County Borough of Warley
| Warley | |
|---|---|
| County borough | |
 Map of Warley County Borough |
|
| Area | |
| • 1966 | 3,833 acres (15.51 km2) |
| • 1974 | 3,833 acres (15.51 km2) |
| Population | |
| • 1971 | 163,545 |
| History | |
| • Preceded by | • County Borough of Smethwick • Municipal Borough of Oldbury • Municipal Borough of Rowley Regis |
| • Origin | Local Government Act 1958 |
| • Created | 1966 |
| • Abolished | 1974 |
| • Succeeded by | Sandwell |
| Status | County borough, Civil parish |
| • HQ | Council House, Smethwick |
| • Motto | Unity and Progress |
 Arms of the County Borough of Warley |
|
Warley was a short-lived county borough and civil parish in the geographical county of Worcestershire, England, forming part of the West Midlands conurbation. It was formed in 1966 by the combination of the existing county borough of Smethwick with the municipal boroughs of Oldbury and Rowley Regis, by recommendation of the Local Government Commission for England. It was abolished just 8 years later in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, with its area passing to the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell.
The Local Government Act 1958 appointed a Local Government Commission to review administrative structures and boundaries in England outside London. The Act designated a "West Midlands Special Review Area" as one of five conurbations in which urgent reform was felt to be needed. The commission made its report in July 1961, recommending that the Black Country area of the West Midlands should be administered by five large county boroughs. The proposal to merge the boroughs of Oldbury, Rowley Regis and Smethwick as one of the new authorities was initially suggested by the three councils involved. The government announced that it accepted the proposals in November 1962, and it was originally intended that the County Borough of Warley should come into being on 1 April 1964. The reforms were delayed when five district councils in the review area took legal action in an attempt to prevent their implementation. The legal process was finally concluded in the Court of Appeal in July 1965, with the court ruling in the government's favour. Plans for Rowley Regis to be absorbed into an expanded Dudley borough were also considered, while Halesowen was being lined up as the third area to be absorbed into a new borough which also included Oldbury and Smethwick, but this did not happen and the borough of Halesowen survived until it was incorporated into the new Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in 1974.
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