Calderdale
§ This page gives an overview of the Calderdale local authority district, bringing together key facts, maps, and data to help you quickly understand the area. One of 361 district profiles on Baseview.
Overview ⁞ Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, is a district shaped by the steep-sided valleys of the River Calder and surrounding Pennine hills. Halifax, the main town, is known for the Piece Hall, a Georgian cloth hall, and Shibden Hall, a Tudor manor set in parkland. Market towns such as Hebden Bridge and Todmorden have thriving arts and cultural scenes, with historic mills converted into galleries and cafes. The rugged moorland landscapes of the South Pennines surround the towns, offering walking routes, reservoirs, and dramatic views. Villages built of gritstone cling to hillsides, adding to Calderdale’s unique character of industrial heritage set within wild countryside.
The administrative boundary of Calderdale can be viewed on OpenStreetMap: District Boundary of Calderdale.
Key Facts about Calderdale
What region is Calderdale in? Calderdale is in the Yorkshire and The Humber of England, a region within the UK.
What county is Calderdale in? Calderdale is located in the county of West Yorkshire.
Is Calderdale a city? No, Calderdale is not a city. (Note: the UK has 76 officially designated cities.)
Who governs Calderdale? The local government for this district is: Calderdale Borough Council (Metropolitan District).
▶ Official website of Calderdale Borough Council 🔗 calderdale.gov.uk
Which police force covers Calderdale? Policing in Calderdale is provided by West Yorkshire Police 🔗 westyorkshire.police.uk, which serves 5 local authority districts: Bradford ⁞ Calderdale ⁞ Kirklees ⁞ Leeds ⁞ Wakefield.
Calderdale in International Geographies
In the International Territorial Levels (ITLs) hierarchy, Calderdale is within an ITLs Level 3 area:
- (ITL 1) Yorkshire and The Humber
- (ITL 2) ⇒ West Yorkshire
- (ITL 3) ⇒⇒ Calderdale and Kirklees
The International Territorial Levels are used by OECD member countries for statistical purposes to classify administrative areas. We have this listable page for easy browsing of ITL names and codes: International Territorial Levels.
Constituencies in Calderdale
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. We have this list page for easy browsing of all UK parliamentary constituencies: List of Constituencies.
Wards in Calderdale
Calderdale is divided into 17 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Brighouse
- Calder
- Elland
- Greetland and Stainland
- Hipperholme and Lightcliffe
- Illingworth and Mixenden
- Luddendenfoot
- Northowram and Shelf
- Ovenden
- Park
- Rastrick
- Ryburn
- Skircoat
- Sowerby Bridge
- Todmorden
- Town
- Warley
In the UK, a ward is a subdivision of a local authority area, used mainly for electoral and statistical purposes. Defined by the ONS, wards represent the primary unit for local elections, each returning one or more councillors to the local council. Wards are also used as a key geography for presenting population and census data.
Parishes in Calderdale
Calderdale is part-parished: 8 civil parishes (listed A-Z below) alongside 3 unparished areas.
- Blackshaw
- Erringden
- Hebden Royd
- Heptonstall
- Ripponden
- Stainland and District
- Todmorden
- Wadsworth
A civil parish is the lowest tier of local government in England, used for villages, small towns, and suburbs. They have their own local authority, either a parish council or a parish meeting, which provides local services like managing parks, allotments, and streetlights, and represents the community's views to larger councils.
Built-up Areas in Calderdale
Calderdale covers 22 built-up areas, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Barkisland
- Bradford *
- Brighouse *
- Cleckheaton *
- Cragg Vale
- Elland
- Halifax *
- Hebden Bridge
- Heptonstall
- Holywell Green and Stainland
- Huddersfield *
- Luddenden Foot
- Mirfield *
- Mytholmroyd
- Norwood Green
- Outlane *
- Ripponden
- Scholes (near Cleckheaton) *
- Shelf and Northowram *
- Sowerby Bridge
- Summit *
- Todmorden *
In the UK, a Built-up Area (BUA) is a continuous urban area of at least 20 hectares (0.2 km²), defined by the ONS as land where buildings are generally no more than 200 metres apart, such as towns, cities, or large villages. (Note: A BUA name marked with an asterisk (*) indicates that the area is situated partly in the district of Calderdale.)
Calderdale compared with other districts in the UK
This section shows how Calderdale compares with other local authority districts in the UK, using a variety of measures and rankings.
Calderdale has 17 electoral wards.
Calderdale has a population of 210,929 (2024 mid-year estimate by ONS)
More local statistics and data for Calderdale can be found on the ONS statistics for Calderdale.