London Borough of Newham

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Geography
London Borough of Newham
Shown within Greater London
Status	London borough
Area — Total	Ranked 326th 36.22 km²
ONS code	00BB
Admin HQ	East Ham
Demographics
Population — Total (2005 est.) — Density	Ranked 42nd (of 354) 246,200 6,797 / km²
Ethnicity	39.4% White 32.5% South Asian 21.6% Afro-Caribbean 3.7% Mixed race 2.8% Chinese 0.1% Arab
Politics
Leadership	Mayor & Cabinet
Mayor	Sir Robin Wales
Executive	Labour
MPs	Lyn Brown Jim Fitzpatrick Stephen Timms
London Assembly — Member	City and East John Biggs
Coat of Arms

Official website	http://www.newham.gov.uk/

Newham Town Hall in East Ham (E6)

Logo on the roadside at sunset

The London Borough of Newham is a London borough in East London, England.

It is situated 5 miles east of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It is the most ethnically diverse district in England^[1].

[edit] History

The borough was formed in 1 April 1965 by merging the former area of the County Borough of East Ham and the County Borough of West Ham. Green Street marks the former boundary between the two. North Woolwich also became part of the borough (previously being in the Metropolitan Borough of Woolwich) along with a small area west of the River Roding which had previously been part of the Municipal Borough of Barking.

According to a study carried out in 2006 for a Channel 4 television programme, it is the "4th worst" place to live in the UK; the study took into account crime rates, school results, pollution, economic activity and property prices. In the same study, neighbouring Tower Hamlets and Hackney came in at 2nd and 1st place respectively.

[edit] Borders

Newham borders the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham by the River Roding to the east, Greenwich by the Thames to the south, Tower Hamlets and Hackney by the River Lee to the west and Waltham Forest and Redbridge by Wanstead Flats to the north.

[edit] Council and democracy

Unlike most English districts, its council is led by a directly-elected mayor, currently Robin Wales. Since 2002, one of the councillors has been appointed as the "civic ambassador", and has performed the civic and ceremonial role previously carried out by the mayor^[2].

Census information indicates Newham is the most culturally diverse place in the United Kingdom. The council likes to claim that it is the most culturally diverse place on Earth. The borough is the local authority with the second highest percentage of Muslims in Britain (24.3).

Although statistically counted as part of Inner London, the borough is still considered part of Outer London for purposes such as funding. This is because the majority of Newham was not part the 1889-1965 County of London. However, much of the borough has historically formed part of London's built-up area and economically it is one of the more deprived districts. The council is actively campaigning to have Newham officially considered part of Inner London for all purposes in order to increase its level of government grant by £60 million. ^[3]

[edit] Education

[edit] Secondary schools

Sarah Bonnell School
Eastlea School
Lister Community School
Little Ilford School
Langdon School
Stratford School
Rokeby Boys School
Plashet Girls School
St Angela's Ursuline Girls
St Bonaventure's Catholic Comprehensive School
Cumberland School
Brampton Manor School
The Royal Docks Community School

[edit] Sixth form

Newham Sixth Form College

[edit] University

The University of East London has two campuses within Newham, these are:

the Stratford Campus, at Stratford
the Docklands Campus, next to the regenerated Royal Albert Dock

[edit] Places of interest

[edit] Community

The Hub, a revolutionary community resource centre built by the local community, in Star Lane, E16, featuring up to the minute "green" features
Grassroots, also built by the local community and another revolutionary green resource centre built by the community. Grass Roots is in Memorial Recreation Ground, E13.

[edit] Museums

North Woolwich Old Station Museum
Three Mills, a mill complex on the east bank of the River Lee. A trading site for nearly a thousand years, the House Mill was built in 1776 and was the country's largest tidal mill. It has been restored as a working museum and contains much of its original machinery including four large waterwheels, millstones and grain chutes.

[edit] Parks and open spaces

Main article: Newham parks and open spaces

[edit] Performance

St. Mark's Church, Silvertown The church was designed by Samuel Saunders Teulon. It was built between 1861 and 1862 after a cholera epidemic swept the district and local clergy appealed through the columns of The Times for funds to provide an architectural, as well as spiritual, beacon for the area. It is now the home of the Brick Lane Music Hall.
Stratford Circus
Theatre Royal Stratford East

Vibrant Green Street where the population is predominantly South Asian

[edit] Shopping and exhibitions

ExCeL Exhibition Centre
Gallions Reach Shopping Park
Green Street, the largest shopping centre catering for the Asian community in London
Stratford Shopping Centre, one of the biggest shopping centres in Newham, home to over 100 shops specialising in everything from knitting to music, from ethnic foods to aromatherapy.

[edit] Sport

Newham is a host borough for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
The West Ham United F.C. ground is at Upton Park

[edit] Districts

[edit] Transport

Transport in Newham is undergoing a major upgrade, with the completed Docklands Light Railway and Jubilee Line Extension, with new or improved stations at Canning Town, West Ham and Stratford. The Channel Tunnel Rail Link is nearing completion and Stratford International station is due to open in 2009. The Crossrail scheme will also improve rail connections to several stations in the borough. A further extension to the Docklands Light Railway will serve London City Airport and will connect Newham with Woolwich.