West Yorkshire

West Yorkshire is a landlocked metropolitan county of the United Kingdom, contained with the historical county of Yorkshire. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. It contains three cities, Bradford, Leeds, and Wakefield, and five metropolitan boroughs, City of Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, City of Leeds, and City of Wakefield. It borders 5 other counties; going clockwise from the north, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Greater Manchester, and Lancashire.

It has a population of 2.16 million and it covers around 783 square miles, making it the 29th largest ceremonial county by area in the UK, but 4th largest in terms of population. It has no county council, effectively making each borough independent.

References

• Arnold-Baker, C., Local Government Act 1972
• West Yorkshire Probation Trust