Peterborough
§ This page gives an overview of the Peterborough 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 ⁞ Peterborough, in Cambridgeshire, is centred on its striking Norman cathedral, surrounded by a modern city with shopping centres, theatres, and riverside walks along the River Nene. The city’s history includes Bronze Age settlements such as Flag Fen and medieval abbeys, while Ferry Meadows in Nene Park provides lakes, meadows, and recreation. Surrounding villages and fenland farmland add rural diversity, while the city itself is a growing cultural and commercial hub.
The administrative boundary of Peterborough can be viewed on OpenStreetMap: District Boundary of Peterborough.
Key Facts about Peterborough
What region is Peterborough in? Peterborough is in the East of England of England, a region within the UK.
What county is Peterborough in? Peterborough is in the county of Cambridgeshire.
Is Peterborough a city? Yes, Peterborough is a city. Peterborough holds official city status as one of the 76 designated cities in the UK.
Who governs Peterborough? The local government for this district is: Peterborough City Council (Unitary Authority).
▶ Official website of Peterborough City Council 🔗 peterborough.gov.uk
Which police force covers Peterborough? Policing in Peterborough is provided by Cambridgeshire Constabulary 🔗 cambs.police.uk, which serves 6 local authority districts: Cambridge ⁞ East Cambridgeshire ⁞ Fenland ⁞ Huntingdonshire ⁞ Peterborough ⁞ South Cambridgeshire.
Peterborough in International Geographies
In the International Territorial Levels (ITLs) hierarchy, Peterborough is within one of ITLs Level 2 area, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, that contains the following 2 ITLs Level 3 areas:
(ITL 1) East of England
(ITL 2) ⇒ Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
(ITL 3) ⇒⇒ Peterborough ⁞ Cambridgeshire CC
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 Peterborough
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 Peterborough
Peterborough is divided into 22 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Barnack
- Bretton
- Central
- Dogsthorpe
- East
- Eye, Thorney and Newborough
- Fletton and Stanground
- Fletton and Woodston
- Glinton and Castor
- Gunthorpe
- Hampton Vale
- Hargate and Hempsted
- North
- Orton Longueville
- Orton Waterville
- Park
- Paston and Walton
- Ravensthorpe
- Stanground South
- Werrington
- West
- Wittering
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 Peterborough
Peterborough is part-parished: 29 civil parishes (listed A-Z below) alongside 2 unparished areas.
- Ailsworth
- Bainton
- Barnack
- Borough Fen
- Bretton
- Castor
- Deeping Gate
- Etton
- Eye
- Glinton
- Hampton Hargate and Vale
- Helpston
- Marholm
- Maxey
- Newborough
- Northborough
- Orton Longueville
- Orton Waterville
- Peakirk
- Southorpe
- St. Martin's Without
- Sutton
- Thorney
- Thornhaugh
- Ufford
- Upton
- Wansford
- Wittering
- Wothorpe
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 Peterborough
Peterborough covers 19 built-up areas, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Barnack
- Castor and Ailsworth
- Deeping St James *
- Eye (Peterborough)
- Farcet *
- Glinton
- Helpston
- Market Deeping *
- Maxey
- Newborough (Peterborough)
- Northborough
- Peterborough *
- Stamford *
- Thorney
- Ufford (Peterborough)
- Wansford *
- Wittering *
- Wothorpe *
- Yaxley (Huntingdonshire) *
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 Peterborough.)
Peterborough compared with other districts in the UK
This section shows how Peterborough compares with other local authority districts in the UK, using a variety of measures and rankings.
Peterborough has 22 electoral wards.
Peterborough has a population of 223,655 (2024 mid-year estimate by ONS)
More local statistics and data for Peterborough can be found on the ONS statistics for Peterborough.