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City of Milton Keynes#Freedom of the City

{{Short description|Unitary authority area in England}}

{{About|the local government district|the main settlement|Milton Keynes|the built-up area|Milton Keynes urban area}}

{{Use British English|date=September 2013}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}

{{Infobox settlement

| name = City of Milton Keynes

| nickname =

| settlement_type = City and borough

| total_type =

| motto = By knowledge, design and understanding

| image_skyline =

| imagesize =

| image_caption =

| image_flag =

| flag_size =

| image_seal =

| seal_size =

| image_shield = Arms of Milton Keynes.svg

| shield_size =

| image_blank_emblem =

| blank_emblem_type = Coat of Arms of the Council

| blank_emblem_size = 200px

| image_map = Milton Keynes UK locator map.svg

| map_caption = City of Milton Keynes, shown within Buckinghamshire and England

| image_dot_map =

| pushpin_map =

| pushpin_label_position =

| pushpin_map_caption =

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| subdivision_type = Sovereign state

| subdivision_name = United Kingdom

| subdivision_type1 = Constituent country

| subdivision_name1 = England

| subdivision_type2 = Region

| subdivision_name2 = South East

| subdivision_type3 = Ceremonial county

| subdivision_name3 = Buckinghamshire

| subdivision_type4 =

| subdivision_name4 =

| government_footnotes =

| government_type = Unitary authority

| leader_title = Governing body

| leader_name = Milton Keynes City Council

| leader_title1 =

| leader_name1 =

| leader_title2 =

| leader_name2 =

| leader_title3 =

| leader_name3 =

| leader_title4 = MPs

| leader_name4 = Chris Curtis (Lab)
(Milton Keynes North)
Emily Darlington (Lab)
(Milton Keynes Central)
Callum Anderson (Lab)
Buckingham and Bletchley

| established_title = Incorporated

| established_date = 1 April 1974

| area_magnitude =

| unit_pref = Metric

| area_footnotes = {{United Kingdom district population citation|area}}

| area_total_km2 = {{English district area|GSS=E06000042}}

| area_land_km2 =

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| population_as_of = {{English statistics year}}

| population_footnotes = {{United Kingdom district population citation}}

| population_note =

| population_total = {{English district population|GSS=E06000042}}

| population_est =

| pop_est_as_of =

| population_rank = List of English districts by population

| population_density_km2 = {{English district density|GSS=E06000042}}

| population_density_sq_mi = auto

| timezone1 =

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| coordinates = {{Coord|52|07|N|0|46|W|region:GB-MIK_type:adm2nd|display=inline,title}}

| postal_code_type = Postcode

| postal_code = MK

| iso_code = GB-MIK

| blank1_name = GSS code

| blank1_info = E06000042

| area_code = 01908

| website = {{url|milton-keynes.gov.uk}}

| footnotes =

}}

The City of Milton Keynes is a borough with city status, in Buckinghamshire, England.{{Cite web |title=Crown Office {{!}} The Gazette |url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/notice/4142642 |access-date=2022-08-19 |website=www.thegazette.co.uk}} It is the northernmost district of the South East England Region. The borough abuts Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and the remainder of Buckinghamshire.{{efn|The remainder of Buckinghamshire is controlled by Buckinghamshire Council, which is also a Unitary Authority}} The borough is administered by Milton Keynes City Council, a unitary authority.

The principal built-up area in the borough is the Milton Keynes urban area, which accounts for about 20% of its area and 90% of its population. The borough also includes many rural areas surrounding the Milton Keynes urban area (especially to the north), containing several villages and the town of Olney. At the 2021 census, the population of the unitary authority area was just over 287,000.{{NOMIS2021|id=E06000042|title=Milton Keynes Local Authority|access-date=18 September 2023}}

History

{{See also|History of Milton Keynes}}

The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering the whole area of four former districts and part of a fifth, which were all abolished at the same time:{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972|year=1972|number=2039|accessdate=25 April 2023}}

The new district was named Milton Keynes (after its largest settlement).{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973|year=1973|number=551|accessdate=25 April 2023}} The district was given borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.{{cite web|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written-answers/1974/mar/28/district-councils-and-boroughs#S5CV0871P0_19740328_CWA_145|title=District Councils and Boroughs|date=28 March 1974|work=Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)|access-date=16 January 2012}}

As established in 1974, the borough of Milton Keynes was one of five non-metropolitan districts of Buckinghamshire, with Buckinghamshire County Council providing county-level services to the area. On 1 April 1997, Milton Keynes became a self-governing unitary authority by being redefined as its own non-metropolitan county, independent from Buckinghamshire County Council.{{cite web| url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1995/1769/article/8/made | title= The Buckinghamshire (Borough of Milton Keynes) (Structural Change) Order 1995 | publisher=Government of the United Kingdom | access-date=15 July 2020 | quote=(2) A new county shall be constituted comprising the area of Milton Keynes and shall be named the county of Milton Keynes.}} Milton Keynes remains part of the ceremonial county of Buckinghamshire for the purposes of lieutenancy.{{cite legislation UK|type=act|act=Lieutenancies Act 1997|year=1997|chapter=23|accessdate=26 April 2023}}

On 15 August 2022, letters patent were issued giving the borough the status of a city, allowing the council to change its name to Milton Keynes City Council.

Local government

{{main|Milton Keynes City Council}}

{{See also|Milton Keynes local elections|2024 United Kingdom local elections}}

Arising from the local government elections of May 2024, the borough is governed by a Labour administration. The Liberal Democrat party is the main opposition group.

In the 2024 Labour gained 4 seats to become the majority party, having previously been part of a joint Labour-Lib-Dem run administration.

The borough is fully parished, with over 50 parishes.

==Economy==

According to data from the Office for National Statistics for 2017, the borough was the highest performing NUTS3 region in the UK outside inner London (which takes the first five places), on the basis of gross value added per head.{{cite report |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossvalueaddedgva/bulletins/regionalgrossvalueaddedbalanceduk/1998to2017 |title=Statistical bulletin: Regional gross value added (balanced), UK: 1998 to 2017 (table 7) |publisher=Office for National Statistics |date=12 December 2018}}

Education

{{See also|List of schools in Milton Keynes}}

Further education in the borough is provided by Milton Keynes College. For higher education, the Open University's headquarters are in Milton Keynes{{spaced ndash}} though, as this is a distance education institution, the only students resident on campus are approximately 200 full-time postgraduates. A campus of the University of Bedfordshire located in Central Milton Keynes, provides conventional undergraduate courses.

Cranfield University is the academic partner in project with Milton Keynes City Council to establish a new university, code-named "MK:U",

on a reserved site in the city centre.{{cite web|url=http://www.mkfutures2050.com/projects/mku |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028122849/http://www.mkfutures2050.com/projects/mku |url-status=usurped |archive-date=28 October 2017 |title=Project Two: MK:U A new University for Milton Keynes |publisher= MK2050 Futures Commission |date=October 2017 |access-date=6 February 2019}} {{as of|January 2022}}, the project is stalled pending assurance of government funding.{{cite news |title=Milton Keynes: New university project for 2023 delayed | work=BBC News | date=7 January 2022 |access-date=15 February 2022 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-59914442}}

==Demographics ==

=Population=

File:BofMiltonKeynesUA-popn.png, Office for National Statistics ]]

File:Milton Keynes population pyramid.svg

At the 2021 census, the population of the borough was 287,060. This was an increase of 15.3% from the 2011 census, when the population of the borough was 248,821.{{cite news |title=Census: East of England has biggest population rise since 2011 | work=BBC News | date=28 June 2022 |access-date=12 February 2023 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-61966132}} By 2050, the City Council projects that the borough's population will reach 410,000.{{cite web|url=https://www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2022-03/STRATEGY%20FOR%202050%20NEW%20DESIGN%20-%20FOR%20EMAIL.pdf |title=STRATEGY FOR 2050 NEW DESIGN |publisher= MK2050 Futures Commission |date=March 2022 |access-date=12 December 2023}}

=== Education ===

At the 2021 census, of residents aged 16 and over, 15.8% had no qualifications, 10.9% had a level{{nbsp}}1 qualification, 14.2% had level{{nbsp}}2, 4.7% were in apprenticeship, 15.7% had level{{nbsp}}3, 35.8% had level{{nbsp}}4 and 2.9% had other qualifications.

= Ethnicity =

In the 2021 census, almost 71.8% of the population described their ethnic origin as white, 12.3% as Asian, 9.7% as black, 4% as mixed, and 2% as another ethnic group.

{{hatnote|(click "show" to expand)}}

class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"

! rowspan="3" |Ethnic Group

! colspan="8" |Year

colspan="2" |1991Data is taken from United Kingdom [http://casweb.ukdataservice.ac.uk/index.htm Casweb Data services] of the United Kingdom [http://casweb.ukdataservice.ac.uk/step1.cfm 1991 Census on Ethnic Data for England, Scotland and Wales] (Table 6)

! colspan="2" |2001{{cite web |title=Office for National Statistics; 2001 Census Key Statistics |url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20160105160709/http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/census-2001-key-statistics/local-authorities-in-england-and-wales/local-authorities-ks06--ethnic-group.xls |access-date=2021-09-07 |website=webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk}}

! colspan="2" |2011{{Cite web |title=2011 Census: Ethnic Group, local authorities in England and Wales |url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20160105160709/http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/key-statistics-for-local-authorities-in-england-and-wales/rft-table-ks201ew.xls |access-date=2021-12-15 |website=webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk}}

! colspan="2" |2021{{Cite web |title=Ethnic group - Office for National Statistics |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS021/editions/2021/versions/1/filter-outputs/d2f0a39a-75b6-4995-b4bd-a5b68ff79027#get-data |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=www.ons.gov.uk}}

Number

!%

!Number

!%

!Number

!%

!Number

!%

|

|

|

|

|

|

|

|

White: Total

!166,101

!94.2%

!187,852

!90.7%

!199,094

!80%

!206,114

!71.8%

White: British

|–

|–

|179,694

|86.8%

|183,934

|73.9%

|178,568

|62.2%

White: Irish

|–

|–

|2,918

|

|2,498

|

|2,382

|0.8%

White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller

|–

|–

|–

|–

|72

|

|156

|0.1%

White: Roma

|

|

|

|

|

|

|578

|0.2%

White: Other

|–

|–

|5,240

|

|12,590

|5.1%

|24,430

|8.5%

Asian or Asian British: Total

!5,982

!3.4%

!9,406

!4.5%

!22,782

!9.2%

!35,645

!12.3%

Asian or Asian British: Indian

|2,861

|1.6%

|3,967

|1.9%

|8,106

|3.3%

|15,348

|5.3%

Asian or Asian British: Pakistani

|822

|0.5%

|1,682

|0.8%

|3,851

|1.5%

|7163

|2.5%

Asian or Asian British: Bangladeshi

|694

|0.4%

|1,072

|0.5%

|1,989

|0.8%

|3189

|1.1%

Asian or Asian British: Chinese

|667

|0.4%

|1,835

|0.9%

|2,722

|1.1%

|2913

|1.0%

Asian or Asian British: Other Asian

|938

|0.5%

|850

|0.4%

|6,114

|2.5%

|7,032

|2.4%

Black or Black British: Total

!2,869

!1.6%

!4,986

!2.4%

!17,131

!6.9%

!27,851

!9.7%

Black or Black British: African

|523

|

|2,596

|

|13,058

|5.2%

|21,502

|7.5%

Black or Black British: Caribbean

|1,665

|

|1,956

|

|2,524

|

|2,975

|1.0%

Black or Black British: Other Black

|681

|

|434

|

|1,549

|

|3,374

|1.2%

Mixed or British Mixed: Total

!–

!–

!3,716

!1.8%

!8,235

!3.3%

!11,725

!4%

Mixed: White and Black Caribbean

|–

|–

|1,347

|

|2,243

|

|2,997

|1.0%

Mixed: White and Black African

|–

|–

|477

|

|1,597

|

|2,551

|0.9%

Mixed: White and Asian

|–

|–

|1,037

|

|2,228

|

|2,973

|1.0%

Mixed: Other Mixed

|–

|–

|855

|

|2,167

|

|3,204

|1.1%

Other: Total

!1,378

!0.8%

!1,097

!0.5%

!1,579

!0.6%

!5,725

!2%

Other: Arab

|–

|–

|–

|–

|565

|

|1349

|0.5%

Other: Any other ethnic group

|1,378

|0.8%

|1,097

|0.5%

|1,014

|0.4%

|4376

|1.5%

Ethnic minority: Total

!10,229

!5.8%

!19,205

!9.3%

!49,727

!20%

!80,946

!28%

|

|

|

|

|

|

|

|

Total

!176,330

!100%

!207,057

!100%

!248,821

!100%

!287,060

!100%

= Religion =

The following table shows the religion of respondents in recent censuses in the city of Milton Keynes.

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:right"

! rowspan="2" |Religion

! colspan="2" |2001 Census [https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/datasets/ks007]"KS007 - Religion - Nomis - 2001". www.nomisweb.co.uk. Retrieved 18 October 2022.

! colspan="2" |2011 Census {{Cite web |title=KS209EW (Religion) - Nomis - 2011 |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks209ew |access-date=2022-10-18 |website=www.nomisweb.co.uk}}

! colspan="2" |2021 Census {{Cite web |title=Home - Office for National Statistics |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/ |access-date=2022-12-05 |website=www.ons.gov.uk}}

Number

!%

!Number

!%

!Number

!%

Christian

|135,715

|65.54

|131,352

|52.79

|122,935

|42.83

Muslim

|4,843

|2.34

|11,913

|4.79

|20,484

|7.14

Hindu

|2,596

|1.25

|6,918

|2.78

|12,911

|4.50

Sikh

|795

|0.38

|1,372

|0.55

|1,959

|0.68

Buddhist

|747

|0.36

|1,246

|0.50

|1,404

|0.49

Jewish

|466

|0.23

|427

|0.17

|383

|0.13

Other religion

|821

|0.40

|1,216

|0.49

|1,558

|0.54

No religion

|44,633

|21.56

|77,939

|31.32

|108,953

|37.95

Religion not stated

|16,441

|7.94

|16,438

|6.61

|16,473

|5.74

style="text-align:left" |Total

|207,057

|100.00%

|248,821

|100.00%

|287,060

|100.00%

= Housing and home ownership =

Household tenure breaks down to 60.8% of dwellings owner-occupied, 21% of homes privately rented and 18% are socially rented. Due to the borough's fast-growing population, the City Council plans for a minimum of 26,500 dwellings across the borough over the period between 2016 and 2031, with development primarily focused on city estates, expansion areas and strategic land locations in the south and east of Milton Keynes, Campbell Park (in CMK) and the three "Key Settlements" outside of the 1967 "designated development area" of Milton Keynes: Newport Pagnell, Woburn Sands and Olney.{{Cite web |url=https://www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2022-05/PlanMK%20Adoption%20Version%20%28March%202019%29.pdf |title=Plan:MK 2016-2031 |access-date=12 December 2023|publisher=Milton Keynes City Council}}

=Public health=

According to Public Health England, "The health of people in Milton Keynes is generally similar to the England average. About 15.1% (8,680) children live in low income families. Life expectancy for both men and women is similar to the England average."{{cite web |url=https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/static-reports/health-profiles/2019/e06000042.html | title= Local Authority Health Profile 2019: Milton Keynes |publisher = Public Health England | date=2019 | access-date = 22 August 2020}}

Settlements

=Milton Keynes urban area=

The City of Milton Keynes is fully parished. These are the parishes, and the districts they contain, that are now elements of the Milton Keynes built-up area as defined by the Office for National Statistics.{{NOMIS2011 |id = E34005056 |title = Milton Keynes Built-up area|access-date = 29 March 2019 }} (includes map of the built-up area).{{efn|This list excludes the civil parishes of Aspley Guise and Aspley Heath which, despite being in the contiguous built-up area, are in Central Bedfordshire and thus outside the City of Milton Keynes.}}

Bletchley, Central Milton Keynes, Fenny Stratford, Newport Pagnell, Stony Stratford, Woburn Sands and Wolverton are towns.

===Rest of the borough===

The rural area accounts for about 80% of the borough by area and about 10% by population. Olney is a town. These are the extra-urban civil parishes:

{{div col |colwidth=20em}}

{{div col end}}

=Neighbourhood Plans=

{{as of|2023|12}}, the borough has 28 designated Neighbourhood Areas, of which 22 have made/adopted Neighbourhood Development Plans approved by the City Council, spanning both urban and rural parishes.{{cite web|title=Neighbourhood Plans in Milton Keynes |access-date=13 December 2023 |website= Milton Keynes City Council |url=https://www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/planning-and-building/planning-policy/neighbourhood-planning/neighbourhood-plans-milton-keynes}}

Freedom of the City

The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the City (from 2022) or Freedom of the Borough (1982{{ndash}}2021).

=Individuals=

  • Jock Campbell, Baron Campbell of Eskan: 18 March 1982.{{cite news| url= https://www.miltonkeynes.co.uk/health/coronavirus/tories-want-key-workers-milton-keynes-be-awarded-freedom-borough-2853420 | title= Tories want key workers in Milton Keynes to be awarded freedom of the borough | work= Milton Keynes Citizen | author = David Tooley | date= 15 May 2020 | access-date= 4 August 2020}}
  • James Marshall: 2009.
  • Dame Cleo Laine: 2011.
  • Peter Winkelman: 12 November 2015.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-34027297|title=Football boss 'overwhelmed' by award|work=BBC News|date=22 August 2015}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/pressreleases/2018/mar/proud-city-centre-military-march-to-commemorate-freedom-of-the-borough|title=Proud city centre military march to commemorate Freedom of the Borough - Milton Keynes Council|website=www.milton-keynes.gov.uk}}
  • Leah Williamson: 28 February 2023.{{Cite news|url=https://www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/news/2022/congratulations-mks-leah-williamson-and-lionesses|title=Congratulations to MK's Leah Williamson and The Lionesses|work=Milton Keynes Council|date=1 August 2022}}{{cite news |title=England captain Leah Williamson awarded Freedom of the City of Milton Keynes |url=https://www.miltonkeynes.co.uk/news/people/england-football-captain-leah-williamson-to-be-awarded-possible-honour-in-her-home-town-of-milton-keynes-tonight-4045378|access-date=3 March 2023 |work=Milton Keynes Citizen|author=Sally Murrer|date=28 February 2023}} (first recipient of the Freedom of the City)

=Military Units=

  • The Royal Green Jackets: 1998.
  • The Rifles: 2007. (confirmation)
  • 678 (Rifles) Squadron 6 Regiment Army Air Corps: 11 March 2018.{{cite news |url=https://www.itv.com/news/anglia/2018-03-11/rifles-squadron-rewarded-for-service-with-freedom-of-milton-keynes-honour/ |title=Rifles squadron rewarded for service with 'Freedom of Milton Keynes' honour |date=11 March 2018 |work=ITV News}}

=Organisations and businesses=

References

{{Reflist}}

{{notelist}}

External links

  • [http://www.miltonkeynes.gov.uk/assets/attach/21233/Map%20of%20parish%20ward%20boundaries.pdf Map on the Milton Keynes Council's website showing civil parishes in the borough].

{{Milton Keynes parishes}}

{{Buckinghamshire}}

{{SE_England}}

{{Unitary authorities of England}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Milton Keynes, City of}}

Category:Non-metropolitan districts of Buckinghamshire

Category:Unitary authority districts of England

Category:Local government districts of South East England

Category:Boroughs in England