West Midlands
§ This page provides an overview of an England's ceremonial county. Our website has 48 such county pages.
Overview ⁞ West Midlands is a metropolitan ceremonial county formed in 1974, encompassing Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton, and surrounding boroughs like Dudley, Walsall, Sandwell, and Solihull. This highly urbanised and diverse region was a major centre of the Industrial Revolution and remains one of the most economically and culturally important parts of the UK. Each borough is a metropolitan district council, and together they form the West Midlands Combined Authority, led by a directly elected Mayor of the West Midlands.
Is West Midlands a historic county? No—West Midlands is not a historic county; it was created in 1974 from parts of Staffordshire, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire. Administratively, it is a metropolitan county made up of seven metropolitan boroughs, with no county council since 1986.
West Midlands has 7 Local Authority Districts. The chart below shows how this compares with other counties in England.
Local Authorities in West Midlands
- Birmingham City Council (Metropolitan District) 🔗 birmingham.gov.uk
- Coventry City Council (Metropolitan District) 🔗 coventry.gov.uk
- Dudley Borough Council (Metropolitan District) 🔗 dudley.gov.uk
- Sandwell Borough Council (Metropolitan District) 🔗 sandwell.gov.uk
- Solihull Borough Council (Metropolitan District) 🔗 solihull.gov.uk
- Walsall Borough Council (Metropolitan District) 🔗 go.walsall.gov.uk
- Wolverhampton City Council (Metropolitan District) 🔗 wolverhampton.gov.uk
The West Midlands county, at the heart of England’s West Midlands region, is made up of seven metropolitan boroughs, each governed by its own council. These are Birmingham City Council, the largest local authority in the county and the UK, Coventry City Council, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council, and Wolverhampton City Council. Unlike shire counties, the West Midlands has no county council, as each borough operates as a unitary authority handling all local government functions from education and housing to transport and planning. Together, these councils serve a diverse county that includes England’s second city, Birmingham, alongside historic centres like Coventry, industrial towns across the Black Country, and greener suburban areas such as Solihull.
Districts in West Midlands
(ITL 1) West Midlands
(ITL 2) ⇒ West Midlands
(ITL 3) ⇒⇒ Birmingham ⁞ Solihull ⁞ Coventry ⁞ Dudley ⁞ Sandwell ⁞ Walsall ⁞ Wolverhampton
Constituencies in West Midlands
- Aldridge-Brownhills
- Birmingham Edgbaston
- Birmingham Erdington
- Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley
- Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North
- Birmingham Ladywood
- Birmingham Northfield
- Birmingham Perry Barr
- Birmingham Selly Oak
- Birmingham Yardley
- Coventry East
- Coventry North West
- Coventry South
- Dudley
- Halesowen
- Kingswinford and South Staffordshire
- Meriden and Solihull East
- Smethwick
- Solihull West and Shirley
- Stourbridge
- Sutton Coldfield
- Tipton and Wednesbury
- Walsall and Bloxwich
- West Bromwich
- Wolverhampton North East
- Wolverhampton South East
- Wolverhampton West
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, 59 of them are in the West Midlands region, 27 of them are in West Midlands.