History of parliamentary constituencies and boundaries in Cheshire

The ceremonial county of Cheshire, which comprises the unitary authorities of Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Halton and Warrington, returned 11 MPs to the UK Parliament from 1997 to 2024. Under the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies, coming into effect for the 2024 general election, the boundary commission proposed 12 constituencies, including two which crossed the border into the county of Merseyside.

Under the Local Government Act 1972, which came into effect on 1 April 1974, the boundaries of the historic/administrative county of Cheshire were significantly altered. Over half the electorate was transferred to the new metropolitan counties of Greater Manchester and Merseyside, partly compensated by the addition of Warrington, Widnes and surrounding areas to the north which were transferred in from Lancashire. These changes were reflected in the following redistribution of parliamentary seats which did not come into effect until the 1983 general election, resulting in a net reduction in the county's representation from 17 to 10 MPs.

Number of seats The table below shows the number of MPs representing Cheshire at each major redistribution of seats affecting the county. Year County

seats1Borough

seats1TotalHistoric countyPrior to 18322241832–186546101865–1868247111868–188568141885–191885131918–194595141945–195096151950–195596151955–19741061619749817Current county1974–198338191983–199782101997–202492112024–present111124 1Prior to 1950, seats were classified as County Divisions or Parliamentary Boroughs. Since 1950, they have been classified as County or Borough Constituencies.

2Borough of Birkenhead (1 member) enfranchised by Act of Parliament to replace disenfranchised boroughs.

3Approximate equivalent number of constituencies. Prior to the redistribution coming into effect for the 1983 general election, 6 constituencies were split between Cheshire and the new counties of Greater Manchester and Merseyside and 7 were wholly within the reconfigured county.

4Includes two cross-county border constituencies shared with Merseyside.

Constituency timeline

Historic county to 1974 ConstituencyPrior to 18321832–18651865–18681868–18851885–19181918–19451945–19501950–19551955–19741974–1983Cheshire1545–1832 (2 MPs)South Cheshire1832–1868 (2 MPs)Birkenhead1865–19181950→Birkenhead East1918–1950Birkenhead West1918–1950West Cheshire1868–1885 (2 MPs)Wirral1885-1983Wallasey1918→Bebington1950–1974Bebington and Ellesmere Port1974-1983City of Chester1545–1885 (2 MPs)1885–19181918→Eddisbury1885–1950Runcorn1950-1983Nantwich1955-1983Crewe1885-1983Mid Cheshire1868–1885 (2 MPs)Northwich1885-1983Knutsford1885-1983Bucklow1945–1950Altrincham1885–1945Altrincham and Sale1945→North Cheshire1832–1868 (2 MPs)East Cheshire1868–1885 (2 MPs)Stalybridge1868–1918Stalybridge and Hyde1918→Hyde1885–1918Stockport1832–1950 (2 MPs)Stockport North1950-1983Stockport South1950-1983Cheadle1950–19741974→Hazel Grove1974→Macclesfield1832–1885 (2 MPs)1885→ConstituencyPrior to 18321832–18651865–18681868–18851885–19181918–19451945–19501950–19551955–19741974–1983

Current ceremonial county from 1974 Constituency1974–19831983–19971997–20242024–presentWarrington1←1983Warrington North1983–20242024–presentNewton1 (part)←1983Warrington South1983–20242024–presentRuncorn←1983Runcorn and Helsby2024–presentWeaver Vale1997–2024Halton1983–2024Widnes and Halewood (part)2024–presentWidnes1 (part)←1983Bebington and Ellesmere Port (part)1974-1983Ellesmere Port and Bromborough (part)2024–presentEllesmere Port and Neston1983–2024Wirral (part)←1983Chester North and Neston2024–presentCity of Chester←2024Northwich←1983Chester South and Eddisbury2024–presentEddisbury1983–2024Nantwich←1983Mid Cheshire2024–presentCrewe and Nantwich1983–presentCrewe←1983Congleton1983–presentKnutsford (part)←1983Tatton1983–presentMacclesfield←presentConstituency1974-19831983-19971997–20242024–present 1 Part of Lancashire prior to April 1974

Boundary reviews

Historic county

Prior to 1832 As a county palatine, Cheshire was unrepresented in the House of Commons until 1543. Under the terms of the Chester and Cheshire (Constituencies) Act 1542, the County of Chester (Cheshire) was thereafter represented by two knights of the shire and the City of Chester was represented by two burgesses.

1832 The Reform Act 1832 radically changed the representation of the House of Commons, with the county being divided into the Northern and Southern Divisions, each returning two MPs. North Cheshire covered the northern and eastern parts of the county, comprising the hundreds of Bucklow and Macclesfield; South Cheshire covered the southern and western parts, comprising the hundreds of Broxton, Eddisbury, Nantwich, Northwich and Wirral. In addition to Chester, the parliamentary boroughs of Macclesfield and Stockport were established, both returning two MPs.

1865 Under the terms of the Appropriation of Seats (Sudbury and Saint Albans) Act 1861, Birkenhead was enfranchised as a single-member parliamentary borough. It was first contested at the 1865 general election.

1868 Under the Representation of the People Act 1867, the county was further divided, with the creation of Mid Cheshire, comprising the Bucklow and Northwich Hundreds, transferred from North Cheshire and South Cheshire respectively. Stalybridge was established as a single-member Borough.

Subsequently, the Boundary Act 1868 renamed the Northern and Southern Divisions as East Cheshire and West Cheshire respectively.

1885 Under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, the three 2-member county divisions were replaced by eight single-member constituencies, namely Altrincham, Crewe, Eddisbury, Hyde, Knutsford, Macclesfield, Northwich and Wirral. The Parliamentary Borough of Macclesfield was disenfranchised due to corruption. The representation of the City of Chester was reduced to one MP.

1918 Under the Representation of the People Act 1918, the number of constituencies in Cheshire was increased by one. The major changes were: the Parliamentary Borough of Chester was converted into a county division, gaining mainly rural areas from Eddisbury and Wirral; the Parliamentary Borough of Stalybridge and the county Division of Hyde were abolished and the new Division of Stalybridge and Hyde created, encompassing Dukinfield, Hyde, Stalybridge and Longdendale. Bredbury, Romily and Marple were transferred to Macclesfield and Hazel Grove to Knutsford; Birkenhead was divided into East and West Divisions and Wallasey was created as a Parliamentary Borough, carved out of the Wirral county Division; and Stockport continued as a two-member Borough, with boundaries aligned to the County Borough which had expanded through absorbing the Urban Districts of Reddish and Heaton Norris (previously part of the Stretford Division of Lancashire), and into neighbouring parishes in the former Hyde Division.

Other boundary changes included:

Bramhall transferred from Altrincham to Knutsford; Sandbach from Crewe to Northwich; and Disley and Whaley Bridge from Knutsford to Macclesfield.

1945 The House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Act 1944 set up Boundary Commissions to carry out periodic reviews of the distribution of parliamentary constituencies. It also authorised an initial review to subdivide abnormally large constituencies (those exceeding an electorate of 100,000) in time for the 1945 election. This was implemented by the Redistribution of Seats Order 1945 under which Cheshire was allocated one additional seat, by splitting the Altrincham Division into two seats: Altrincham and Sale Parliamentary Borough, comprising the two respective municipal boroughs; and Bucklow County Division, comprising the urban districts of Bowdon, Cheadle and Gatley, Hale and Lymm and surrounding rural areas. It also included the former parishes of Baguley, Northenden and Northen Etchells which had been absorbed into the county borough of Manchester. Handforth, which had been absorbed into the Urban District of Wilmslow, now included in the Knutsford seat.

1950 As a result of the redistribution enacted by the Representation of the People Act 1948, Cheshire's representation remained at 15 seats. However, there were significant changes to the make-up of the constituencies as follows: In the Wirral, Birkenhead East and Birkenhead West were abolished and Birkenhead re-established, comprising the county borough excluding 5 wards in the south; these were included in a new constituency, named Bebington, with the municipal borough of that name, previously part of the Wirral constituency. Wirral also lost the parts now in the expanded county boroughs of Birkenhead and Wallasey to the respective constituencies; a new constituency named Runcorn was created, comprising the urban districts of Runcorn (previously part of Northwich) and Lymm (previously part of Bucklow) and the rural district of Runcorn (previously split between Eddisbury, Northwich and Knutsford); a new constituency named Cheadle was created, comprising the urban districts of Cheadle and Gatley (previously part of Bucklow), Hazel Grove and Bramhall (previously part of Knutsford), Bredbury and Romiley, and Marple (previously part of Macclesfield); Eddisbury was abolished and was distributed between Crewe (the parts in the rural district of Nantwich), Northwich (the rural district of Tarvin, including Malpas and Tarporley, and the parts in the rural district of Northwich) and Runcorn (the parts in the rural district thereof, including Frodsham); Bucklow was abolished and distributed between Cheadle (Cheadle and Gatley), Runcorn (Lymm) and Knutsford (Hale, Bowdon and surrounding rural areas), with the parts now incorporated into Manchester forming the new constituency of Manchester, Wythenshawe; the 2-seat Borough of Stockport was abolished and replaced by the single-member seats of Stockport North and Stockport South; Alsager and Sandbach were added to Knutsford, transferred from Crewe and Northwich respectively; and Bollington and the parts of the rural district of Macclesfield, including Poynton, transferred from Knutsford to Macclesfield.

1955 The First Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies resulted in the creation of Nantwich, formed from parts of the constituencies of Crewe (the urban district of Nantwich and most of the rural district of Nantwich) and Northwich (the urban districts of Middlewich and Winsford and parts of the rural districts of Northwich and Tarvin).

The only other change was the transfer of the urban districts of Alsager and Sandbach from Knutsford to Crewe.

1974 (Feb) The Second Periodic Review, which came into effect for the February 1974 election, resulted in the creation of Hazel Grove. This constituency was carved out of the Cheadle constituency, leaving the urban district of Cheadle and Gatley, to which the urban district of Wilmslow was added, transferred from Knutsford. Alderley Edge was transferred from Knutsford to Macclesfield.

In the Wirral, Bebington was abolished, being replaced by Bebington and Ellesmere Port, with the latter transferred from the Wirral constituency. The parts of the county borough of Birkenhead previously in Bebington were transferred back to the Birkenhead constituency, with the exception of Prenton ward, which was transferred to Wirral. Upton ward was also transferred to Wirral, from Birkenhead.

Current ceremonial county

1974 (Apr)