The west of the borough contains much of the southern part of the Lancashire Plain, a low-lying region of mossland.

A large lake called Martin Mere occupied much of the area until it was drained for agriculture.

The northern border of the borough is the Ribble Estuary, and both it and the remnant of Martin Mere are Ramsar sites.

[8] The Government did not pursue that proposed reform, although left open the possibility of other forms of reorganisation in future.

[14] Parts of the district are also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.

It is responsible for the administration of various services, such as leisure, waste collection, planning permission and pest control.

Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[16][17] The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in West Lancashire.

In terms of television, the area is served by BBC North West and ITV Granada broadcasting from the Winter Hill transmitter.