West Lancashire was a
rural district from 1894 to 1974 in
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...
, England.
It was created with other rural districts in 1894, based on the
Ormskirk
Ormskirk is a market town in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England, north of Liverpool, northwest of St Helens, southeast of Southport and southwest of Preston. Ormskirk is known for its gingerbread.
Geography and administr ...
rural sanitary district
Sanitary districts were established in England and Wales in 1872 and in Ireland in 1878. The districts were of two types, based on existing structures:
*Urban sanitary districts in towns with existing local government bodies
*Rural sanitary dis ...
. It was expanded in 1932 by the abolition of the
Sefton Rural District.
The district was abolished in 1974 under the
Local Government Act 1972 and the area was divided as follows:
*The parishes of
Aintree
Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, north-east of Liverpool city centre, in North West England.
I ...
,
Ince Blundell
Ince Blundell is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in the ceremonial county of Merseyside and historic county of Lancashire, England. It is situated to the north of Liverpool on the A565 road and to the east of t ...
,
Maghull
Maghull ( ) is a town and civil parish in Sefton, Merseyside (historically a part of Lancashire). The town is north of Liverpool and west of Kirkby. The area also contains Ashworth Hospital.
Maghull had a population of 20,444 at the 2011 Cens ...
,
Melling,
Netherton,
Sefton and
Thornton, most of the parish of
Lydiate
Lydiate is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton on Merseyside, England but Historic counties of England, historically in Lancashire. It is located north of Maghull, with which it has a commo ...
, and
Little Altcar from the parish of Altcar, became part of the
Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in
Merseyside
Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wi ...
.
*The parish of
Simonswood
Simonswood is a civil parish in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England. At the 2001 census, the population was 130, increasing to 151 by the 2011 census.
It was originally a township associated with the parish of Walton on the H ...
became part of the
Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley
The Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley is a metropolitan borough in Merseyside, North West England. It covers several towns and villages, including Kirkby, Prescot, Huyton, Whiston, Halewood, Cronton and Stockbridge Village; Kirkby, Huyton, ...
in Merseyside.
*The remainder of the former rural district became part of the new district of
West Lancashire
West Lancashire is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. The council is based in Ormskirk, and the largest town in the borough is Skelmersdale. At the 2011 Census, the population of the borough was 110,68 ...
in Lancashire.
References
History of Lancashire
History of Merseyside
Districts of England created by the Local Government Act 1894
Districts of England abolished by the Local Government Act 1972
Rural districts of England
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