Liverpool City Region in the context of "Metropolitan Borough of Wirral"

Liverpool is a port city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, 178 miles (286 km) north-west of London. It had a population of 508,961 in 2024 and is the administrative, cultural and economic centre of the Liverpool City Region, a combined authority area with a population of over 1.5 million.

Established as a borough in Lancashire in 1207, Liverpool became significant in the late 17th century when the Port of Liverpool was heavily involved in the Atlantic slave trade. The port also imported cotton for the Lancashire textile mills, and became a major departure point for English and Irish emigrants to North America. Liverpool rose to global economic importance at the forefront of the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century and was home to the first inter-city railway, the first non-combustible warehouse system (the Royal Albert Dock), and a pioneering elevated electrical railway; it was granted city status in 1880 and was moved from Lancashire to the newly created county of Merseyside in 1974. It entered a period of decline in the mid-20th century, which was largely reversed after the European Union selected it as the European Capital of Culture for 2008, reportedly generating over £800 million for the local economy within a year.

Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It lies on the West Lancashire coastal plain and the east coast of the Irish Sea, approximately 17 miles (27 km) north of Liverpool and 15 miles (24 km) southwest of Preston. At the 2021 census, Southport had a population of 94,421, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England and the third most populous settlement in the Liverpool City Region.

The town was founded in 1792 by William Sutton, an innkeeper from Churchtown, who built a bathing house at what is now the south end of Lord Street. The area was previously known as South Hawes, and was sparsely populated and dominated by dunes. The area became popular with tourists due to the easy access from the nearby Leeds and Liverpool Canal, and by 1848 had a railway connection. The resort increased during the Victorian era and contains examples of Victorian architecture and town planning. Lord Street was developed as a wide, tree-lined shopping street, and attractions such as Southport Pier, which is the second longest seaside pleasure pier in the British Isles, were constructed. A particular feature of the town is the extensive tree planting. This was one of the conditions required by the Hesketh family when they made land available for development in the 19th century. Hesketh Park at the northern end of the town is named after them, having been built on land donated by Rev. Charles Hesketh.

The Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley is a metropolitan borough in Merseyside, North West England. It covers several towns and villages, including Kirkby, Prescot, Huyton, Whiston, Halewood, Cronton and Stockbridge Village; Kirkby, Huyton, and Prescot being the major commercial centres. It takes its name from the village of Knowsley, though its headquarters are in Huyton. It forms part of the wider Liverpool City Region.

Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, the borough was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of Huyton-with-Roby Urban District, Kirkby Urban District and Prescot Urban District, along with most of Whiston Rural District and a small part of West Lancashire Rural District, all from the administrative county of Lancashire.

The Metropolitan Borough of St Helens is a local government district with borough status in Merseyside, North West England. The borough is named after its largest settlement, St Helens. It is one of the six boroughs of the Liverpool City Region.

Other towns and villages in St Helens include Earlestown, Rainhill, Eccleston, Clock Face, Haydock, Billinge, Garswood, Rainford and Newton-le-Willows.

The Borough of Halton (/hɒltən/) is a local authority district with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, North West England. It is administered by Halton Borough Council, a unitary authority since 1998. The borough contains the towns of Runcorn and Widnes and the civil parishes of Daresbury, Hale, Halebank, Moore, Preston Brook, and Sandymoor. Since 2014, it has been part of the Liverpool City Region and the council is a member of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

The neighbouring districts (clockwise from west) are Liverpool, Knowsley and St Helens, which are fellow boroughs of the Liverpool City Region, and Warrington and Cheshire West and Chester in Cheshire.

The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) is the combined authority of the Liverpool City Region in England. Its jurisdiction includes the City of Liverpool local authority area, the Metropolitan Boroughs of Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, and Wirral, and the unitary borough of Halton. It was established on 1 April 2014 by statutory instrument under the provisions of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009. Composition of the combined authority is made up of the leaders of the six principal membership authorities, plus several non-voting members with various interests in the activities of the combined authority.

The LCRCA is a strategic authority with powers and responsibilities over the regions transport, economic development and regeneration, culture and tourism, energy, justice and health. Functional executive bodies such as Merseytravel are responsible for delivery of these services and report to the combined authority.

Merseyrail is a commuter rail network which serves the Liverpool City Region, and the surrounding areas, in the North West of England. Since 2003, the network has been run as a concession, held by Serco and Transport UK Group.

It was established in 1977, when existing railway lines were connected by constructing new tunnels under Liverpool City Centre and Birkenhead. The network has since been expanded, with new stations built, and electrification of existing lines. Today, Merseyrail serves 69 stations, 67 of which it manages, across two lines – the Northern line and the Wirral line. The network uses 750 V DC third rail electrified lines having 76 miles (122 km) of routes, of which 6.5 miles (10.5 km) are underground. The network uses the Class 777 trains based on the Stadler METRO platform. The network carried 28.3 million passengers in 2023/2024.

Liverpool city centre is the administrative, commercial, cultural, financial and historical centre of Liverpool and the Liverpool City Region, England. There are different definitions of the city centre for urban planning and local government; however, the boundary of Liverpool city centre is broadly marked by the inner city districts of Vauxhall, Everton, Edge Hill, Kensington and Toxteth.

At the 2023 United Kingdom local elections, the population of Liverpool city centre was 36,770 based on the five electoral wards that officially make up the city centre. Over 6 million people live within an hour of Liverpool City Centre. In 2022, there were almost 80 million visits to the City Centre.