Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the administrative counties.TOC
In England and Wales they were created in 1894 (by the Local Government Act 1894) along with urban districts. They replaced the earlier system of sanitary districts (themselves based on poor law unions, but not replacing them).
Rural districts had elected rural district councils (RDCs), which inherited the functions of the earlier sanitary districts, but also had wider authority over matters such as local planning, council housing, and playgrounds and cemeteries. Matters such as education and major roads were the responsibility of county councils.
Until 1930 the rural district councillors were also poor law guardians for the unions of which they formed part. Each parish was represented by one or more councillors.
Originally there were 787 rural districts in England and Wales, as they were based directly upon the sanitary districts and poor law unions which had preceded them. Gradual urbanisation over the following decades led to some rural districts being redefined as urban districts or merging with existing urban districts or boroughs. Other rural districts proved to be too small or poor to be viable, and under the Local Government Act 1929, 236 rural districts were abolished and merged or amalgamated into larger units. Further mergers took place over following decades and by 1965 the number of districts had been reduced to 473.
The typical shape of a rural district was a doughnut-shaped ring around a town (which would be either an urban district or a municipal borough). A good example of this is Melton and Belvoir Rural District, which surrounded the town of Melton Mowbray. Some rural districts were fragmented, consisting of a number of detached parts, such as Wigan Rural District. Some rural districts had a more rounded shape and had a small town or village as the administrative centre.
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A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Ireland, although they are now governed under legislation passed by the Oireachtas, with the principal act being the Local Government Act 2001. The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 introduced county councils to Ireland, with a lower tier of governance of urban and rural districts.
En Angleterre, les districts sont l'un des niveaux de subdivision du pays. La structure des circonscriptions locales n'étant pas uniforme, il existe quatre types principaux de districts. Il existe au total 326 districts : 36 districts métropolitains (en anglais, metropolitan boroughs), 32 districts londoniens (London boroughs), 201 districts non métropolitains (non-metropolitan districts), 55 autorités unitaires (unitary authorities), ainsi que la Cité de Londres et l'archipel des Sorlingues, qui sont également des districts mais n'entrent pas dans les catégories précitées.
Un 'district non métropolitain' (en anglais non-metropolitan district ou shire district) est un type de district en Angleterre. À l'origine, il s'agit de subdivisions des comtés non-métropolitains (non-metropolitan counties ou shire counties). Avec le Local Government Act de 1972, entré en vigueur le , les 296 districts non-métropolitains originaux ont été créés. Les réformes de 1990 et de 2009 ont réduit leur nombre à 201 districts répartis dans les 27 comtés non-métropolitains. Subdivisions de l'Angleter