West Coast Main LineThe West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest mixed-traffic railway routes in Europe, carrying a mixture of intercity rail, regional rail, commuter rail and rail freight traffic. The core route of the WCML runs from London to Glasgow for and was opened from 1837 to 1869.
DerbyDerby (ˈdɑrbi ) is a city and unitary authority area on the River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. The county is named after Derby, which was its original county town. As a unitary authority, Derby is administratively independent from Derbyshire County Council. The city's population was 261,400 in 2021. The Romans established the town of Derventio, which was later captured by the Anglo-Saxons and then by the Vikings who made Djúra-bý one of the Five Boroughs of the Danelaw.
Newcastle-under-LymeNewcastle-under-Lyme (RP: ˈnjuːkɑːsəl , ˈnjuːkæsəl ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. It is adjacent to the city of Stoke-on-Trent. In 2011 the population was 75,082. Newcastle grew up in the twelfth century around the castle which gave the town its name, and received its first charter in 1173. The town's early industries included millinery, silk weaving, and coal mining, but despite its proximity to the Potteries it did not develop a ceramics trade.
PenninesThe Pennines (ˈpɛnaɪnz), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of uplands mainly located in Northern England. Commonly described as the "backbone of England" because of its length and position, the range runs from the north Midlands to North East England, near the Anglo-Scottish border. The Peak District is the southern end of the range, rising northwards from its foothills near the Trent Valley in northern Staffordshire, and further north into eastern Cheshire and southern Derbyshire.
Non-metropolitan districtNon-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties (colloquially shire counties) in a two-tier arrangement. Non-metropolitan districts with borough status are known as boroughs, able to appoint a mayor and refer to itself as a borough council. Typically a district will consist of a market town and its more rural hinterland.
CreweCrewe (kruː) is a railway town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The civil parish of Crewe had a population of 55,318 in the 2021 census. The larger Crewe built-up area, which also covers parts of the adjacent civil parishes of Willaston, Shavington cum Gresty and Wistaston, had a total population of 76,437 in 2021. Crewe is perhaps best known as a large railway junction and home to Crewe Works; for many years, it was a major railway engineering facility for manufacturing and overhauling locomotives, but now much reduced in size.
County boroughCounty borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent term used in Scotland was a county of city. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in Northern Ireland. In the Republic of Ireland they remain in existence but have been renamed cities under the provisions of the Local Government Act 2001.
Local education authorities in EnglandLocal education authorities (LEAs) were defined in England as the local councils responsible for education within their jurisdictions. The term was introduced by the Education Act 1902 which transferred education powers from school boards to existing local councils. There have been periodic changes to the types of councils defined as local education authorities. Initially, they were the councils of counties and county boroughs. From 1974 the local education authorities were the county councils in non-metropolitan areas and the district councils in metropolitan areas.
WolverhamptonWolverhampton (ˌwʊlvərˈhæmptən) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. The population was 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians". The city is located north-west of Birmingham. Historically in Staffordshire, the city grew as a market town specialising in the wool trade. In the Industrial Revolution, it became a major centre for coal mining, steel production, lock making, and the manufacture of cars and motorcycles.
BuxtonBuxton is a spa town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level. It lies close to Cheshire to the west and Staffordshire to the south, on the edge of the Peak District National Park. In 1974, the municipal borough merged with other nearby boroughs, including Glossop, to form the local government district and borough of High Peak. The town population was 22,115 at the 2011 Census.
