North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire is a ceremonial county in Northern England. It is bordered by County Durham to the north, the North Sea to the east, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the south-east, South Yorkshire to the south, West Yorkshire to the south-west, and Cumbria and Lancashire to the west.

The county is the largest in England by land area, at 8,654 km² (3,341 sq mi), and had a population of 1,201,415 in 2024. Middlesbrough and Redcar are located in the north-east of the county and form part of the Teesside conurbation, which extends into County Durham. The city of York is located in the south. The remainder of the county is rural, and its settlements include Harrogate in the south-west, the city of Ripon near the centre, and Scarborough on the coast in the east. For local government purposes the county comprises the unitary authority areas of North Yorkshire, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, York, and part of Stockton-on-Tees. The local authorities of York and North Yorkshire form a combined authority of the same name, and the local authorities of the other three areas are part of the Tees Valley Combined Authority. The county was historically part of Yorkshire.

The centre of the county contains a wide plain, called the Vale of Mowbray in the north and Vale of York in the south. The North York Moors uplands lie to the east, and south of them the Vale of Pickering is separated from the main plain by the Howardian Hills. Further east, the county has a coastline on the North Sea. The west of the county contains the Yorkshire Dales, an extensive upland area which contains the source of the River Ouse/Ure and many of its tributaries, which together drain most of the county before reaching the Humber estuary in the south. The Dales also contain the county's highest point, Whernside, at 2,415 feet (736 m).

North Yorkshire non-metropolitan and ceremonial county was formed on 1 April 1974 as a result of the Local Government Act 1972. It covered most of the North Riding of Yorkshire, as well as northern parts of the West Riding of Yorkshire, northern and eastern East Riding of Yorkshire and the former county borough of York. Northallerton, as the former county town for the North Riding, became North Yorkshire's county town. In 1993 the county was placed wholly within the Yorkshire and the Humber region. From 1974 to 1996 the area of the non-metropolitan county was the same as the area of the ceremonial county. The county was divided into eight districts (York, Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby).

Some areas which were part of the former North Riding were in the county of Cleveland for twenty-two years (from 1974 to 1996) and were placed in the North East region from 1993. When Cleveland was abolished on 1 April 1996, these areas (Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton borough south of the River Tees) became part of the ceremonial county as separate unitary authorities. These areas remain within the North East England region.

Also on 1 April 1996, the City of York district and parts of the three adjoining districts (Haxby and nearby rural areas) became the City of York unitary authority.

On 1 April 2023, the non-metropolitan county became a unitary authority. This abolished the remaining seven district councils and extended the powers of the county council to act as a district council.

The York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority held its first meeting on 22 January 2024, assumed its powers on 1 February 2024 and the first mayor was elected in May 2024.