London Borough of Lewisham

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London Borough of Lewisham
Lewisham
Shown within Greater London
Geography
Status London borough
Area
— Total
Ranked 329th
35.15 km²
ONS code 00AZ
Admin HQ Catford
Demographics
Population
— Total (2005 est.)
Density
Ranked 41st (of 354)
247,500
7,041 / km²
Ethnicity 65.9% White
23.4% African-Caribbean
3.8% South Asian
1.4% Chinese
Politics
Leadership Mayor & Cabinet
Mayor Steve Bullock
Executive Labour mayor
MPs Jim Dowd
Bridget Prentice
Joan Ruddock
London Assembly
— Member
Greenwich and Lewisham
Len Duvall
Coat of Arms
Arms of Lewisham London Borough Council
Official website http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/

The London Borough of Lewisham is a London borough in south east London, England and forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham and its council is based at Catford.

Contents

[edit] History

The borough was formed in 1965, by the London Government Act 1963, as an amalgamation of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Lewisham and the Metropolitan Borough of Deptford, which had been created in 1900 as divisions of the County of London.[1]

Minor boundary changes have occurred since its creation with the most significant amendments in 1996 when the former area of the Royal Docks in Deptford was transferred from the London Borough of Greenwich.[2]

[edit] Geography and Landmarks

The borough is surrounded by the London Borough of Greenwich to the east, the London Borough of Bromley to the south and the London Borough of Southwark to the west. The River Thames forms a short section of northern boundary with the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Deptford Creek, Pool River, River Quaggy and River Ravensbourne pass through the borough.

Major landmarks include All Saints Church in Blackheath, the Citibank Tower in Lewisham, Dietrich Bonhoeffer Church (Sydenham's German Church, technically located in Forest Hill) and the Horniman Museum in Forest Hill.

[edit] Demographics

According to the 2001 census, Lewisham has a population of 248,922. Its population is 66% White, 12% Black Caribbean, and 9% Black African. Fifty percent of households are owner-occupiers.

[edit] Civic affairs

[edit] Motto

The motto of the borough is "Salus Populi Suprema Lex" which means (roughly translated) "The Welfare of the People is the Highest Law".

[edit] Administration

The current Chief Executive is Barry Quirk. The borough is administered by the five directorates of the council: Children and Young People, Community Services, Customer Services, Resources, and Regeneration.

[edit] Twinning

The borough is twinned with the following towns:

The borough has also signed a "friendship link" with Ekurhuleni, near Johannesburg, South Africa.

[edit] Freedom of the Borough

The honour of Freedom of the Borough has been awarded to:

[edit] Politics

[edit] Council of the London Borough of Lewisham

Summary of council election results:

Overall control Labour Lib Dem Green Conservative Others
2006 No overall control 26 17 6 3 2
2002 Labour 45 4 1 2 2
1998 Labour 61 4 - 2 -
1994 Labour 63 3 - 1 -
1990 Labour 58 3 - 6 -
1986 Labour 50 - - 17 -
1982 Labour 43 - - 24 -
1978 Labour 44 - - 23 -
1974 Labour 51 - - 9 -
1971 Labour 55 - - 5 -
1968 Conservative 19 - - 41 -
1964 Labour 45 - - 15 -

Unlike most English districts, its council is led by a directly-elected mayor. The system was established at the 2002 council elections and has now run for two mayoral elections, both of which Steve Bullock has won for the Labour party.

[edit] Westminster Parliament

The borough includes the constituencies of Lewisham, Deptford, Lewisham West and Lewisham East

These are the MPs who have represented constituencies covered by the borough since its formation in 1964. Note that constituencies change their boundaries over time, even where names remain the same.

MP Party Represented Dates
Christopher Chataway Conservative Lewisham North 1964-66
James Dickens Labour Lewisham West 1966-70
Jim Dowd Labour Lewisham West 1992-present
John Selwyn Gummer Conservative Lewisham West 1970-74(Feb)
Carol Johnson Labour Lewisham South 1964-74(Feb)
Patrick McNair-Wilson Conservative Lewisham West 1964-66
John Maples Conservative Lewisham West 1983-92
Roland Moyle Labour Lewisham North
Lewisham East
1966-74(Feb)
1974(Feb)-79
Colin Moynihan Conservative Lewisham East 1983-92
Bridget Prentice Labour Lewisham East 1992-present
Christopher Price Labour Lewisham West 1974(Feb)-79
Joan Ruddock Labour Lewisham, Deptford 1987-present
John Silkin Labour Deptford
Lewisham, Deptford
1964-74(Feb)
1974(Feb)-87

[edit] Transport and Places

[edit] Transport

Lewisham station, once known as Lewisham Junction, is located at the junction of the lines to Dartford and Hayes and is also the terminus of the southern branch of the Docklands Light Railway. The East London Line currently terminates at New Cross and New Cross Gate. An extension, currently under construcitons, and to be known as the East London Railway when complete, will serve Brockley, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill, and Sydenham. It will form part of the London Overground.

The South Circular Road passes through the centre of the borough from the border with Dulwich in the west to Eltham in the east. Except for a short section in Lee as it approaches Eltham, it is purely comprised of one-lane-each-way road.

[edit] List of settlements

It includes the areas:

[edit] Postcode areas within the borough

Bromley, BR1 (part), Beckenham, BR3 (part)

SE3 (part), SE4 (all), SE6 (all), SE8 (part), SE10 (part), SE12 (part), SE13 (all), SE14 (all), SE15 (part), SE16 (part), SE23 (part), SE26 (part),

[edit] Famous current and former residents

[edit] References

  1. ^ Vision of Britain - Lewisham LB
  2. ^ OPSI - The Greenwich and Lewisham (London Borough Boundaries) Order 1993

[edit] External links

Coordinates: 51°25′N 0°02′W