Districts of Wales

In 1974, Wales was re-divided for local government purposes into thirty-seven districts.  Districts were the second tier of local government introduced by the Local Government Act 1972. They were subdivisions of the eight counties introduced at the same time.  This system of two-tier local government was abolished in 1996 and replaced with the current system of unitary principal areas.

Each district was administered by an elected district council. The council was entitled to petition for a charter granting borough status, whereupon the district became a borough and the district council a borough council headed by a mayor. In addition, a district could be granted Letters Patent granting city status.

Category:Geography of Wales