Charnwood
§ This page gives an overview of the Charnwood 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 ⁞ Charnwood is named after the Charnwood Forest, an area of rugged hills, woodlands, and ancient rocks. The university town of Loughborough forms its lively centre, famous for its bell foundry and student culture. Villages like Quorn, Mountsorrel, and Sileby retain a traditional feel, while scenic landmarks such as Beacon Hill, Bradgate Park, and Swithland Reservoir attract walkers and nature enthusiasts. The River Soar flows through the district, supporting riverside paths and wetlands. Charnwood offers a blend of heritage, university vibrancy, and landscapes that stretch from historic market towns to wild, rocky countryside.
The administrative boundary of Charnwood can be viewed on OpenStreetMap: District Boundary of Charnwood.
Key Facts about Charnwood
What region is Charnwood in? Charnwood is in the East Midlands of England, a region within the UK.
What county is Charnwood in? Charnwood is located in the county of Leicestershire.
Is Charnwood a city? No, Charnwood is not a city. (Note: the UK has 76 officially designated cities.)
Who governs Charnwood? The local authority for this district is: Charnwood Borough Council - responsible for district-level services. Since Leicestershire is a two-tier area, county-level services are handled by: Leicestershire County Council.
▶ Official website of Charnwood Borough Council 🔗 charnwood.gov.uk
Which police force covers Charnwood? Policing in Charnwood is provided by Leicestershire Police 🔗 leics.police.uk, which serves 9 local authority districts: Blaby ⁞ Charnwood ⁞ Harborough ⁞ Hinckley and Bosworth ⁞ Leicester ⁞ Melton ⁞ North West Leicestershire ⁞ Oadby and Wigston ⁞ Rutland.
Constituencies in Charnwood
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. We have this list page for easy browsing of all UK parliamentary constituencies: List of Constituencies.
Wards in Charnwood
Charnwood is divided into 24 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Anstey
- Barrow upon Soar
- Birstall East & Wanlip
- Birstall West
- Dishley, Hathern & Thorpe Acre
- Forest Bradgate
- Loughborough Ashby
- Loughborough East
- Loughborough Nanpantan
- Loughborough Outwoods & Shelthorpe
- Loughborough Southfields
- Loughborough Storer
- Loughborough Woodthorpe
- Mountsorrel
- Quorn & Mountsorrel Castle
- Rothley Brook
- Shepshed East
- Shepshed West
- Sileby & Seagrave
- South Charnwood
- Syston
- The Wolds
- Thurmaston
- Wreake Valley
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 Charnwood
Charnwood is part-parished: 36 civil parishes (listed A-Z below) alongside 3 unparished areas.
- Anstey
- Barkby
- Barkby Thorpe
- Barrow upon Soar
- Beeby
- Birstall
- Burton on the Wolds
- Cossington
- Cotes
- East Goscote
- Hamilton Lea
- Hathern
- Hoton
- Mountsorrel
- Newtown Linford
- Prestwold
- Queniborough
- Quorn
- Ratcliffe on the Wreake
- Rearsby
- Rothley
- Seagrave
- Shepshed
- Sileby
- South Croxton
- Stonebow Village
- Swithland
- Syston
- Thrussington
- Thurcaston and Cropston
- Thurmaston
- Ulverscroft
- Walton on the Wolds
- Wanlip
- Woodhouse
- Wymeswold
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 Charnwood
Charnwood covers 33 built-up areas, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Anstey *
- Barrow upon Soar
- Birstall *
- Burton on the Wolds
- Cossington (Charnwood)
- Cropston
- East Goscote
- Hathern
- Leicester *
- Long Whatton *
- Loughborough
- Markfield *
- Mountsorrel
- Newtown Linford
- Normanton on Soar *
- Queniborough
- Quorndon
- Ratcliffe on the Wreake
- Rearsby
- Rothley
- Seagrave
- Shepshed
- Sileby
- South Croxton
- Swithland
- Syston
- Thrussington
- Thurcaston *
- Thurmaston *
- Wanlip
- Woodhouse
- Woodhouse Eaves
- Wymeswold
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 Charnwood.)
Charnwood compared with other districts in the UK
This section shows how Charnwood compares with other local authority districts in the UK, using a variety of measures and rankings.
Charnwood has 24 electoral wards.
Charnwood has a population of 188,385 (2024 mid-year estimate by ONS)
More local statistics and data for Charnwood can be found on the ONS statistics for Charnwood.