culture
The ruins of
Two children's
Social housing
A decision was made, in 2004, to transfer the district's extensive council housing to Wakefield and District Housing (WDH), an 'independent' housing association, who would be more efficient with repairs and maintaining decent accommodation; as council housing represented almost 30% of the district, this was the second-largest stock transfer in British history. WDH are investing over £700 million to regenerate the District and working with partners, such as WMDC, are investing in new housing within the District.
See also
- List of people from Wakefield
- The Ridings Centre
- Wakefield Trinity L.F.C.
References
- ^ Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
- ^ "Local Authority Districts, Counties and Unitary Authorities (April 2021) Map in United Kingdom". Office for National Statistics: Open Geography Portal. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
- ^ "City of Wakefield population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 15 March 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
- ^ "The Wakefield District". Wakefield Council. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
- ^ "Wakefield District". Wakefield Council. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
- ^ Richard Smith (13 March 2010). "Bristol named Britain's most musical city". Daily Mirror. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
- ^ "Horbury Junction Iron Co". Grace's Guide. Archived from the original on 31 December 2014. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
- ^ a b "Green belt review" (PDF). Wakefield Council. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 March 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
- ^ "Local Plan - Adopted". Wakefield Council. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
- ^ "Green belt statistics - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 3 July 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
- ^ "Course Details – Pontefract Racecourse". Archived from the original on 21 August 2008. Retrieved 4 July 2008.
- ^ Sandal Castle, Wakefield Council, archived from the original on 26 June 2013, retrieved 17 April 2013
- ^ Nostell Priory, National Trust, archived from the original on 9 November 2009, retrieved 18 November 2009
- ^ Wakefield Prison, wakefield.gov.uk, archived from the original on 29 January 2010, retrieved 18 November 2009
- ^ 1066–1600, wakefield.gov.uk, archived from the original on 4 February 2010, retrieved 17 November 2009
- ^ Onward, Christian Soldiers