Wakefield,[2] also known as theCity of Wakefield, is alocal government district withcity status and ametropolitan district inWest Yorkshire, England.Wakefield, the largest settlement, is theadministrative centre of the district. The population of the City of Wakefield at the 2011 Census was 325,837.[3]
The district includes theFive Towns ofCastleford,Featherstone,Knottingley,Normanton andPontefract.[4] Other towns includeHemsworth,Horbury,Ossett,South Elmsall andSouth Kirkby (also forms the civil parish ofSouth Kirkby and Moorthorpe). The city and district are governed byWakefield Council from theCounty Hall.[5] In 2010, Wakefield was named as the UK's third most musical city byPRS for Music.[6]
The economic and physical condition of several of the former mining towns and villages in Wakefield District have started to improve due to the booming economy ofLeeds – and an increase in numbers of commuters to the city from the sub-region – and a recognition of undeveloped assets. For instanceCastleford, to the North East of Wakefield is seeing extensive development and investment because of the natural asset of its outlook on to theRiver Aire, its easy access to the national motorway network and the availability of former mining land for house-building. In Ossett, house prices have risen from an average of £50,000 in 1998 to £130,000 in 2003.
Although unemployment was amongst the highest in the country for most of the 1980s, and 1990s, Wakefield District now has below-average unemployment. The "Wakefield East" ward had 4.7% unemployment in May 2005 (source:Office for National Statistics)—which was more than 1% higher than any other ward. The eastern half of the district remains considerably less prosperous than the western half, with several deprived wards
The district is mainly made out of oldcoal-mining towns, although other industries includewool,chemicals,machine tools, glass and other forms of manufacturing.Horbury is something of an anomaly in having had aniron works.[7] WhenMargaret Thatcher came to power in 1979 there were 21 pits in the district. By the time the1984 Strike began this had decreased to 15, however it still had more collieries than any other district in the country. At the time ofprivatization in November 1994, only two remained: thePrince of Wales at Pontefract, which closed in 2002, andKellingley at Knottingley which closed in 2015 ending the industry that once dominated the district. Most of the district's pits had been very hardline during the 1984 strike.
The former Borough of Wakefield was raised tocity status byletters patent in 1888. It became acounty borough in 1913, taking it out of the jurisdiction of the West Riding County Council. The present boundaries were set in 1974 by theLocal Government Act 1972, when theCounty Borough of Wakefield merged with theWest Ridingmunicipal boroughs ofCastleford,Ossett andPontefract, theurban districts ofFeatherstone,Hemsworth,Horbury,Knottingley,Normanton andStanley, along withWakefield Rural District and parts ofHemsworth Rural District andOsgoldcross Rural District. The newmetropolitan district's city status was reconfirmed by letters patent in 1974. The Council's headquarters isCounty Hall, originally built for the West Riding County Council and acquired by Wakefield in 1989.
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The district is within agreen belt region that extends into the surrounding counties that is in place to reduceurban sprawl, prevent the cities and towns in theWest Yorkshire Urban Area conurbation from convergence, protect the identity of outlying communities, encouragebrownfield reuse, and preserve the countryside. It restricts inappropriate development within the designated areas and imposes stricter conditions on permitted building.[8] Green belt surrounds the Wakefield built up area and stretches into the wider borough and outlying towns and villages.Walton,Netherton,Featherstone,South Kirkby,South Elmsall,Hemsworth,Castleford,Knottingley, andPontefract are surrounded by it. Smaller villages, hamlets and rural areas such asWarmfield and Heath,Stanley Ferry,Newmillerdam, Snydale,Wintersett, and Chapelthorpe are included in the designation.[9] The green belt was adopted in 1987,[8] and in 2017 amounted to some 23,500 hectares (235 km2; 91 sq mi).[10]
The district is divided into 21wards, each represented onWakefield Metropolitan District Council by three councillors. Councillors are elected on afirst past the post basis, usually for a four-year period which is staggered so that only one councillor per ward is up for election at any one time. Exceptions include by-elections and ward boundary changes.
The city district is home to three professionalrugby league clubs, theWakefield Trinity,Castleford Tigers who both play in theSuper League andFeatherstone Rovers who play in theKingstone Press Championship. All three have had periods of success. The city also has several amateurrugby league clubs includingFeatherstone Lions andNormanton Knights. Current England rugby league internationals from the area include;Tom Briscoe,Rob Burrow,Zak Hardaker, andBrett Ferres. The district is also home to two clubs in theNorthern Premier League:Ossett United andPontefract Collieries.
The district has a strong heritage of cricket with former Yorkshire and England captainGeoffrey Boycott born inFitzwilliam and former Yorkshire and England cricketerTim Bresnan fromPontefract.
Pontefract Racecourse inPontefract, is the longest continuous horse racing circuit in Europe at 2 miles 125 yards (3,333 m; 16.57 furlongs).[11]
The ruins ofSandal Castle and its visitor centre are open to the public, overlooking thePugneys Country Park.[12] TheNational Coal Mining Museum for England (an Anchor Point of ERIH, TheEuropean Route of Industrial Heritage), theYorkshire Sculpture Park andNostell Priory[13] are within the Wakefield metropolitan area, as isWalton Hall, a Georgian mansion set in what was the world's first nature reserve, created by the explorerCharles Waterton; the house is now a proposed UNESCO World Heritage Site.Sir David Attenborough has stated[when?] that "Walton Hall is an extremely important site in the history of nature conservation worldwide. It is, arguably, the first tract of land anywhere in modern times to be protected, guarded and maintained as a nature reserve."[citation needed]
Two children'snursery rhymes with Wakefield connections are "Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush" which may have been sung by women inmates at Wakefieldprison.[14] and "The Grand Old Duke of York" which may allude to the Battle of Wakefield in 1460, referring toRichard Plantagenet, the 3rd Duke of York.[15] The lyrics of the popular hymn "Onward Christian Soldiers" were written at St Peter's Church in nearby Horbury.[16]
| Ethnic Group | 1981 estimations[17] | 1991 census[18][19] | 2001 census[20] | 2011 census[21] | 2021 census[22] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| White: Total | 315,314 | 98.9% | 311,518 | 98.5% | 308,050 | 97.8% | 310,957 | 95.4% | 328,742 | 93% |
| White:British | – | – | – | – | 304,734 | 96.7% | 302,331 | 311,634 | 88.2% | |
| White:Irish | – | – | – | – | 1,262 | 0.4% | 908 | 963 | ||
| White:Gypsy or Irish Traveller | – | – | – | – | – | – | 302 | 280 | ||
| White: Roma | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 228 | |
| White:Other | – | – | – | – | 2,054 | 0.7% | 7,416 | 15,637 | ||
| Asian or Asian British: Total | 2,631 | 3,679 | 4,924 | 8,498 | 12,633 | |||||
| Asian or Asian British:Indian | 634 | 819 | 980 | 1,540 | 2,291 | |||||
| Asian or Asian British:Pakistani | 1,588 | 2,252 | 3,174 | 4,896 | 7,107 | |||||
| Asian or Asian British:Bangladeshi | 14 | 13 | 21 | 32 | 74 | |||||
| Asian or Asian British:Chinese | 297 | 402 | 493 | 853 | 1,113 | |||||
| Asian or Asian British: Other Asian | 98 | 193 | 256 | 1,177 | 2,048 | |||||
| Black or Black British: Total | 407 | 513 | 437 | 2,512 | 4,516 | |||||
| Black or Black British:Caribbean | 150 | 180 | 191 | 326 | 361 | |||||
| Black or Black British:African | 100 | 134 | 207 | 1,955 | 3,589 | |||||
| Black or Black British:Other Black | 157 | 199 | 39 | 231 | 566 | |||||
| Mixed: Total | – | – | – | – | 1,447 | 2,928 | 4,938 | |||
| Mixed: White and Black Caribbean | – | – | – | – | 509 | 1,087 | 1,338 | |||
| Mixed: White and Black African | – | – | – | – | 144 | 368 | 859 | |||
| Mixed: White and Asian | – | – | – | – | 503 | 894 | 1,708 | |||
| Mixed: Other Mixed | – | – | – | – | 291 | 579 | 1,033 | |||
| Other: Total | 376 | 491 | 314 | 942 | 2,541 | |||||
| Other: Arab | – | – | – | – | – | – | 382 | 559 | ||
| Other: Any other ethnic group | 376 | 491 | 314 | 560 | 1,982 | |||||
| Ethnic minority | 3,413 | 4,682 | 7,122 | 14,880 | 24,628 | |||||
| Total | 318,727 | 100% | 316,200 | 100% | 315,172 | 100% | 325,837 | 100% | 353,370 | 100% |
The area is served byBBC Yorkshire andITV Yorkshire received from theEmley Moor TV transmitter.[23]
The radio stations that broadcast to the area are:[24]
The area is served by the local newspaper,Wakefield Express.[26]
A decision was made, in 2004, to transfer the district's extensivecouncil housing to Wakefield and District Housing (WDH), an 'independent' housing association, who would be more efficient with repairs and maintaining decent accommodation; as council housing represented almost 30% of the district, this was the second-largest stock transfer in British history. WDH are investing over £700 million to regenerate the District and working with partners, such as WMDC, are investing in new housing within the District. As of April 2025, WDH rebranded toVico Homes.[27]
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