Everything about The West Midlands Conurbation totally explained
The
West Midlands conurbation is the name given to the large
conurbation that includes the cities of
Birmingham and
Wolverhampton and the large towns of
Dudley,
Walsall,
West Bromwich and
Solihull, in the
English West Midlands.
Not to be confused with the
Metropolitan county of the same name, the conurbation doesn't include parts of the county such as
Coventry, but does include parts of the surrounding counties of Staffordshire (for example
Little Aston,
Perton),
Warwickshire (specifically
Coleshill and
Water Orton) and
Worcestershire (
Hagley).
According to the
2001 Census the area had a population of 2,284,093, making it the
second largest conurbation in the United Kingdom.
Constituent Parts
Although the exact boundaries of any conurbation are open to debate, dependent on what criteria are used to determine where an urban area ceases, the
Office for National Statistics defines the
West Midlands Urban Area as including the urban areas (in decreasing size) of Birmingham, Wolverhampton,
Dudley, and
Walsall amongst others. These settlements are not coterminous with the Metropolitan Boroughs of the same name, and the ONS takes its settlement boundaries within the conurbation as the pre-1974 local authorities.
The conurbation is unusual in having a number of large settlements within, with Birmingham (2nd), Wolverhampton (13th), Dudley (19th) and Walsall (28th) all being amongst the largest 30 urban sub-areas in England.
The area of conurbation between Birmingham and Wolverhampton is known as the
Black Country. The Black Country has coalesced into a single conurbation, but is unusual in that it has no single centre, having grown up from a number of historic market towns and industrial villages that have coalesced during the 20th century. It remains essentially polyfocal with many of the towns and villages remaining recognisable communities. Inhabitants of the Black Country generally resist hints at any relationship to people living in Birmingham. This can be seen by recent (
2006) controversy regarding the name of the newly created
city region. "Greater Birmingham" was seen as unacceptable, and the final name given was "Birmingham, Coventry and the Black Country".
Coventry is separate from the West Midlands conurbation, and other urban areas, such as
Cannock and
Codsall are also only narrowly avoided.
Relationship to Metropolitan County
Occasionally the conurbation is seen as being coterminous with the
West Midlands county; however, this includes
Coventry, which is separate from the main urban area, and excludes the parts of the surrounding counties of
Staffordshire,
Warwickshire and
Worcestershire that fall within the conurbation.
For administrative purposes, the vast majority of the conurbation falls within the six
Metropolitan Boroughs of Birmingham,
Dudley,
Sandwell,
Solihull,
Walsall and Wolverhampton. Between 1974 and 1986 these areas (along with Coventry) were additionally administered by the
West Midlands County Council. Some bodies such as the
West Midlands Police and Centro (the
West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive) still cover the Metropolitan County, but not the entire urban area.
Settlements
According to the ONS definition the West Midlands conurbation consists of the following settlements:
| Rank |
Urban sub-area name |
Population |
| 1 |
Birmingham |
970,892 |
| 2 |
Wolverhampton |
251,462 |
| 3 |
Dudley |
194,919 |
| 4 |
Walsall |
170,994 |
| 5 |
Oldbury / Smethwick |
139,855 |
| 6 |
West Bromwich |
136,940 |
| 7 |
Sutton Coldfield |
105,452 |
| 8 |
Solihull |
94,753 |
| 9 |
Stourbridge |
55,480 |
| 10 |
Halesowen |
55,273 |
| 11 |
Brownhills |
19,866 |
| 12 |
Knowle / Bentley Heath |
18,452 |
| 13 |
Aldridge |
15,659 |
| 14 |
Pelsall |
10,524 |
| 15 |
Shelfield |
6,807 |
| 16 |
Coleshill |
6,235 |
| 17 |
Yew Tree |
6,109 |
| 18 |
Rushall |
5,864 |
| 19 |
Hagley |
5,723 |
| 20 |
Shelly Green |
5,702 |
| 21 |
Water Orton |
3,573 |
| 22 |
Cheswick Green |
2,261 |
Further Information
Get more info on 'West Midlands Conurbation'.
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