South East Wales

Last updated
Map of a common definition of South East Wales, made up of ten local authorities. South East Wales.svg
Map of a common definition of South East Wales, made up of ten local authorities.

South East Wales is a loosely defined region of Wales generally corresponding to the preserved counties of Mid Glamorgan, South Glamorgan and Gwent. Highly urbanised, it includes the cities of Cardiff and Newport as well as large towns in the South Wales Valleys.

Contents

Usage and definition

The term South East Wales is used by the Welsh Government. [1]

In the Wales Spatial Plan, South East Wales is defined for statistical purposes as comprising the local authorities of Vale of Glamorgan, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Newport, Blaenau Gwent, Torfaen, Monmouthshire and Bridgend (i.e. the preserved counties of Mid Glamorgan, South Glamorgan and Gwent). [1] This area has a population of about 1,430,000 (2007 estimate), just under half the total population of Wales. [1]

The South East Wales Biodiversity Records Centre definition of South East Wales includes the whole of the ancient counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, an area which has a population of approximately 2 million (2007 estimate).[ citation needed ]

The Wales Spatial Plan, a national planning policy document revised in 2008, states that the area "largely had a hand and fingers pattern of urban development over the last 150 years, reflecting its major role in the industrial revolution and the rapid expansion of the iron, coal and steel industries initially in the Heads of the Valleys, then within the South Wales Valleys, then on the coastal plain." [2]

The promotion of tourism in South East Wales is the responsibility of Capital Region Tourism, one of four regional tourism partnerships across Wales. [3]

In March 2017, ten local authorities in the region formed the Cardiff Capital Region, following the ratification of a regional city deal.

In April 2021, a South West Wales Corporate Joint Committee was formed to allow the ten local councils in the region to collaborate in areas relating to economic well-being, strategic planning and the development of regional transport policies.

Principal areas

The population, density and areas are estimates for mid-2019 est. from the Office for National Statistics.

Principal areaCreatedPopulationPopulation

density/km2

Area km2Style
Cardiff 1996 [lower-alpha 1] 362,4002,572140City and county
Rhondda Cynon Taf 1996237,700560424County borough
Caerphilly 1996175,900634278County borough
Newport 1996 [lower-alpha 1] 159,600838190County borough/City
Bridgend 1996145,500580246County borough
Vale of Glamorgan 1996131,800398335County borough
Monmouthshire 1996 [lower-alpha 1] 93,000110850County
Torfaen 199692,300734126County borough
Blaenau Gwent 199666,900615109County borough
Merthyr Tydfil 199658,800528111County borough
South East Wales20171,543,293761.82,809Region

Transport

The M4 motorway runs through the region, connecting it with South Wales and London. The A470 road connects Cardiff on the south coast to Llandudno on the north coast.

Mainline rail services run through South East Wales on the South Wales Main Line towards Bristol and London. Other national rail services run from Cardiff and Newport to Birmingham and Nottingham on the Gloucester to Newport Line and to Manchester on the Welsh Marches Line. An urban rail network centred on Cardiff operates in the region and is known as Valley Lines.

Cardiff Airport is the only international airport in Wales.

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 re-instated as a principal administrative authority after a gap

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monmouthshire (historic)</span> Historic county in Wales

Monmouthshire, also known as the County of Monmouth, is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales and a former administrative county. It corresponds approximately to the present principal areas of Monmouthshire, Blaenau Gwent, Newport and Torfaen, and those parts of Caerphilly and Cardiff east of the Rhymney River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mid Glamorgan</span> Preserved county in Wales

Mid Glamorgan is a preserved county of Wales. From 1974 until 1996 it was also an administrative county with a county council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Wales</span> Region of Wales

South Wales is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards to include Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire. In the western extent, from Swansea westwards, local people would probably recognise that they lived in both south Wales and west Wales. The Brecon Beacons National Park covers about a third of south Wales, containing Pen y Fan, the highest British mountain south of Cadair Idris in Snowdonia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Wales Valleys</span> Group of industrialised peri-urban valleys in South Wales

The South Wales Valleys are a group of industrialised peri-urban valleys in South Wales. Most of the valleys run north–south, roughly parallel to each other. Commonly referred to as "The Valleys", they stretch from Carmarthenshire in the west to Monmouthshire in the east; to the edge of the pastoral country of the Vale of Glamorgan and the coastal plain near the cities of Swansea, Cardiff, and Newport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebbw Valley Railway</span> Commuter railway line in Cardiff, Wales

The Ebbw Valley Railway is a branch line of the South Wales Main Line in South Wales. Transport for Wales Rail provides an hourly passenger service each way between Ebbw Vale Town and Cardiff Central, and an hourly service each way between Crosskeys and Newport.

East Wales is either a ITL 3 statistical region of Wales or generally a region encompassing the easternmost parts of the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transport in Wales</span> Overview of the transportation system in Wales

Transport in Wales is heavily influenced by the country's geography. Wales is predominantly hilly or mountainous, and the main settlements lie on the coasts of north and south Wales, while mid Wales and west Wales are lightly populated. The main transport corridors are east–west routes, many continuing eastwards into England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gwent (county)</span> Preserved county in south-east Wales

Gwent is a preserved county and former local government county in southeast Wales. A county of Gwent was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972; it was named after the ancient Kingdom of Gwent. The authority was a successor to both the administrative county of Monmouthshire and the county borough of Newport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Wales Fire and Rescue Service</span> Fire and rescue service in Wales

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service is the fire and rescue service covering the ten Welsh principal areas of Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Torfaen and Vale of Glamorgan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South East Wales Transport Alliance</span> Regional Transport Consortium for South East Wales

South East Wales Transport Alliance (Sewta) was a consortium established by the 10 local authorities in South East Wales to promote and develop transport strategies and projects in the region. Founded on 1 April 2003, Sewta worked in close liaison with partners representing public transport operators.

The history of local government in Wales in a recognisably modern form emerged during the late 19th century. Administrative counties and county boroughs were first established in Wales in 1889. Urban and rural districts were formed in 1894. These were replaced in 1974 by a two-tier authority system across the country comprising eight counties and, within them, thirty-seven districts. This system was itself replaced by the introduction of 22 single-tier authorities in 1996.

Capital Region Tourism was a tourism partnership in Wales which aims to promote tourism in the Cardiff Capital Region. CRT is based at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff in the Penylan area of Cardiff.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Wales</span> Overview of and topical guide to Wales

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Wales:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Wales Metro</span> Public transport network in south-east Wales

The South Wales Metro is an integrated heavy rail, light rail and bus-based public transport services and systems network currently being developed in South East Wales around the hub of Cardiff Central. The first phase was approved for development in October 2013. Works are currently under way, with a brand new depot under construction at Taff's Well and new trains being built at the Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) 15,000 m2 factory in Newport. The development will also include the electrification of the core Valley Lines and new stations. This will be the biggest overhaul to the railways of South Wales since their construction 170 years ago.

The Blaenavon Railroad was a horse drawn tramroad built to link Blaenavon Ironworks with the Monmouthshire Canal in south east Wales.

The Cardiff-Newport metropolitan area is a metropolitan area in South East Wales in the Gwent and South Glamorgan counties of Wales, United Kingdom. The metropolitan area includes the cities of Cardiff and Newport, along with a number of towns in the South Wales Valleys, including Merthyr Tydfil, Pontypridd, Caerphilly, Bridgend and Ebbw Vale. With these outlying settlements the metropolitan area has a population of 1.09 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardiff Capital Region</span> City region in Wales

The Cardiff Capital Region is a city region in Wales, centred on the capital city of Wales, Cardiff, in the southeast of the country. It is a partnership between the ten local authorities of Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend County Borough, Caerphilly County Borough, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Torfaen, and Vale of Glamorgan, local businesses in southeast Wales and other organisations. The regional city deal is funded by the UK Government and Welsh Government. The Cardiff Capital Region includes the cities of Cardiff and Newport, and most of the South Wales Valleys, with the region being coterminous with the area defined as South East Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regions of Wales</span> Undefined class of subdivision in Wales

Wales has traditionally been divided into a number of ambiguous and ill-defined areas described as "regions", reflecting historical, geographical, administrative, cultural and electoral boundaries within the country. Presently, the most common form of division of Wales into "regions" has been using cardinal and intercardinal references: north or south-west for example. None of the variously described "regions" have official status or defined boundaries; neither is there a fixed number of regions. Various organisations use different regions and combinations of regions for their individual purposes. This includes devolved institutions, such as Visit Wales, Natural Resources Wales, and the Welsh Government itself, using different sets of Wales' regions. Wales is most commonly sub-divided into between two and four regions, with a North–South divide, and North, Mid, South East and South West division being common. This article lists the various terms applied to be the "regions of Wales" and the regions used by various organisations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Police forces of Wales</span> Overview of the police forces in Wales

Wales is served by four police forces, Dyfed–Powys Police, Gwent Police, North Wales Police and South Wales Police.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South East Wales Corporate Joint Committee</span> Local government institution in Wales

The South East Wales Corporate Joint Committee is the Corporate Joint Committee for South East Wales that was established in April 2021 by statutory instruments made under the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021. It is an indirectly elected body made up of leaders of principal councils and national park authorities in the region.

References

51°32′28″N3°04′12″W / 51.541°N 3.070°W / 51.541; -3.070