West Berkshire
| West Berkshire | |
|---|---|
| Local government district | |
 West Berkshire shown within Berkshire |
|
| Coordinates: 51°24′03″N 1°19′25″W / 51.4009°N 1.3235°WCoordinates: 51°24′03″N 1°19′25″W / 51.4009°N 1.3235°W | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Region | South East England |
| Ceremonial county | Berkshire |
| Status | Unitary authority |
| Incorporated | 1 April 1974 |
| Admin HQ | Newbury |
| Government | |
| • Type | Unitary authority |
| • Body | West Berkshire Council |
| • Leadership | Leader & Cabinet (Conservative) |
| • MPs | Richard Benyon, John Redwood, Alok Sharma |
| Area | |
| • Total | 271.88 sq mi (704.17 km2) |
| Area rank | 54th (of 326) |
| Population (mid-2014 est.) | |
| • Total | 155,732 |
| • Rank | 122nd (of 326) |
| • Density | 570/sq mi (220/km2) |
| • Ethnicity | 95.0% White 1.7% Asian 1.1% Black 1.3% Mixed Race 0.9% Chinese or other |
| Time zone | GMT (UTC0) |
| • Summer (DST) | BST (UTC+1) |
| ONS code | 00MB (ONS) E06000037 (GSS) |
| OS grid reference | SU4705467146 |
| Website | www |
West Berkshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Royal Berkshire, England, located almost equidistantly between Bristol and London. Its administrative town is Newbury and it is governed by the West Berkshire Council unitary authority.
The district of Newbury was formed on 1 April 1974, as a merger of the borough of Newbury, Bradfield Rural District, Hungerford Rural District and Newbury Rural District, along with part of Wantage Rural District.
Until 1 April 1998, Newbury District Council and Berkshire County council were responsible for the region at local government level. On 1 April 1998, Berkshire County Council was abolished and Newbury District Council changed its name to West Berkshire Council and took on the former County Council's responsibilities within its area.
West Berkshire is semi-rural in character, with most of the population living in the wooded Kennet valley. Apart from Newbury, the other main centres in the district include Thatcham, Hungerford, Pangbourne and Lambourn. It is worth noting that 30% of the population resides in the East of the district, which is centred around Tilehurst and Calcot. Larger villages include Theale, Purley-on-Thames, Burghfield, Mortimer and Hermitage. West Berkshire borders Hampshire to the south, Wiltshire to the west, Oxfordshire to the north and both the Reading and Wokingham authorities to the east. Around three-quarters of the land is designated North Wessex DownsArea of Outstanding Natural Beauty, ranging from the Berkshire Downs to the Thames Valley.
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