Lancashire

Lancashire is a county palatine of England, lying on the Irish Sea.

The county borders Cumbria, North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, and Merseyside, and the unitary authorities of Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen.

The county before 1974 bordered Cumberland, Westmorland, Yorkshire, and Cheshire. The administrative area is now rather smaller than that of the historic county as a result of the Local Government Act 1972. From April 1, 1974 the Furness area (the area of Lancashire north of Morecambe Bay) was given to the new county of Cumbria, the south east being given to Greater Manchester, and the south-west becoming Merseyside. Warrington town and surrounding districts including the villages of Winwick and Croft and Risley and Culcheth were annexed to Cheshire. A part of the West Riding of Yorkshire near Clitheroe, was transferred to Lancashire also. In 1998 Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen became independent of the county as unitary authorities, but remained in Lancashire for ceremonial purposes, as well as for fire and rescue and policing.

Lancashire is divided into a number of local government districts. These are Burnley, Chorley, Fylde, Hyndburn, Lancaster, Pendle, Preston, the Ribble Valley, Rossendale, South Ribble, West Lancashire, and Wyre.

Lancashire's population in 2000 was estimated as 1,429,450. Its name comes from Lancaster + shire.

Towns, cities, villages in Lancashire

Note: some of these places are no longer in Lancashire.

• Accrington, Adlington
• Bacup, Bamber Bridge, Barrow-in-Furness, Barnoldswick, Bickerstaffe, Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Burnley, Burscough
• Carnforth, Chipping, Chorley, Clayton-le-Moors, Cleveleys, Clitheroe, Colne
• Dalton, Darwen
• Earby
• Fleetwood, Freckleton
• Galgate, Garstang, Gisburn, Goosnargh, Great Harwood
• Haslingden, Heysham, Hoghton
• Kirkham
• Lancaster, Lathom, Leyland, Liverpool, Longridge, Lytham
• Manchester, Mawdesley, Morecambe
• Nelson
• Ormskirk, Oswaldtwistle
• Padiham, Parbold, Pendle, Poulton-le-Fylde, Preston
• Rawtenstall, Ribchester, Rufford
• Silverdale, Skelmersdale, Slaidburn, St Annes
• Thornton, Trawden, Tyldesley
• Upholland
• Warrington, Whalley

Places of interest

• Astley Green Colliery Museum, Tyldesley
• Astley Hall
• British Commercial Vehicle Museum, Leyland
• East Lancashire Railway, a heritage railway
• Helmshore Textile Museum
• Hoghton Tower
• Samlesbury Hall
• Lathom Park Chapel, site of Lathom Hall, seat of the Earls of Derby
• Lancaster Castle

• Forest of Bowland
• Forest of Bowland AONB - Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
• RSPB Leighton Moss nature reserve, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
• Morecambe Bay
• WWT Martin Mere, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust reserve, Burscough
• Wyre Forest NNR National Nature Reserve

• Leeds and Liverpool Canal, Ribble Link
• River Ribble, River Douglas, River Tawd, River Lostock, River Irwell, River Roch
• Williamson Park and the Ashton Memorial

Options for change

On May 25, 2004 the Boundary Committee for England published its final recommendations for systems of Unitary Authorities to be implemented if proposals for elected Regional Assemblies are approved by referendums in three northern Regions of England. They put forward two options for each County Council area, which the electorate will be asked to choose between at the same time as the Assembly Referendums.

For Lancashire the options are

• a single authority for the existing County Council Area, with the Blackpool unitary authority extended over the Cleveleys and Fleetwood
• 5 authorities for the whole ceremonial county plus southern Cumbria, but with West Lancashire divided between Sefton in Merseyside and Wigan in Greater Manchester.

External links

• Lancashire County Council - http://www.lancashire.gov.uk/
• Friends of Real Lancashire - http://www.forl.co.uk/