Guildford
§ This page gives an overview of the Guildford local authority district, bringing together key facts, maps, and data to help you quickly understand the area. This is one of 361 LAD profiles on Baseview.
Overview ⁞ Guildford, in Surrey, is a historic market town set in the Wey Valley, surrounded by the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The High Street is known for its cobbled slope, Guildford Castle, and cathedral overlooking the town. The River Wey runs through, with canalside walks and meadows. Villages such as Shere and Ripley add historic charm with timber-framed houses and churches. The surrounding hills and commons offer scenic views, woodlands, and trails, making Guildford a mix of urban heritage and rural beauty.
Guildford Boundary Map
This map shows the official boundary of the Guildford local authority district, based on the latest geographic data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It provides a clear view of the district’s extent and helps you understand how the area fits within the wider regional and national landscape.
Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2025. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
The administrative boundary of Guildford can also be viewed on OpenStreetMap: District Boundary of Guildford.
Key Facts about Guildford
What region is Guildford in? Guildford is in the South East of England, a region within the UK.
What county is Guildford in? Guildford is located in the county of Surrey.
Is Guildford a city? No, Guildford is not a city. (Note: the UK has 76 officially designated cities.)
Who governs Guildford? The local authority for this district is: Guildford Borough Council - responsible for district-level services. Since Surrey is a two-tier area, county-level services are handled by: Surrey County Council.
▶ Official website of Guildford Borough Council 🔗 guildford.gov.uk
Which police force covers Guildford? Policing in Guildford is provided by Surrey Police 🔗 surrey.police.uk, which serves 11 local authority districts: Elmbridge ⁞ Epsom and Ewell ⁞ Guildford ⁞ Mole Valley ⁞ Reigate and Banstead ⁞ Runnymede ⁞ Spelthorne ⁞ Surrey Heath ⁞ Tandridge ⁞ Waverley ⁞ Woking.
Constituencies in Guildford
Guildford is divided into 3 parliamentary constituencies, listed below in alphabetical order.
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 Guildford
Guildford is divided into 21 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Ash South
- Ash Vale
- Ash Wharf
- Bellfields & Slyfield
- Burpham
- Castle
- Clandon & Horsley
- Effingham
- Merrow
- Normandy & Pirbright
- Onslow
- Pilgrims
- Send & Lovelace
- Shalford
- St Nicolas
- Stoke
- Stoughton North
- Stoughton South
- Tillingbourne
- Westborough
- Worplesdon
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. We have this list page for easy browsing of all electoral wards: List of all Electoral Wards in the UK.
Parishes in Guildford
Guildford is part-parished: 24 civil parishes (listed A-Z below) alongside 2 unparished areas.
- Albury
- Artington
- Ash
- Compton
- East Clandon
- East Horsley
- Effingham
- Normandy
- Ockham
- Pirbright
- Puttenham
- Ripley
- Seale and Sands
- Send
- Shackleford
- Shalford
- Shere
- St. Martha
- Tongham
- Wanborough
- West Clandon
- West Horsley
- Wisley
- Worplesdon
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.
We have this list page for easy browsing of all parishes: List of Civil Parishes in England and Wales.
Post Towns in Guildford
Below is a list of post towns in Guildford, grouped by postcode area:
GU ▸ Guildford (GU1 / GU2 / GU3 / GU4 / GU5)
The UK postal hierarchy begins with broad postcode areas (such as “CB” or “M”), which are divided into smaller postcode districts (such as “CB8” or “M1”) to support accurate mail routing. Each postal address is anchored by a designated post town, the official locality name used in the UK postcode system, which operates independently from Local Authority Districts —the administrative boundaries used for council tax and local government services. Because they serve different purposes, a property’s postal address and its local authority district do not always align exactly.
Built-up Areas in Guildford
Guildford covers 48 built-up areas, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Albury
- Albury Heath
- Aldershot *
- Artington
- Ash and Ash Vale *
- Ash Green (Guildford)
- Bramley and Wonersh *
- Brookwood *
- Byfleet *
- Chilworth (Guildford) *
- East Horsley
- Effingham
- Elm Corner
- Fairlands
- Farley Green
- Farnborough *
- Farncombe *
- Godalming *
- Gomshall
- Great Bookham and Fetcham *
- Guildford
- Holmbury St Mary *
- Jacobs Well *
- Milford and Witley *
- Mytchett *
- Normandy
- Norney
- Peaslake *
- Peasmarsh (Guildford)
- Pirbright *
- Puttenham
- Ripley (Guildford)
- Runfold *
- Sandy Cross *
- Send *
- Shackleford *
- Shalford (Guildford)
- Sheet's Heath *
- Shere
- Sutton Abinger *
- The Sands *
- West Clandon
- West Horsley
- Wisley *
- Woking *
- Wood Street Village
- Worplesdon *
- Wyke
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 Guildford.)
We have this list page for easy browsing of all built-up areas: List of all Built-up Areas in GB.
Railway Stations in Guildford
Guildford is served by a number of National Rail stations, providing rail connections to nearby towns, cities, and destinations across Great Britain. The railway stations listed below are located within the Guildford Local Authority District and are grouped by train operating company for clarity.
- Great Western Railway ▸ North Camp (GU12 5QA) ⁞ Shalford (Surrey) (GU4 8LE) ⁞ Gomshall (GU5 9NX) ⁞ Chilworth (GU4 6TT)
- Network Rail ▸ Guildford (GU1 4UT)
- South Western Railway ▸ London Road (Guildford) (GU1 4DQ) ⁞ Ash Vale (GU12 5LP) ⁞ Horsley (KT24 6QX) ⁞ Ash (GU12 6JW) ⁞ Effingham Junction (KT24 5HX) ⁞ Clandon (GU4 7TE) ⁞ Wanborough (GU3 2ED)
This is a district-level view only. For a complete list of all National Rail stations across Great Britain, see the UK National Rail Stations Directory.
Guildford compared with other districts in the UK
This section shows how Guildford compares with other local authority districts in the UK, using a variety of measures and rankings.
Guildford has 21 electoral wards.
Guildford has a population of 151,359 (2024 mid-year estimate by ONS)
Population and Migration Trends in Guildford
This chart shows the population trend for Guildford from 2015 to 2024. It provides a quick overview of whether the local authority is growing, stable, or declining over time, and helps set context for the migration patterns shown below.
Population change is influenced by natural change (births minus deaths) and migration. The net migration chart below focuses on migration, separating internal migration (moves within the UK) from international migration (moves to and from abroad). Positive values indicate net inflows, while negative values indicate net outflows. The rate labels (per 1,000 residents) help compare migration intensity across years, even when the population size changes.
More local statistics and data for Guildford can be found on the ONS statistics for Guildford.