Administrative Boundary of Kirklees

About Kirklees

Kirklees is a metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Covering approximately 410 square kilometres of the central Pennines, including the valleys of the Rivers Calder, Colne, and Spen, Kirklees had a population of approximately 435,000 at the 2021 Census. The borough's largest town is Huddersfield, and it also includes Dewsbury, Batley, Cleckheaton, Holmfirth, and numerous former textile manufacturing villages. Kirklees is a borough of remarkable contrasts — between the heavy industrial and textile heritage of its valley towns, the dramatic moorland landscapes above, and a rich vein of cultural life that includes the legend of Robin Hood, the world's longest-running television sitcom, and the tallest freestanding structure in the United Kingdom. Huddersfield and Harold Wilson Huddersfield, the largest town in Kirklees, developed as one of the principal centres of the West Riding cloth trade, particularly the production of high-quality woollen cloth and kerseys. The town's most celebrated landmark is Huddersfield Railway Station (1850), designed by James Pigott Pritchett in a Greek Revival style with a magnificent Corinthian portico and flanking pavilions — described by the poet and architectural critic John Betjeman as "the most splendid station facade in England." The Grade I listed building is widely regarded as one of the finest Victorian railway stations in Britain. Harold Wilson (1916–1995), twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1964–1970 and 1974–1976) and the longest-serving Labour Prime Minister of the 20th century, was born in Huddersfield and is one of the most notable political figures to come from the borough. Robin Hood and Kirklees Priory According to the oldest surviving traditions of the Robin Hood legend, the outlaw Robin Hood died and was buried at Kirklees Priory — a Cistercian nunnery that once stood on the wooded hillside above the village of Mirfield. The legend, recorded in the 18th-century ballad "Robin Hood's Death," tells that Robin, gravely ill, made his way to Kirklees Priory to be bled (a standard medieval medical treatment) by the Prioress, his kinswoman, who instead bled him fatally and allowed him to die. With his last strength, Robin shot an arrow from a high window and asked to be buried where it landed. A gravestone in the grounds of the private Kirklees estate, inscribed with a worn epitaph, marks the legendary burial site. Whether historically authentic or not, Kirklees is the only place in England with a physical site associated with Robin Hood's death and burial. Emley Moor Transmitter The Emley Moor Transmitting Station, located on Emley Moor above the village of Emley in the heart of Kirklees, is the tallest freestanding structure in the United Kingdom, standing at 330.4 metres (1,084 feet). The current concrete tower, completed in 1971 and redesigned following structural failures of earlier masts, transmits television and radio signals to much of Yorkshire and the north Midlands and is a dominant landmark visible from across the Pennine landscape. Holmfirth and Last of the Summer Wine The small town of Holmfirth, in the upper Holme Valley at the southern edge of Kirklees, was the filming location for Last of the Summer Wine (1973–2010), the BBC comedy series about the misadventures of three elderly men in the Yorkshire Pennines. Running for 31 series and 295 episodes, Last of the Summer Wine holds the Guinness World Record as the longest-running sitcom in the world. Holmfirth became a significant tourist destination during the programme's run and continues to attract visitors to its Postcard Museum, the Wrinkled Stocking Café (associated with the character Nora Batty), and the surrounding moorland scenery. Population and Demographics The 2021 Census recorded approximately 435,000 residents. Kirklees is moderately diverse: approximately 73% White British, with a significant South Asian community (approximately 16%, predominantly British Pakistani) concentrated in Huddersfield and Dewsbury. GIS and Boundary Data The administrative boundary of Kirklees unitary authority is available for free download in GeoJSON and KML formats, sourced from the ONS Open Geography Portal (Crown copyright 2024). Compatible with QGIS, ArcGIS, Mapbox, and Google Earth, the dataset supports textile industry heritage mapping, broadcast infrastructure planning, Robin Hood legend tourism, demographic research, and moorland conservation across the Kirklees local authority area.

📍 Administrative boundary of Kirklees county