which will replace the Methodist Council and the former Strategy and Resources Committee. District Districts are geographical units, typically one to three counties in extent. There are thirty districts across Great Britain—including two overlapping districts in Wales, one English-speaking and one Welsh. The governing body is called a synod. The Methodist Church formally defines the nature and purpose of the district as being: Circuit A circuit is a grouping of local churches under the care of one or more ministers. They number about 360 (), and this figure is declining as more circuits amalgamate. The circuit is the main functional unit of Methodism, in that a large number of activities are organised at this level. Ministers are appointed firstly to the circuit and then secondly to the pastoral care of local churches. This means ministers will ordinarily preach and lead worship each Sunday in any church on the circuit but during the rest of the week they exercise pastoral charge over a subset of churches in that circuit. Preaching appointments for both ministers and (lay) local preachers are organised by the circuit and advertised on a preaching plan issued every three months by the leader of the circuit, the superintendent minister. Local church Also called "societies" in certain formal contexts (although an increasingly antiquated name), the term "local church" can refer to both the congregation as well as the particular building it meets in. Membership is always tied to the local church, where members meet together for worship and fellowship. Each congregation is led by a presbyter in charge—also referred to as "the minister". there were almost 170,000 members of 4,110 churches. Class A class is a group of Methodists, normally about twelve, under the guidance of a class leader. In the 20th century it became less common for classes to actually meet together, but many local churches have home fellowships, Bible studies groups, and cell groups by other names. Under the church's Constitutional Practice and Discipline (CPD), where the number of registered local church members falls below six over four successive quarters, the formal "local church" ceases to be recognised as such and is often treated as a "class" subject to the oversight of another Methodist Church or leader. List of districts and circuits Superscriptions indicate a local ecumenical partnership (LEP) with one or more other denominations: (B) Baptist; (C) Church of England; (Co) Congregational; (E) Scottish Episcopal Church;