Standish is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the A49 road between Chorley and Wigan, near Junction 27 of the M6 motorway. The population of the village was 13,278 in the 2011 census.

Formed around a crossroads, the village has grown as urban expansion between Manchester and Liverpool extends outwards. St Wilfrid's Church is a Grade I listed parish church.

The name Standish is derived from the Old English stan, meaning stone, and edisc, a park or enclosure. It has been variously recorded as Stanedis in 1206, Stanediss in 1219, Standissh, Stanedich and Stanedissh in 1292 and Standisch in 1330. The adjoining village of Langtree was recorded as Langetre in 1206 and Longetre in 1330. A Roman road passed through the township.

Standish and Langtree were part of the Penwortham barony in the 12th century, and between 1150 and 1164, Richard Bussel, Lord of Penwortham gave them to his brother-in-law Richard Spileman. In 1212 Thurstan Banastre held them and later they were held by William de Ferrers Earl of Derby, and then by 'the lords of Leylandshire'. The tenants adopted the local surnames, Standish and Langtree.

From the 13th century, the Standish family were Lords of the Manor of Standish and owned the Standish Hall estate. The male line ended in 1755 with the death of Ralph Standish, and the estate was passed down through female lines until it was broken up in 1920. Standish Hall, whose oldest part dated from 1574, was demolished in stages during the 20th century. However, several of its wood-panelled interiors survive, most of which were transported to the US.

The Standish family were the main coal owners in the area, with their estate being mined since the 14th century. Coal mining in the area increased during the Industrial Revolution. During 1865-66, the Standish collieries were merged into the Wigan Coal and Iron Company. By 1896, Wigan Coal & Iron owned the Broomfield, Giant's Hall, Gidlow, John, Langtree, Robin Hill, Swire and Taylor Pits. The largest of these was the Langtree Pit with over 540 employees.

In 1900 the two 20 ft shafts of Wigan Coal's Victoria Colliery were sunk. This would continue to operate until its closure by the National Coal Board in 1958. It is now a housing estate.

There are 22 Listed buildings in Standish, including one with a Grade I listing and two at Grade II*.

St Wilfrid's Parish Church is the only building with a Grade I listing in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan. In the Market Place in front of the church is a late medieval cross, stone stocks and a 14th-century well.

Standish has the 22-acre Ashfield Park which contains a mixture of woodland, open green-space and recreational facilities. Part of Ashfield is designated locally as a historic park and garden.

The village has three Grade II listed war memorials; the Peace Gate at St Wilfrid's Church, a memorial cross at the St Marie's Catholic Church, and Standish Pillar War Memorial in the Victoria Jubilee Memorial Garden (near the Globe pub). The Pillar War Memorial, unveiled in 1920, was dedicated to the men of Standish lost in the First World War; with further inscriptions added after WWII.

In the south of the village is Gidlow Cemetery, which was founded in 1948.