News & Events

The changing face of town twinning

The first ever UK wide list of twinned towns has been published which reveals the changing nature of the cultural, social and economic links that are being forged across the planet.

Somerset Market Towns thinking of reviewing existing twinning arrangements should be aware of the potential benefits, especially the economic benefits, that a more adventurous (or non-traditional) twin town can bring.

The comprehensive survey by the Local Government Association shows that twinning links and international partnerships have expanded to every continent on the planet, with large numbers of twinned towns now being set up in tiger economies, such as India and China, to help develop economic links that create jobs and stimulate investment.

The survey key findings are:

There are 2,527 twinned town links around the globe

There are eighty-seven countries which now have twinning links with the UK

  • Almost two in three twinnings occur with French and German towns, with three in four twin towns residing in Western European countries
  • Eight percent are linked with Former Eastern Block counties 
  • Seven percent are linked with North America
  • Five percent are linked with Asia
  • Two percent are linked with Africa
  • One percent are linked with towns in South America and Oceania

Twinning links were set up in the aftermath of two World Wars in order to foster international peace and understanding. By the early 1990s, towns and cities across the UK started to reassess the content of their twinning relationships and this period saw a noticeable trend towards the economic aspects of twinning of more far flung countries and cities.

To read the full Press Release click here

To read an Independent article on the changing face of twinning, click here

Created on April 15th 2008

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