NUTS3 Boundaries for England and Wales, January 2015

Ultra generalised 500m vector boundaries for NUTS Level 3 statistical areas in England and Wales. This dataset from the Office for National Statistics contains five boundary versions, including full resolution and multiple generalised clips to the coastline. File sizes range from 138 KB for the ultra generalised version to 23 MB for the full resolution clipped version.

Use Cases

• Create thematic maps for regional analysis based on ultra generalised boundaries for web visualization.
• Perform spatial joins with other statistical data using the NUTS3 geographic codes.
• Analyze coastal administrative boundaries using the clipped-to-coastline versions.
• Compare boundary detail and file size trade-offs for different application needs.

Strengths

• Provides five distinct boundary versions, from full resolution to ultra generalised (500m).
• Specific file sizes are listed for each version, with the ultra generalised version at 138 KB.
• Contains intellectual property from both Ordnance Survey and the Office for National Statistics.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data freshness should be verified as the boundaries are from a snapshot on 1st January 2015.

Provenance

Source

Office for National Statistics

Collection Method

Digital vector boundaries derived from Ordnance Survey and ONS data.

Time Range

Snapshot as of 1st January 2015.

Freshness

Snapshot as of 1st January 2015; metadata last updated 2026-07-08 13:31:33.441784.

Geography

England and Wales, NUTS Level 3 statistical areas.