List of NHS Regional Hospital Boards 1947 - 1974

Regional Hospital Boards were established in 1947 by the National Health Service Act 1946 to administer hospital and specialist services of the National Health Service in England and Wales. The National Health Service Reorganisation Act 1973 replaced the Hospital boards with Regional Health Authorities in 1974.

Each board administered a Regional Hospital Area, which was defined in terms of local government units: administrative counties, county boroughs, metropolitan boroughs, s and rural districts.

(1) The civil parish of Tarporley was transferred from Liverpool Regional Hospital Area to the Manchester Regional Hospital Area in 1956

(2) The eastern part of the metropolitan Borough of Bermondsey was transferred from the South-West Metropolitan to the South-East Metropolitan Regional Hospital Area 1958

In 1965 a new Wessex Regional Hospital Area was formed from the western part of the South-West Metropolitan Hospital Area:

At the same time the Welsh Regional Hospital Area was redesignated as the Welsh Hospital Area, and the Regional Hospital Board became the Welsh Hospital Board.