This dataset is the definitive set of ward boundaries at 1 January 2015 as defined by the territorial authorities and/or Local Government Commission, but maintained by Statistics New Zealand (the custodian).
Wards are defined under the Local Electoral Act 2001 and result from dividing a territorial authority for electoral purposes. The ward system was designed to allow for the recognition of communities within a territorial authority and to increase community involvement in the local government system.
Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2015.
This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes.
