North Yorkshire

Ceremonial County in England

Region: Yorkshire and the Humber

§ This page provides an overview of an England's ceremonial county. Our website has 48 such county pages.

Overview ⁞ North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county in England by area, known for its stunning national parks including the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors. Formed in 1974 from parts of the historic North and West Ridings, it encompasses a wide variety of landscapes, from rolling hills to dramatic coastlines. Key towns include Harrogate, Scarborough, Whitby, and Skipton, while the historic City of York—an independent unitary authority—is also part of the ceremonial county. As of 2023, local government is managed by the North Yorkshire Council and the City of York Council.

Is North Yorkshire a historic county? No—North Yorkshire is not a historic county; it was formed in 1974, largely succeeding the historic North Riding of Yorkshire. Administratively, the ceremonial county comprises North Yorkshire Council (a unitary authority) and the separate City of York unitary authority.

North Yorkshire has 4 Local Authority Districts. The chart below shows how this compares with other counties in England.

Number of local authority districts in North Yorkshire and other counties — Number of local authority districts in North Yorkshire, compared with other counties

This county page, North Yorkshire, is a sub-page this region page: Yorkshire and the Humber. It zooms in to local authorities, administrative districts, and parliamentary constituencies in this county. We have this list page for easy browsing of all historic counties, ceremonial counties, and administrative counties: List of all counties in the UK.

Local Authorities in North Yorkshire

City of York Council (Unitary Authority) 🔗 york.gov.uk
Middlesbrough Borough Council (Unitary Authority) 🔗 middlesbrough.gov.uk
North Yorkshire Council (Unitary Authority) 🔗 northyorks.gov.uk
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council (Unitary Authority) 🔗 redcar-cleveland.gov.uk
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council (Unitary Authority) 🔗 stockton.gov.uk

North Yorkshire, in England’s Yorkshire and the Humber region, adopted a new unitary system of local government in 2023, with North Yorkshire Council now responsible for all local services across the county, replacing the former county and district councils. Alongside this, the City of York operates as a separate unitary authority, managing all services within its area. In addition, Middlesbrough Borough Council and Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council are independent unitary authorities created after the abolition of Cleveland in 1996; while they are not part of North Yorkshire’s administrative structure, they fall within the ceremonial county for lieutenancy purposes. Together, these councils oversee a region that includes the historic city of York, the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors National Parks, the coastal towns of Scarborough, Whitby, and Redcar, and market towns such as Harrogate, Skipton, and Northallerton, combining modern governance with diverse rural, coastal, and urban communities.

Districts in North Yorkshire

In the International Territorial Levels (ITLs) hierarchy, North Yorkshire is one of ITLs Level 2 area that contains the following 2 ITLs Level 3 areas:

(ITL 1) Yorkshire and the Humber
(ITL 2) ⇒ North Yorkshire
(ITL 3) ⇒⇒ York ⁞ North Yorkshire

Constituencies in North Yorkshire

A constituency is a specific geographical area that elects one Member of Parliament (MP) to represent them in the House of Commons. The United Kingdom is divided into 650 parliamentary constituencies, 54 of them are in Yorkshire and the Humber region, 12 of them are in North Yorkshire.

Local Authorities in North Yorkshire

Districts in North Yorkshire

Constituencies in North Yorkshire

Counties in Yorkshire and the Humber