Central was an electoral division of Liverpool City Council in the Liverpool Riverside Parliamentary constituency.

The ward was created for the 2004 municipal elections from the former Abercromby, Everton and Smithdown wards.

The ward boundaries followed the River Mersey, Princes Parade, William Jessop Way, Waterloo Road, Paisley Street, Great Howard Street, Leeds Street, Byrom Street, Hunter Street, Islington, Brunswick Road, Low Hill, Kensington, Jubilee Drive, Belltower Lane to behind Jubilee Drive, Edge Lane, Irvine Street, Mason Street, Grinfield Street, Smithdown Lane, Falkner Street, Grove Street, Myrtle Street, Hardman Street, Leece Street, Renshaw Street, Ranelagh Street, Hanover Street, Canning Place, Salthouse Quay, and Hartley Quay.^[1]

It contained the majority of the city centre but also includes Kensington Fields in the Kensington district to the east and the Marybone/Holy Cross community in the Vauxhall district. The ward includes the longstanding city centre community around the Bullring, as well as many new city centre apartments. Furthermore, the ward contains the Pier Head and the two larger universities; the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University.

The population at the 2011 census was 20,340,^[2] and at the 2021 census was 24,849.^[3]

In 2004 Central was the city's most marginal ward, largely due to the intervention of the hard left Liverpool Labour Community Party, however the ward solely returned Labour Party councillors. The May 2008 local elections saw Labour take 62% of the vote.

The 2011 vote was effected by the controversy involving the Liberal Democrat candidate, Daniel Bradley, who is the son of former Liverpool City Council Leader Warren Bradley, when Daniel disclosed that he had not signed the candidate paper which his father had witnessed.^[4][5]

Cllr Maria Toolan resigned from the Labour Party, weeks before the 2023 elections, after failing to be selected as a Labour candidate,^[6] and subsequently stood for the Liverpool Community Independents Party in City Centre North ward.^[7]

The ward was dissolved in 2023 and was distributed mostly into the City Centre North and Brownlow Hill wards, with parts in the Canning, City Centre South, , Everton West Kensington & Fairfield and Waterfront South wards.

  indicates seat up for re-election after boundary changes.

  indicates seat up for re-election.

  indicates change in affiliation.

  indicates seat up for re-election after casual vacancy.