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Region
The term 'Region' is frequently used to describe any of the 9 Government Office Regions (GORs) of England.

Region (Local Government)
9 Local Government Regions existed in Scotland between 1975 and were each split into a number of districts, thus forming a 2-tier local government structure. During this period Scotland also had 3 single-tier island authorities (Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands and Western Isles). In 1996 the existing Scottish administrative structure was abolished and replaced by 32 unitary council areas.
Further information on Scottish administrative geography.

Regional Committee Area
The 4 areas covered by the regional committees of the National Assembly for Wales (NAW). See National Assembly regional committee area.

Regional Development Agency (RDA)
The 9 Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) in England are responsible for promoting sustainable economic development and economic and social regeneration within their regions. The areas covered by the RDAs coincide with the Government Office Regions (GORs).
more information on RDAs: Names of the RDAs.

Regional Health Authority (RHA)
Regional Health Authorities were the upper tier of NHS administration in England between the 1970s and 1996, when they were replaced by NHS Regional Offices.
Further health geography information

Regional Office (NHS)
Three Regional Offices were introduced in April 2003 as subdivisions of the NHS Wales Department of the National Assembly. Each Regional Office is responsible for performance managing groups of the new Local Health Boards (LHBs), one of which is found in each Welsh unitary authority.
NHS Regional Offices were also the top level of the NHS in England prior to April 2002, when they were replaced by 4 Directorates of Health and Social Care (DHSCs). The Regional Offices covered groups of Health Authorities (HAs) and did not fit into the Government Office Region (GOR) structure.
Further health geography information, including maps and lists of area names and codes.

Registration District
Registration districts are the areas used for recording births, marriages and deaths.
Further information on registration districts in England and Wales.

Royal Mail
Royal Mail Group plc is a public limited company wholly owned by the government, responsible for the main UK postal service.
Royal Mail website

Rural Area
There is no single definition of a rural area as there are many different approaches to classifying what is 'rural' (or 'non-urban'). These include approaches based on population, on population density, on land use and on socio-economic characteristics, and all have different advantages and disadvantages depending on what the classification is being used for. However, the Rural and Urban Area Classification 2004 is now available as a National Statistics standard. This classifies Output Areas and wards as either urban or rural depending on whether the bulk of their population falls in a settlement of greater than 10,000 residents. It also offers subclassifications of urban and rural, based on population density.
Further information.

Rural Priority Areas
Rural Priority Areas (RPAs), previously known as Rural Development Areas (RDAs), are those parts of England where rural regeneration activities are focused in order to address concentrations of economic and social need. Rural Priority Areas ceased to exist in 2002.

This page last revised: Tuesday, 11 April 2006