The Leicester Urban Area is a conurbation

Conurbation

A conurbation is a region comprising a number of cities, large towns, and other urban areas that, through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban and industrially developed area...

 based around the city of Leicester

Leicester

Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...

 in Leicestershire

Leicestershire

Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

While it has no formal definition as an administrative area, it is defined by the Office for National Statistics

Office for National Statistics

The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...

 with a population of 441,213 at the time of the 2001 census

United Kingdom Census 2001

A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....

. It comprises Leicester itself and several outlying suburbs, towns and villages which are all situated in close proximity to the city.

The urban area is the twelfth largest in England, between the Portsmouth Urban Area

Portsmouth Urban Area

The Portsmouth Urban Area, in south-east Hampshire in southern England, includes the following components :*Fareham*Portchester*Gosport*Havant*Lee-on-the-Solent*Portsmouth*Stubbington*Waterlooville...

 and the Bournemouth Urban Area

South East Dorset conurbation

The South east Dorset conurbation is a multi-centred conurbation on the south coast of Dorset in England. The area is rapidly becoming an amalgamation with the area of South West Hampshire immediately on the fringe of the newly formed New Forest National Park...

, and the fifteenth largest in the United Kingdom. Leicester itself comprises more than three quarters of the Urban Area population.

The ONS's definition of "Leicester" excludes the suburb of Beaumont Leys, which is counted separately, and amalgamates several surrounding towns and villages. Its boundaries and population are not the same as that of the Leicester unitary authority, which had a separate population of 279,921 at the 2001 Census.

Urban Subdivision	Population
Leicester Leicester Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest... — Braunstone Braunstone Town Braunstone is a civil parish and is the largest parish within the district of Blaby in Leicestershire, England, now known as the Town of Braunstone or more commonly, Braunstone Town. At 2007 the population is around 15,000. There are around 7,500 households including Thorpe Astley.Braunstone is... — Glenfield Glenfield Glenfield may refer to:*Glenfield, Leicestershire, the administrative base of Leicestershire County Council, Leicestershire in England.*Glenfield, New Zealand, a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand.*Glenfield, New South Wales, is a suburb of Sydney, Australia.... — Glen Parva Glen Parva Glen Parva is a civil parish in Leicestershire with a population of over 5,000. To the north it runs into Aylestone, and to the east Eyres Monsell and South Wigston... — Scraptoft Scraptoft Scraptoft is a village in Leicestershire, England that is effectively a suburb of Leicester. It has a population of about 1,500. It lies north of the A47 road east of Leicester, and runs directly into the built up area of Thurnby and Bushby to the south... — Syston Syston Syston is a town and civil parish in the district of Charnwood in Leicestershire, England. The population is 11,508 as of the 2001 Census.-Overview:... — Thurmaston Thurmaston Thurmaston is a village and civil parish within the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England. As of the 2001 census its population was 8,945... — Thurnby Thurnby Thurnby is a village just east of Leicester's city boundaries, in the Harborough district.Thurnby village proper is set to the south of the A47, just after it leaves the city. A sister village, Bushby lies just to the East and merges into it such that the two have made one civil parish, Thurnby...	336,153
Wigston — South Wigston South Wigston South Wigston is a suburb of Leicester, England. It is outside the city boundary, forming part of the Oadby and Wigston district of Leicestershire.-Geography and administration:...	33,116
Oadby Oadby Oadby is a town within the borough of Oadby and Wigston, in Leicestershire, England. It is to the east of Wigston Magna, and to the southeast of Leicester. Oadby forms part of the Leicester Urban Area, and is situated on the A6 road....	22,679
Birstall Birstall, Leicestershire Birstall is a large village and civil parish within the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England. It is three miles north of the Leicester city centre and is part of the wider Leicester Urban Area....	11,480
Kirby Muxloe Kirby Muxloe Kirby Muxloe is a town and civil parish west of Leicester. Its proximity to the city causes it to form part of the Leicester Urban Area. The Leicester Forest East parish border runs along the Hinckley Road A47... — Leicester Forest East Leicester Forest East Leicester Forest East or LFE is a settlement in Leicestershire, England, west of Leicester, straddling the M1 motorway. It is part of the Blaby district.LFE is a popular location among commuters and young families...	9,500
Groby Groby Groby is a large English village in the county of Leicestershire, to the north west of the city of Leicester. The population at the time of the 2001 census was 7,301.-Description:...	6,256
Blaby Blaby Blaby is a village in central Leicestershire, England, some five miles south of Leicester city centre. It has population of around 6,240 , and its proximity to the city causes it to form part of the Leicester Urban Area....	6,163
Whetstone Whetstone, Leicestershire Whetstone is a village and civil parish in the Blaby district of Leicestershire, England. It has a population of 6,000 and largely acts as a commuter village for Leicester, five miles to the north...	6,100
Beaumont Leys Beaumont Leys Beaumont Leys is an electoral ward and administrative division of the city of Leicester, England, comprising the north-western Leicester suburb of Beaumont Leys.-Geography:...	5,579
Ratby Ratby Ratby is a commuter village and civil parish in the Hinckley and Bosworth district of Leicestershire. It is situated to the west of Leicester, and just south of the motorway. It has a population of about 4,000. The Roman name for Leicester was Ratae Corieltauvorum...	3,862
Cosby Cosby, Leicestershire thumb|Cosby Village centreCosby is a village in the English county of Leicestershire. Cosby is located in the south west of the county near the larger villages and towns of Whetstone, Blaby and Wigston. Its proximity to the city of Leicester means it is part of the Leicester Urban Area.It is not...	3,647
Queniborough Queniborough Queniborough is a village in the county of Leicestershire, United Kingdom just north of Syston and to the north of Leicester with 972 properties in the village and 1,878 registered electors . Due to its proximity to Leicester it forms part of the Leicester Urban Area...	2,257
Total Urban Area	441,213