Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England, 906 square miles (2,346 km2) of dairy plain, sandstone ridge and Pennine edge. About 1,098,000 people lived there at the 2021 census. Chester is the county town; Warrington is the largest town.
Four unitary authorities run the county: Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Warrington and Halton. Cheshire County Council was abolished in 2009.
| Country | England, United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Region | North West England |
| Area | 906 sq mi (2,346 km2) |
| Population (2021) | 1,097,956 |
| Density | 468 people per km2 |
| County town | Chester |
| Largest town | Warrington (211,182) |
| Councils | Cheshire East; Cheshire West and Chester; Warrington; Halton |
| Highest point | Shining Tor, 559 m (1,834 ft) |
Towns and Villages in Cheshire
Cheshire has about 620 named towns, villages and hamlets. The list below shows roughly 280 of them, grouped by the council that covers each area.
Cheshire East (122 of 271 shown)
- Ackers Crossing
- Adder’s Moss
- Adlington
- Alderley Edge
- Alpraham
- Alsager
- Arley
- Aston
- Audlem
- Baddiley
- Barnett Brook
- Basford
- Betchton Heath
- Blackden Heath
- Blakenhall
- Bollington
- Bosley
- Bradwall
- Brereton Green
- Bridgemere
- Brookhouse
- Brown Moss
- Brownedge
- Bucklow Hill
- Bulkeley
- Bunbury
- Burland
- Butt Green
- Calveley
- Chelford
- Cholmondeston
- Chorlton
- Clark Green
- Congleton
- Coppenhall Moss
- Crewe
- Crewe Green
- Danebridge
- Dean Row
- Disley
- Eaton
- Englesea-brook
- Feldy
- Gallantry Bank
- Gawsworth
- Gleadsmoss
- Goostrey
- Gurnett
- Hankelow
- Hassall Green
- Haughton
- High Legh
- Higher Poynton
- Hodgehill
- Holmes Chapel
- Holtridge
- Hope Green
- Hulme Walfield
- Jodrell Bank
- Kerridge-end
- Kinsey Heath
- Knutsford
- Lane Ends
- Lawton Heath End
- Lindow End
- Little Warford
- Lower Pexhill
- Macclesfield
- Malkin’s Bank
- Marthall
- Mere
- Middlewich
- Middlewood
- Mobberley
- Monks Heath
- Moss End
- Moston
- Nantwich
- Nether Alderley
- Norbury Common
- Oakhanger
- Over Peover
- Peckforton
- Peover Superior
- Plumley
- Poynton
- Prestbury
- Radmore Green
- Radway Green
- Ravensmoor
- Ridley
- Rode Heath
- Rudheath Woods
- Sandbach
- Shavington
- Skellorn Green
- Smith’s Green
- Snelson
- Sound
- Spenmoss
- Stoke Bank
- Stud Green
- Styal Cross
- Swanley
- Swettenham
- Tabley
- The Bank
- Twemlow Green
- Walker Barn
- Wardle
- Warren
- Weston
- Wheelock
- Whisterfield
- Wilkesley
- Willaston
- Wilmslow
- Winterley
- Withington Green
- Woodworth Green
- Wornish Nook
- Wybunbury
Cheshire West and Chester (94 of 209 shown)
- Acton Bridge
- Aldersey Green
- Aldford
- Alvanley
- Ashton
- Barnhill
- Barton
- Bell o’ th’ Hill
- Bickley Town
- Blacon
- Boots Green
- Bradley Green
- Brown Knowl
- Buckoak
- Burton
- Caldecott Green
- Capenhurst
- Cheshire West and Chester
- Chester
- Childer Thornton
- Christleton
- Clotton
- Comberbach
- Croughton
- Cuddington
- Cuddington Heath
- Davenham
- Delamere
- Dodleston
- Duddon
- Dunham on the Hill
- Ebnal
- Ellesmere Port Town
- Elton
- Foxwist Green
- Frodsham
- Gatesheath
- Great Barrow
- Great Budworth
- Guilden Sutton
- Hampton Heath
- Hapsford
- Harthill
- Helsby
- Hetherson Green
- Higher Whitley
- Higher Wincham
- Hoole
- Hoole Bank
- Ince
- Kelsall
- Kingsley
- Kingsmead
- Ledsham
- Little Budworth
- Littleton
- Lower Carden
- Lower Whitley
- Malpas
- Marston
- Mere Heath
- Mickle Trafford
- Mollington
- Mouldsworth
- Neston
- Newton
- Norcott Brook
- Northwich
- Oakmere
- Onston
- Over
- Piper’s Ash
- Pulford
- Rudheath
- Saighton
- Saughall
- Shocklach
- Sproston Green
- Stoak
- Stretton
- Swan Green
- Tarporley
- Tarvin
- Tattenhall
- Threapwood
- Tilston
- Tilstone Fearnall
- Utkinton
- Waverton
- Weaverham
- Whitegate
- Willaston
- Wincham
- Winsford
Warrington (38 of 84 shown)
- Appleton
- Appleton Thorn
- Bewsey
- Birchwood Park
- Broomedge
- Burtonwood
- Callands
- Cobbs
- Croft
- Culcheth
- Dallam
- Doe Green
- Fowley Common
- Glazebury
- Gorse Covert
- Grappenhall
- Great Sankey
- Heatley
- Higher Walton
- Hollins Green
- Howley
- Kenyon
- Latchford
- Little Town
- Longbarn
- Lower Walton
- Lymm
- New Lane End
- Old Hall
- Paddington
- Risley
- Statham
- Stockton Heath
- Thelwall
- Warrington
- Whitecross
- Winwick
- Wood Head
Halton (26 of 56 shown)
- Appleton
- Ball o’ Ditton
- Brookvale
- Crow Wood
- Daresbury
- Dutton
- Hale
- Hale Bank
- Halton
- Halton Brook
- Halton Village
- Higher Runcorn
- Keckwick
- Lugsdale
- Manor Park
- Murdishaw
- Norton
- Preston on the Hill
- Runcorn
- Sandymoor
- Simm’s Cross
- Town Park
- Upton Rocks
- Westfield
- Weston Point
- Widnes
Geography
Merseyside lies to the north-west and Greater Manchester to the north-east. Derbyshire is to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east and Shropshire to the south. To the west are the Welsh counties of Flintshire and Wrexham, with a short coastline on the Dee estuary.
Most of the county is the Cheshire Plain, low and flat, dotted with meres and mosses left by retreating ice. The Mid Cheshire Ridge breaks it in two, a line of sandstone hills carrying Beeston Castle and Peckforton and the Sandstone Trail.
The eastern fringe climbs into the Peak District around Macclesfield Forest and Wildboarclough, reaching 559 metres at Shining Tor on the Derbyshire boundary. The Mersey forms the northern border for much of its length and the Dee runs past Chester into its estuary; the Weaver drains the salt country in the middle.
Demographics
The 2021 census counted 1,097,956 residents: Cheshire East 400,474, Cheshire West and Chester 357,730, Warrington 211,182 and Halton 128,570.
Warrington’s built-up area holds about 175,000 people, Chester about 93,000, Crewe 74,000, Ellesmere Port 65,000, Runcorn 62,000, Widnes 60,000 and Macclesfield 54,000. The county’s age profile is slightly older than the England average, and the belt from Wilmslow through Alderley Edge and Prestbury is among the wealthiest residential areas outside the South East.
Economy and Local Life
Dairy farming still shapes the plain, and Cheshire cheese is the oldest named British cheese, recorded in the Domesday survey. Salt has been worked here since Roman times: brine at Northwich and Winsford, and a rock salt mine at Winsford that remains the largest in Britain.
That salt fed a chemical industry along the Mersey. Runcorn, Widnes and Ellesmere Port still carry chlor-alkali plants, an oil refinery and related works. Crewe grew as a railway town from 1837 and builds Bentley cars; Macclesfield made silk and now hosts pharmaceutical research.
Jodrell Bank, with its 76-metre Lovell Telescope, has tracked space since 1957 and became a World Heritage Site in 2019. Chester lives substantially on tourism, drawn by the complete circuit of Roman and medieval walls and the two-tier Rows.
History
The Romans founded Deva Victrix at Chester in about AD 79 as a legionary fortress, and its amphitheatre is the largest yet found in Britain. After the Conquest the area became a county palatine, governed by the Earl of Chester with powers close to a king’s, an arrangement that lasted formally until 1830.
The county lost its northern and eastern edges in 1974, when Stockport, Altrincham and Wirral went to Greater Manchester and Merseyside. Warrington and Halton became unitary authorities in 1998, and the remaining county council was replaced by Cheshire East and Cheshire West and Chester in April 2009.
Getting There
The M6 runs the length of the county, junctions 16 to 21, and the M56 crosses from Manchester to Chester. The M53 links Chester to the Wirral, the M62 clips the north at Warrington and the A55 runs west into North Wales.
Crewe is one of the most important rail junctions in Britain, on the West Coast Main Line with services to London, Scotland, the Midlands, North Wales and the North West. Chester has trains to Holyhead, Liverpool, Manchester and Shrewsbury. Warrington is served by Bank Quay on the West Coast line and Central on the Liverpool to Manchester route. Manchester and Liverpool airports both sit within easy reach.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the population of Cheshire?
1,097,956 at the 2021 census, across four unitary authorities.
What is the largest town in Cheshire?
Warrington, with 211,182 people in the borough. Chester, the county town, had about 93,000 in its built-up area.
Which councils cover Cheshire?
Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Warrington and Halton. All four are unitary authorities; the county council was abolished in 2009.
Where is the highest point in Cheshire?
Shining Tor, 559 metres, on the Derbyshire boundary above the Goyt valley.
What are the postcode areas for Cheshire?
CH for Chester and Ellesmere Port, CW for Crewe, Northwich and Nantwich, WA for Warrington, Runcorn and Widnes, and SK for Macclesfield and Wilmslow.