This list of built-up areas for England was compiled by the Office for National Statistics after the 2021 UK Census.[1] Built-up area boundaries are defined and named by the ONS and do not necessarily coincide with other definitions that use the same names. (In ONS reports of the 2011 and 2021 censuses, many of these areas were called "built-up sub-areas" of larger urban areas; as of January 2026[update], the ONS has not defined a new nomenclature for each of the urban areas or released any data for them: for its reports on the 2021 Census, the ONS uses the term "Amalgamated Built-up Area" for urban areas but gives them a number rather than a name.[2] )
The ONS has classified all built-up areas with a population of at least 200,000 as "major". Most are cities, with three large towns (Luton, Northampton and Reading) included.[1] (Conversely, there are many settlements that have city status but do not reach the threshold.)
↑See Milton Keynes urban area. (The ONS has used the name "Milton Keynes" for a sub-area of the city, being the remainder of its total built-up area after subtracting Bletchley, Newport Pagnell and Woburn Sands (which were included previous definitions). In Table 4A in the Supplementary Tables of its 2021 Rural Urban Classification, the ONS defines an "Amalgamated Built-up Area" (number 2987), which identifies its component elements.)
This article includes a location-related list of lists.
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