West Midlands county
| West Midlands | |
|---|---|
| County | |
 West Midlands in England |
|
| Sovereign state |
 United Kingdom
|
| Country |
 England
|
| Region | West Midlands |
| Established | 1 April 1974 (Local Government Act 1972) |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Area | 902 km2 (348 sq mi) |
| • Ranked | 42nd of 48 |
| Population (mid-2015 est.) | 2,833,600 |
| • Ranked | 2nd of 48 |
| Density | 3,142/km2 (8,140/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity | 70.1% White (66.0% White British) 18.9% Asian 6.0% Black 3.4% Mixed 1.6% Other |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Government | West Midlands Combined Authority |
| Admin HQ | Birmingham |
| Area | 902 km2 (348 sq mi) |
| ONS code | 2E |
| NUTS | UKG3 |
| Website | www |
 Districts of West Midlands |
|
| Districts | |
| Members of Parliament | 28 MPs |
| Police | West Midlands Police |
| Time zone | GMT (UTC) |
| • Summer (DST) | BST (UTC+1) |
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2014 estimated population of 2,808,356, making it the second most populous county in England. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The county itself is a NUTS 2 region within the wider NUTS 1 region of the same name. The county consists of seven metropolitan boroughs: the City of Birmingham, the City of Coventry, and the City of Wolverhampton, as well as the boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, and Walsall.
The metropolitan county exists in law and as a geographic frame of reference. and as a ceremonial county it has a Lord Lieutenant and a High Sheriff. Between 1974 and 1986, the West Midlands County Council was the administrative body covering the county, this was abolished on 31 March 1986, and the constituent metropolitan boroughs effectively became unitary authorities. A new administrative body for the county; the West Midlands Combined Authority was created in June 2016. Since May 2017 the authority has been headed by a directly elected Mayor of the West Midlands, a position currently held by Andy Street of the Conservative Party. Other county-wide bodies include the West Midlands Police, the West Midlands Fire Service and Transport for West Midlands.
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