Home Counties
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The phrase Home Counties is a name for the group of English counties which border London.
In 1888 with the laying down of London's formal borders and the creation of the County of London these prescriptively became Kent, Surrey, Middlesex and Essex with sections of Kent, Surrey and Middlesex used to make up the county.
In 1965 when London's borders expanded further into those counties and Hertfordshire to become Greater London the list grew to include the counties of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, and Berkshire. At this stage the remainder of Middlesex became absorbed into London with small sections ceded to Surrey and Hertfordshire.
It should be noted that in common usage the phrase is not neccesarily applied with such geographical precision.
The Home Counties are sometimes called London and the South-East or referred to as the London Commuter Belt or the London Metropolitan Area. In this sense the phrase is likely to be understood to include counties such as Bedfordshire and other counties from the East of England and South East England regions.
The term Home Counties could be synonymous with a rather conservative, prosperous and middle-class attitude to life. It should be noted that some people may find use of the term a sign of a London bias.