West Yorkshire facts for kids

Quick facts for kidsWest Yorkshire
	County
	; West Yorkshire in England
	Coordinates: 53°45′N 1°40′W / 53.750°N 1.667°WCoordinates: 53°45′N 1°40′W / 53.750°N 1.667°W
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Country	England
Region	Yorkshire and the Humber
Established	1 April 1974
Preceded by	West Riding of Yorkshire
Origin	Local Government Act 1972
Ceremonial county
Lord Lieutenant	Ingrid Roscoe
High Sheriff	Ed Anderson
Area	2,029 km2 (783 sq mi)
• Ranked	29th of 48
Population (2005 est.)	2,118,600
• Ranked	4th of 48
Density	1,044/km2 (2,700/sq mi)
Ethnicity	81.8% White; 11.6% S. Asian; 2.1% Mixed; 2.1% Black; 2.4% Other
Metropolitan county
Government	West Yorkshire Combined Authority
Admin HQ	Leeds
ONS code	2F
GSS code	E11000006
NUTS	UKE4
	; Districts of West Yorkshire; Metropolitan districts
Districts	City of Leeds; City of Wakefield; Kirklees; Calderdale; City of Bradford;
Members of Parliament	List of MPs
Police	West Yorkshire Police
Time zone	GMT (UTC)
• Summer (DST)	BST (UTC+1)

This page is about the metropolitan county. For its former council, see West Yorkshire County Council. For the historic subdivision of Yorkshire, see West Riding of Yorkshire.

West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in England. It is an inland and in relative terms upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in moors of the Pennines and has a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972.

West Yorkshire consists of five metropolitan boroughs (City of Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, City of Leeds and City of Wakefield) and shares borders with the counties of Derbyshire (briefly to the south), Greater Manchester (to the south-west), Lancashire (to the north-west), North Yorkshire (to the north and east) and South Yorkshire (to the south and south-east). Seams of coal and iron ore abound in the county which attracted people over the centuries – the greatest hub in the area is Leeds which may become a terminus for a north-east limb of High Speed 2, major railways and three major motorways traverse the county. In the heart of the county is Leeds Bradford International Airport.

West Yorkshire County Council was abolished in 1986 so its five districts became effectively unitary authorities. However, the metropolitan county, which covers an area of 2,029 square kilometres (783 sq mi), continues to exist in law, and as a geographic frame of reference. Since 1 April 2014 West Yorkshire has been a combined authority area, with the local authorities pooling together some functions over transport and regeneration as the West Yorkshire Combined Authority.

West Yorkshire includes the West Yorkshire Urban Area, which is the most built-up and biggest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Yorkshire.

History

See also: History of Leeds and History of Yorkshire

Kirkstall Abbey, Kirkstall, Leeds

Titus Salt's mill in Saltaire, Shipley is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Leeds Town Hall

West Yorkshire was formed as a metropolitan county in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, and corresponds roughly to the core of the historic West Riding of Yorkshire and the county boroughs of Bradford, Dewsbury, Halifax, Huddersfield, Leeds, and Wakefield.

West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council inherited the use of West Riding County Hall at Wakefield, opened in 1898, from the West Riding County Council in 1974. Since 1987 it has been the headquarters of Wakefield City Council.

The county initially had a two-tier structure of local government with a strategic-level county council and five districts providing most services. In 1986, throughout England the metropolitan county councils were abolished. The functions of the county council were devolved to the boroughs; joint-boards covering fire, police and public transport; and to other special joint arrangements. Organisations such as the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (governed by the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner) continue to operate on this basis.

Although the county council was abolished, West Yorkshire continues to form a metropolitan and ceremonial county with a Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire and a High Sheriff.

Wakefield's Parish Church was raised to cathedral status in 1888 and after the elevation of Wakefield to diocese, Wakefield Council immediately sought city status and this was granted in July 1888. However the industrial revolution, which changed West and South Yorkshire significantly, led to the growth of Leeds and Bradford, which became the area's two largest cities (Leeds being the largest in Yorkshire). Leeds was granted city status in 1893 and Bradford in 1897. The name of Leeds Town Hall reflects the fact that at its opening in 1858 Leeds was not yet a city, while Bradford renamed its Town Hall as City Hall in 1965.

post-1974		pre-1974
Metropolitan county	Metropolitan borough	County boroughs	Non-county boroughs	Urban districts	Rural districts
West Yorkshire is an amalgamation of 53 former local government districts, including six county boroughs and ten municipal boroughs.	Bradford	Bradford	Keighley	Baildon • Bingley • Denholme • Ilkley • Queensbury and Shelf •Silsden • Shipley	Skipton
	Calderdale	Halifax	Brighouse • Todmorden	Elland • Hebden Royd • Queensbury and Shelf • Ripponden • Sowerby Bridge
	Kirklees	Huddersfield • Dewsbury	Batley • Spenborough	Colne Valley • Denby Dale • Heckmondwike • Holmfirth • Kirkburton • Meltham • Mirfield
	Leeds	Leeds	Morley • Pudsey	Aireborough • Garforth • Horsforth • Otley • Rothwell	Tadcaster • Wharfedale • Wetherby
	Wakefield	Wakefield	Castleford • Ossett • Pontefract	Featherstone • Hemsworth • Horbury • Knottingley • Normanton • Stanley	Hemsworth • Osgoldcross • Wakefield

Geography

Geology of Yorkshire

The county borders, going anticlockwise from the west: Lancashire, Greater Manchester, Derbyshire, South Yorkshire and North Yorkshire. It lies almost entirely on rocks of carboniferous age which form the southern Pennine fringes in the west and the Yorkshire coalfield further eastwards. In the extreme east of the metropolitan county there are younger deposits of magnesian limestone. The Bradford and Calderdale areas are dominated by the scenery of the eastern slopes of the Pennines, dropping from upland in the west down to the east, and dissected by numerous steep-sided valleys. There is a close conjunction of large scale industry, urban areas and transport routes with open countryside. The dense network of roads, canals and railways and urban development, confined by valleys creates dramatic interplay of views between settlements and the surrounding hillsides.

The carboniferous rocks of the Yorkshire coalfield further east have produced a rolling landscape with hills, escarpments and broad valleys. In this landscape there is widespread evidence of both current and former industrial activity. There are numerous derelict or converted mine buildings and recently landscaped former spoil heaps.

In the magnesian limestone belt to the east of the Leeds and Wakefield areas is an elevated ridge with smoothly rolling scenery, dissected by dry valleys. Here, there is a large number of country houses and estates with parkland, estate woodlands, plantations and game coverts.

The rivers Aire and Calder drain the area, flowing from west to east.

The table below outlines many of the county's settlements, and is formatted according to their metropolitan borough.

Metropolitan county	Metropolitan borough	Centre of administration	Other places
West Yorkshire	City of Bradford	Bradford	Addingham, Baildon, Bingley, Burley-in-Wharfedale, Cottingley, Crossflatts, Cullingworth, Denholme, East and West Morton, Eccleshill, Eldwick, Esholt, Gilstead, Harden, Haworth, Ilkley, Keighley, Menston, Oakworth, Oxenhope, Queensbury, Riddlesden, Saltaire, Sandy Lane, Shipley, Silsden, Stanbury, Steeton, Thornbury, Thornton, Tong, Undercliffe, Wilsden
	Calderdale	Halifax	Bailiff Bridge, Boothtown, Brighouse, Copley, Cragg Vale, Elland, Greetland, Hebden Bridge, Heptonstall, Hipperholme, Holywell Green, Luddendenfoot, Mytholmroyd, Norwood Green, Rastrick, Ripponden, Shelf, Shibden, Sowerby Bridge, Todmorden
	Kirklees	Huddersfield	Almondbury, Batley, Birkby, Birkenshaw, Birstall, Cleckheaton, Dalton, Denby Dale, Dewsbury, Emley, Golcar, Gomersal, Hartshead, Hartshead Moor, Heckmondwike, Holmfirth, Honley, Kirkburton, Kirkheaton, Linthwaite, Liversedge, Marsden, Meltham, Mirfield, New Mill, Norristhorpe, Roberttown, Scammonden, Shelley, Shepley, Skelmanthorpe, Slaithwaite, Thornhill
	City of Leeds	Leeds	Allerton Bywater, Beeston, Boston Spa, Collingham, Garforth, Guiseley, Harewood, Headingley, Holbeck, Horsforth, Kippax, Kirkstall, Ledsham, Ledston, Methley, Middleton, Morley, New Farnley, Otley, Oulton, Pool-in-Wharfedale, Pudsey, Rothwell, Rawdon, Scarcroft, Scholes, Stourton, Swillington, Walton (Leeds), Wetherby, Yeadon
	City of Wakefield	Wakefield	Ackworth, Alverthorpe, Castleford, Crigglestone, Crofton, Durkar, Fairburn Ings, Featherstone, Ferrybridge, Fitzwilliam, Hemsworth, Horbury, Knottingley, Newmillerdam, Normanton, Nostell, Ossett, Outwood, Pontefract, Ryhill, Sandal, Sharlston, Stanley, Walton (Wakefield), West Bretton

Climate

West Yorkshire has an Oceanic climate, similar to almost all the United Kingdom. West Yorkshire tends to be cooler than counties further south, due to the inland location and high elevation (especially in the west of the county), and snow is common, as are sub-zero temperatures. In December 2010, many rivers in West Yorkshire froze over, such as the River Wharfe and River Aire.

Temperatures vary throughout the year, often sometimes reaching 30 °C (86 °F), and in winter temperatures have been reported to fall as low as −16 °C (3 °F) (as in December 2010), but in general they remain between −1 °C (30 °F) and 20 °C (68 °F) all year.

Climate data for West Yorkshire
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	5 (41)	5 (41)	8 (46)	11 (52)	15 (59)	18 (64)	19 (66)	19 (66)	17 (63)	13 (55)	8 (46)	6 (43)	12 (53.6)
Average low °C (°F)	0 (32)	0 (32)	1 (34)	3 (37)	5 (41)	8 (46)	10 (50)	10 (50)	8 (46)	6 (43)	2 (36)	1 (34)	4.5 (40.1)
Rainfall mm (inches)	61 (2.4)	45 (1.77)	52 (2.05)	48 (1.89)	54 (2.13)	54 (2.13)	51 (2.01)	65 (2.56)	57 (2.24)	55 (2.17)	57 (2.24)	61 (2.4)	660 (25.98)
Source #1: www.worldtravels.com
Source #2: www.wunderground.com

Demography

See also: List of settlements in West Yorkshire by population

District	Area km²	Population	Population density
Bradford City of Bradford	366.42	523,100	1,346
Calderdale	363.92	200,100	545
Kirklees	408.61	401,000	975
Leeds City of Leeds	551.72	761,100	1,360
Wakefield City of Wakefield	338.61	321,600	949

Population density in the 2011 census in West Yorkshire.

Distribution of ethnic groups in West Yorkshire according to the 2011 census.

White
White-British
White-Irish
White-Other
Asian
Asian-Indian
Asian-Pakistani
Asian-Bangladeshi
Asian-Chinese
Black
Black-African
Black-Caribbean
Other-Arab

Distribution of religions in West Yorkshire according to the 2011 census.

Christianity
Islam
Judaism
Hinduism
Sikhism
Buddhism
Other religion
No religion

Transport

Leeds Bradford International Airport

West Yorkshire lies in arguably the most strategic part of Yorkshire: the M62, M1 and the A1(M) pass through the county, as well as the internal urban motorways in Leeds and Bradford. West Yorkshire has two mainline railway stations, Leeds and Wakefield Westgate. Leeds railway station is the only Network Rail principal station in Yorkshire and North East England, and one of only three in the North of England along with Manchester Piccadilly and Liverpool Lime Street. Other important railway stations in West Yorkshire include Bradford Interchange, Bradford Forster Square, Huddersfield, Halifax, Dewsbury, Keighley and Shipley. West Yorkshire also has Yorkshire's largest airport, Leeds Bradford International Airport.

Unlike South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire has no light transit system; the Leeds Supertram was proposed, but was later cancelled after the withdrawal of government funding; the Leeds Trolleybus is the current proposed scheme. Public transport is run under the authority of the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (Metro).

Places of interest

Historic environment

See also: List of Museums in West Yorkshire, List of historic houses in West Yorkshire, and List of castles in West Yorkshire

Key
	Owned by the National Trust
	Owned by English Heritage
	Owned by the Forestry Commission
	A Country Park
	An Accessible open space
	Museum (free)
	Museum (charges entry fee)
	Heritage railway
	Historic House

Bretton Hall
Cartwright Hall
Cliffe Hall, also known as Cliffe Castle, Keighley
East Riddlesden Hall
Esholt Hall, Esholt
Firsby Hall
Harewood House
Kershaw House
Keighley and Worth Valley Railway
Kirklees Hall/Priory
Kirkstall Abbey
Roman Lagentium (Castleford)
Ledston Hall, Ledston
Linthwaite Hall, Linthwaite
Linton Hall
Lister Park, Bradford
Lotherton Hall
Middleton Railway, the world's oldest steam railway
Nostell Priory
Oakwell Hall
Oulton Hall, Oulton
Piece Hall, Halifax
Pontefract Castle
Pontefract Priory, Pontefract
Queen's Park, Castleford
Roundhay Park Leeds
Saltaire, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Sandal Castle
Scarcroft Watermill, Scarcroft
Shelley Hall, Shelley
Shibden Hall
Shipley Glen Tramway
Tong Hall, Tong
Wetherby Castle, Wetherby

Harewood House

Sandal Castle

Museums

Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds: Looking up the main stairwell

Abbey House Museum, Leeds
Armley Mills Industrial Museum, Leeds
Bankfield Museum, Halifax
Bradford Industrial Museum, Eccleshill/Fagley, Bradford
Brontë Parsonage Museum, Haworth
Colne Valley Museum, Golcar, Huddersfield
Eureka, Halifax
Leeds City Museum, Leeds
National Coal Mining Museum for England Overton, Wakefield
National Media Museum, Bradford
Pennine Farm Museum, Ripponden, Halifax
Pontefract Museum
Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds
Thackray Museum, Leeds
The Hepworth Wakefield
Thwaite Mills, Leeds
Tolson Museum, Dalton, Huddersfield
Wakefield Museum, Wakefield
West Yorkshire Folk Museum, Shibden Hall, Halifax
Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton, Wakefield

Natural environment

Emley Moor Mast

Emley Moor, site of the tallest self-supporting structure in the UK (a TV mast)
Harewood Estate – Leeds Country Way public footpath runs through the estate, beautiful landscaped gardens and home to Red Kites amongst many other birds
Ilkley Moor, part of Rombalds Moor
New Swillington Ings Nature Reserve
Otley Chevin – extensive wooded parkland on high ground with extensive views North over Wharfedale and South as far as the Peak District
RSPB Fairburn Ings – wetland centre for birds
Seckar Woods LNR, a Local Nature Reserve
Walton Hall, West Yorkshire, home of naturalist Charles Waterton and the world's first nature reserve