§ This page provides an overview of an officially designated city in the UK, bringing together various information to help you better understand this city.
Durham’s city status is of ancient origin tied to its cathedral and the Prince Bishops; it was carried by the reformed City of Durham district from 1974 to 2009 and preserved after reorganisation by charter trustees, with a City of Durham parish council created in 2018. From an early medieval stronghold and pilgrimage centre, Durham grew with its university (from 1832) and later public administration. Local government changed in 2009 when Durham County Council became a unitary authority and the district councils were abolished; since 2024 the county has also sat within the new North East Mayoral Combined Authority, adding a regional strategic layer over transport, skills and investment.
City Council Status
Durham County Council has been the unitary principal authority since 2009. Charter Trustees of the City of Durham preserve the mayoralty and civic heritage for the historic city, alongside the City of Durham Parish Council (created 2018) which handles hyper-local parish matters.
In the UK, charter trustees are formed to preserve a city or borough’s historic civic identity—especially the mayoralty and ceremonial traditions—when local-government changes abolish the former city/borough council and no successor parish or town council exists; they are usually drawn from principal-authority councillors for the wards covering the historic city area and may levy a small council-tax precept to fund civic functions. Among the UK’s official cities, four currently have charter trustees: Bath, Carlisle, Chester, and Durham.
In the UK, a city is not defined by size or population but by formal status granted by the monarch, often through historical charters or, more recently, civic honours competitions. There are 76 officially recognised cities, some of which are relatively small compared to other urban areas. In contrast, local authority districts (361 in total) are administrative areas created for local government purposes and may include a mix of urban centres, suburbs, and rural communities. Within districts, there may be one or more towns, which generally refer to sizeable urban settlements but do not hold city status unless it has been formally granted. In practice, a city can exist within a district, and a district can cover multiple towns, showing the clear distinction between legal status, administrative boundaries, and everyday usage.
