| Borough of Halton | |
| Settlement Type: | Borough and unitary authority |
| Shield Link: | Halton Borough Council#Coat of arms |
| Motto: | Latin: Industria Navem Implet |translation=Industry Fills the Ship |
| Coordinates: | 53.345°N -2.7386°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Sovereign state |
| Subdivision Name: | United Kingdom |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | England |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Name2: | North West |
| Subdivision Type3: | Ceremonial county |
| Subdivision Name3: | Cheshire |
| Subdivision Type4: | City region |
| Subdivision Name4: | Liverpool |
| Established Title: | Incorporated |
| Established Date: | 1 April 1974 |
| Established Title1: | Unitary authority |
| Established Date1: | 1 April 1998 |
| Named For: | Barony of Halton |
| Seat Type: | Administrative HQ |
| Seat: | Municipal Building, Widnes |
| Government Footnotes: | [1] |
| Government Type: | Unitary authority |
| Governing Body: | Halton Borough Council |
| Leader Title: | Executive |
| Leader Name: | Leader and cabinet |
| Leader Title1: | Control |
| Leader Title2: | Leader |
| Leader Name2: | Mike Wharton (L) |
| Leader Title3: | Mayor of Halton |
| Leader Name3: | Kevan Wainwright |
| Leader Title4: | MPs |
| Area Total Km2: | 90 |
| Area Rank: | |
| Population Rank: | |
| Demographics Type1: | Ethnicity (2021) |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Ethnic groups |
| Demographics Type2: | Religion (2021) |
| Demographics2 Title1: | Religion |
| Timezone1: | GMT |
| Utc Offset1: | +0 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | BST |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | +1 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postcode areas |
| Area Code Type: | Dialling codes |
| Iso Code: | GB-HAL |
| Blank1 Name: | GSS code |
| Blank1 Info: | E06000006 |
Halton is a local government district with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, North West England. The borough was created in 1974 and contains the towns of Runcorn and Widnes and the civil parishes of Daresbury, Hale, Halebank, Moore, Preston Brook, and Sandymoor.[2] Since 1998, Halton Borough Council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council.[3] Since 2014, it has been a member of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.
The neighbouring districts (clockwise from west) are Liverpool, Knowsley, St Helens, Warrington and Cheshire West and Chester.
The River Mersey marks the boundary of the historic counties of Lancashire (to the north) and Cheshire (to the south). Before 1974, Widnes was administered by the Municipal Borough of Widnes in Lancashire, and Runcorn by Runcorn Urban District Council in Cheshire.
The 1969 Redcliffe-Maud Report recommended reforms to local government in England, including the abolition of all existing local government areas. They were to be replaced by mostly unitary authorities with the exception of three two-tier metropolitan areas to be called Merseyside, SELNEC and West Midlands. Runcorn and Widnes would form part of the new Merseyside Metropolitan Area under a district called 'St Helens-Widnes'.[4]
The proposals were broadly accepted by the then Labour government but set aside by the incoming Conservative government following the 1970 general election which it had fought on a manifesto pledge to introduce a system of two-tier local government.[5] The Local Government Act 1972 created new metropolitan counties around Liverpool (as Merseyside) and Manchester (as Greater Manchester) but Runcorn and Widnes would not be allocated to either. Instead, Widnes and Warrington would be moved into the non-metropolitan county of Cheshire, with Widnes joining Runcorn to create the new non-metropolitan district of Halton. The name of the new district was inspired by the ancient Barony of Halton which had possessed land on both sides of the river. The district was established on 1 April 1974. In addition to Runcorn Urban District and the Municipal Borough of Widnes, parts of Runcorn Rural District and the parish of Hale from Whiston Rural District were incorporated into Halton.
On 1 April 1998, Halton became a unitary authority, independent of Cheshire County Council. However, it continues to be served by Cheshire Police and Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service, and forms part of Cheshire for ceremonial purposes. On 1 April 2014, Halton became part of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, joining the local authorities of Liverpool, Sefton, Wirral, Knowsley and St Helens; the five metropolitan district councils which constitute the county of Merseyside. As a unitary authority, Halton's status is similar to the metropolitan district councils.
The population of Halton is . Although the borough was only created in 1974, the change in population since 1801 has been calculated by adapting historical census data to modern boundaries.[6]
| Year | Population | Change as % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1801 | 6,460 | — | |
| 1811 | 7,491 | +16.0% | |
| 1821 | 8,962 | +19.6% | |
| 1831 | 10,918 | +21.8% | |
| 1841 | 13,364 | +22.4% | |
| 1851 | 16,296 | +21.9% | |
| 1861 | 17,678 | +8.5% | |
| 1871 | — | — | |
| 1881 | 46,181 | — | |
| 1891 | 58,042 | +25.7% | |
| 1901 | — | — | |
| 1911 | 56,656 | — | |
| 1921 | 61,977 | +9.4% | |
| 1931 | 64,979 | +4.8% | |
| 1941 | — | — | |
| 1951 | 80,072 | — | |
| 1961 | 82,119 | +2.6% | |
| 1971 | 99,749 | +21.5% | |
| 1981 | 129,187 | +29.5% | |
| 1991 | 128,525 | −0.5% | |
| 2001 | 118,242 | −8.0% | |
| 2011 | 125,746 | +6.3% | |
| 2021 | 128,478 | +2.2% |
In the 2021 census, Christianity was the main religion in Halton at 58.6%, above the national average for England of 46.3% but down from 75% in 2011. 35.2% stated that they had 'no religion'. Those stating their religion as Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh or other amounted to 1.6%.
In the 2021 census, 96.5% of Halton residents identified as White and 3.5% as non-White or mixed. 95.2% were born in the United Kingdom.
See also: Halton local elections.
Halton Borough Council is a unitary authority responsible for most local government functions within the area. The Labour Party has controlled the council since it was created in 1974.[8]
On 1 April 2014, Halton became one of the six constituent local government districts of the Liverpool City Region under the Combined Authority.[9]
Since the 2024 general election, the borough has been split into the two constituencies of Widnes and Halewood and Runcorn and Helsby, and held by Derek Twigg and Mike Amesbury respectively, both of the Labour Party.[10] [11]
In 2021, the borough's total GVA was £4.0 billion with a total GDP of £4.5 billion.[12] GVA per capita in Halton was £31,390 and GDP per capita was £34,985, the highest in the Liverpool City Region.[12]
In 2022, there were 67,000 jobs in Halton, including the self-employed.[13] The borough is an industrial, scientific and logistics hub with a higher proportion of jobs in these industries, and proportionally fewer jobs in hospitality and education compared to Great Britain.[13] Proportionally more jobs were full-time roles.[13]
In the period October 2022 to September 2023, the employment rate in Halton was 76.6%, higher than the average rate for Great Britain of 75.8%. Unemployment was 2.9% compared to 3.7% for Great Britain.[13]
However, people in Halton are qualified to a lower level than the average for the North West or Great Britain.[13] In 2023, the gross median weekly wage for full time workers living in Halton was £664. Although higher than the regional median of £649, it is lower than the £682.60 for Great Britain.[13]
The area is served by BBC North West and ITV Granada with television signals received from the Winter Hill TV transmitter.[14]
Radio stations for the area are:[15]
Local newspapers for the area are:
Halton is twinned with:
Following an appeal in 1997, Halton residents donated 1,000 English books to Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem.[19] In 1999, an historic Halton Transport bus was restored and gifted to the Czech Republic to mark the centenary of public transport in the city.[20] Engineers from Halton have assisted with chemical decontamination in the city and also when the city flooded in 2002.[21]
The first crazy golf course in Berlin, created in Marzahn-Hellersdorf in 2005, contains several Halton landmarks and was constructed with the assistance of exchange students from the borough.[22]
Several roads are named after Halton's twin boroughs, including Leiria Way in Runcorn and Marzahn Way in Widnes.[23] A Chinese friendship garden was created in the grounds of Runcorn Town Hall in 2006, including a bronze statue gifted by the twin city of Tongling.[24]