Wiltshire (district)

Wiltshire is a unitary authority area^[2][3] in the ceremonial county of Wiltshire,^[4] South West England. It was formed in April 2009 following the abolition of Wiltshire County Council and the districts of Kennet, North Wiltshire, Salisbury, and West Wiltshire. They were all replaced by Wiltshire Council,^[5] which is based at County Hall in Trowbridge. The remaining part of the ceremonial county is the Borough of Swindon, administered by a separate unitary authority. In 2022 it had a population of 515,885.

Wiltshire
Unitary authority area
Clockwise from top: Salisbury Cathedral; Trowbridge Town Hall; Lacock Abbey; Stonehenge; and Chippenham Market Place
Coat of arms
Shown within the ceremonial county of Wiltshire
Wiltshire Location within England Show map of England Wiltshire Location within the United Kingdom Show map of the United Kingdom Wiltshire Location in Europe Show map of Europe
Coordinates: 51°21′07″N 1°58′41″W
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Country	England
Region	South West England
County	Wiltshire
Unitary Authority	1 April 2009
Government
• Type	Non-metropolitan district
• Local Authority	Wiltshire Council
• Council Leader	Richard Clewer
Population  (2022)
• Total	515,885 (Ranked 11th)
Ethnicity (2021) [1]
• Ethnic groups	List 94.3% White 2.1% Asian 1.7% Mixed 1.1% Black 0.7% other
Religion (2021) [1]
• Religion	List 50.2% Christianity 41.3% no religion 0.7% Islam 0.5% Hinduism 0.5% Buddhism 0.1% Sikhism 0.1% Judaism 0.6% other 6.0% not stated
Time zone	UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time)
Postcode	SP, SN4-6, SN8-14, BA2, BA12-15, RG17
Post town	Bath, Salisbury, Swindon and Reading
Dialling code	01249 and others
ISO 3166 code	GB-WIL
Police	Wiltshire Police
Fire	Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service
Ambulance	South Western
Website	www.wiltshire.gov.uk

Salisbury is the only city in the district and its largest settlement.^[6] After the city, the next largest urban areas are Chippenham and Trowbridge.

History

Main article: Wiltshire Council

Until 2009, Wiltshire had four districts – Kennet, North Wiltshire, Salisbury, and West Wiltshire^[7][8] – together with the Borough of Swindon which had been made a separate unitary authority in 1997. Proposals were made to abolish the four districts and form one unitary area to cover the county of Wiltshire, outside the Borough of Swindon. In April 2009, Wiltshire Council assumed the roles and responsibilities of the four former districts.^[9][10]

Main settlements

See also: List of places in Wiltshire and List of settlements in Wiltshire by population

• Amesbury
• Bradford-on-Avon
• Calne
• Chippenham
• Corsham
• Cricklade
• Devizes
• Larkhill
• Ludgershall
• Malmesbury
• Marlborough
• Melksham
• Mere
• Royal Wootton Bassett
• Salisbury
• Tidworth
• Trowbridge
• Warminster
• Westbury
• Wilton

References

1. UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Wiltshire Local Authority (E06000054)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
2. "Wiltshire Council". Business South. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
3. "Wiltshire Council - view and make Freedom of Information requests". WhatDoTheyKnow. 16 August 2024. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
4. "Lieutenancies Act 1997", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1997 c. 23, retrieved 21 August 2024
5. "Written evidence submitted by Wiltshire Council [OSG 034]". committees.parliament.uk. committees.parliament.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
6. "Salisbury - Market Town". Visit Wiltshire. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
7. Archives, The National. "The Discovery Service". discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
8. Archives, The National. "The Discovery Service". discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
9. "This Order provides for the establishment, on 1st April 2009, of a single tier of local government in Wiltshire (article 3). The area of the county remains unchanged. A new district is created, with the same area as the county". www.legislation.gov.uk. www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
10. "Plans for solar farm outside Salisbury refused by Wiltshire Council". Salisbury Journal. 16 August 2024. Retrieved 18 August 2024.