South West England

South West
Region
From top, left to right: Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol; the Cotswolds; Stonehenge; Newquay; Bath; Dartmoor; Torquay; Durdle Door
South West region shown within England
Coordinates: 50°58′N 3°13′W / 50.96°N 3.22°W / 50.96; -3.22
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Country	England
GO established	1994
RDA established	1998
GO abolished	2011
RDA abolished	31 March 2012
Subdivisions	7 counties Bristol Cornwall Devon Dorset Gloucestershire Somerset Wiltshire 1 combined authority West of England 27 districts 13 unitary 14 non-metropolitan in 2 non-metropolitan counties
Government [1]
• Type	Local authority leaders' board
• Body	South West Councils
• MPs	55 MPs (of 650)
Area [2]
• Total	9,415 sq mi (24,386 km2)
• Land	9,203 sq mi (23,836 km2)
• Rank	1st
Population  (2022)[3]
• Total	5,764,881
• Rank	6th
• Density	630/sq mi (242/km2)
Ethnicity (2021) [4]
• Ethnic groups	List 93.1% White 2.8% Asian 2.0% Mixed 1.2% Black 0.9% other
Religion (2021) [4]
• Religion	List 46.2% Christianity 44.1% no religion 1.4% Islam 0.5% Hinduism 0.4% Buddhism 0.1% Sikhism 0.1% Judaism 0.6% other 6.5% not stated
Time zone	UTC+0 (GMT)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+1 (BST)
ITL code	TLK
GSS code	E12000009

South West England, or the South West of England, is one of the nine official regions of England in the United Kingdom. It consists of the counties of Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and large towns in the region include Bath, Bristol, Bournemouth, Cheltenham, Exeter, Gloucester, Plymouth and Swindon. It is geographically the largest of the nine regions of England with a land area of 9,203 square miles (23,836 km²), but the third-least populous, with an estimated 5,764,881 residents in 2022.^[3]

The region includes the West Country and much of the ancient kingdom of Wessex. It includes two entire national parks, Dartmoor and Exmoor (a small part of the New Forest is also within the region); and four World Heritage Sites: Stonehenge, the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape, the Jurassic Coast and the City of Bath. The northern part of Gloucestershire, near Chipping Campden, is as close to the Scottish border as it is to the tip of Cornwall.^[5] The region has by far the longest coastline of any English region.

Following the abolition of the South West Regional Assembly in 2008 and Government Office in 2011, South West Councils provide local government coordination in the region. Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset are part of the West of England Combined Authority.

The region is known for its rich folklore, including the legend of King Arthur and Glastonbury Tor, as well as its traditions and customs. Cornwall has its own language, Cornish, and some regard it as a Celtic nation. The South West is known for Cheddar cheese, which originated in the Somerset village of Cheddar; Devon cream teas, crabs, Cornish pasties, and cider. It is home to the Eden Project, Aardman Animations, the Glastonbury Festival, the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, trip hop music and Cornwall's surfing beaches. The region has also been home to some of Britain's most renowned writers, including Daphne du Maurier, Agatha Christie and Enid Blyton, all of whom set many of their works here, and the South West is also the location of Thomas Hardy's Wessex, the setting for many of his best-known novels.