London Borough of Greenwich

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London Borough of Greenwich
Greenwich
Shown within Greater London
Geography
Status London borough
Area
— Total
Ranked 302nd
47.35 km² (18.3 sq mi)
ONS code 00AL
Admin HQ Woolwich
Demographics
Population
— Total (2006 est.)
Density
Ranked 54th (of 354)
222,600
4,701 /km² (12,176 /sq mi)
Ethnicity
White British
White Irish
Other White
White & Black Caribbean
White & Black African
White & Asian
Other Mixed
Indian
Pakistani
Bangladeshi
Other Asian
Black Caribbean
Black African
Other Black
Chinese
Other
(2005 estimates)[1]
66.7%
1.9%
5.6%
1.1%
0.5%
0.7%
0.7%
4.3%
1.1%
0.8%
1.3%
3.1%
8.5%
0.8%
1.5%
1.2%
Politics
Greenwich London Borough Council
Logo of Greenwich London Borough Council
Leadership Leader & Cabinet
Mayor Cllr Sajid Jawaid
Executive Labour
MPs John Austin
Clive Efford
Nick Raynsford
London Assembly
— Member
Greenwich and Lewisham
Len Duvall
Coat of Arms
Coat of arms of Greenwich London Borough Council
Official website http://www.greenwich.gov.uk/

The London Borough of Greenwich (pronunciation ) (Greenwich pronounced /ˈgrɛnɪtʃ/) is an Inner London borough in south-east London, England.

Greenwich is one of five host boroughs for the 2012 London Olympics with events due to be held at the Royal Artillery Barracks (Shooting), Greenwich Park (Equestrianism) and The O2-former Millennium Dome (Gymnastics; Basketball).

Contents

[edit] History

It was formed in 1965 by merging the former area of the metropolitan boroughs of Greenwich and most of Woolwich (with the exception of North Woolwich, north of the river, which became part of the London Borough of Newham).

The name 'Charlton' was briefly considered for the borough.[2]. Greenwich was once turned down for city status, which if it had been accepted the borough would be known as the City of Greenwich, similar to the City of Westminster.

Greenwich and Observatory
Greenwich and Observatory

[edit] Geography

The borough lies along the south bank of the River Thames between Deptford and Thamesmead. Because of the shape of the river, the waterfront is extremely long. Travelling south away from the waterfront, the ground swiftly rises: Shooters Hill in the east and the high ground of Blackheath in the west bookend the borough, Eltham to the south of these hills falls away slightly.

Greenwich is bounded by the London Boroughs of Bexley to the east, Bromley to the south and Lewisham to the west, and across the River Thames to the north lie Tower Hamlets and Newham.

[edit] Demographics

The borough's population at a 2005 estimate was 228,100 of which over 77% of the population was ethnically White with more than 1 in 10 residents of African-Caribbean ethnicity and substantial minorities of South and East Asian heritage.

[edit] Landmarks

Central Greenwich Town contains a UNESCO World Heritage Site centred on Christopher Wren's Royal Naval College and the Old Royal Observatory.

[edit] Civic affairs

[edit] Mayor

The 2007/8 Mayor is Cllr Sajid Jawaid (Plumstead ward).

Shaped like an astrolabe, the 18ct gold badge on the Mayor's chain embodies the ‘time-ball’ on the principal building of the old Greenwich Royal Observatory, the meridian line and lines of latitude and longitude. The ‘time-ball’ is set with small rubies.

[edit] Executive

The Executive is composed of ten Labour members, led by Cllr Chris Roberts (Peninsula ward) who has been Leader of the Council since (tbc).

[edit] Coat of arms

The hour glass and radiated stars are taken from the arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich and symbolise the position of the borough as the place from which the standard of time is taken. The three cannon barrels, are taken from the arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Woolwich and signify the association of that borough with the Royal Arsenal.

[edit] Twinning

The London Borough of Greenwich is twinned with:

[edit] Politics

[edit] Greenwich London Borough Council

Summary of council election results:

Overall control Labour Conservative Lib Dem Others
2006 Labour 36 13 2 -
2002 Labour 38 9 4 -
1998 Labour 52 8 2 -
1994 Labour - - - -
1990 Labour - - - -
1986 Labour - - - -
1982 Labour - - - -
1978 Labour - - - -
1974 Labour - - - -
1971 Labour - - - -
1968 Conservative - - - -
1964 Labour - - - -

Greenwich is administered by 51 councillors. The Labour Party currently has an overall majority on the council, holding 36 seats, with the Conservatives holding 13, and the Liberal Democrats 2. Labour has had a majority on the council since 1971.

Map showing the borders of London Borough of Greenwich and its 17 wards
Map showing the borders of London Borough of Greenwich and its 17 wards

[edit] Electoral wards

The borough is divided into 17 wards, they are:

Each ward elects three councillors apiece every four years. At the 2006 elections the Conservatives gained three seats from Labour (two in Kidbrooke with Hornfair and one in Blackheath Westcombe) and one from the Liberal Democrats (Eltham South). Labour gained one seat from the Liberal Democrats (Middle Park and Sutcliffe) and one from an Independent (Abbey Wood). The following councillors were elected:

Ward Members elected in 2006
Abbey Wood Clive Mardner (Lab)
Steve Offord (Lab)
Jagir Sekhon (Lab)
Blackheath Westcombe Geoff Brighty (Con)
Alex Wilson (Con)
Alex Grant (Lab)
Charlton Janet Gillman (Lab)
Allan MacCarthy (Lab)
Gary Parker (Lab)
Coldharbour and New Eltham John Hills (Con)
Mandy Brinkhurst (Con)
Chris Taylor (Con)
Eltham North Spencer Drury (Con)
Dermot Poston (Con)
Nigel Fletcher (Con)
Eltham South Peter King (Con)
Eileen Glover (Con)
Elizabeth Truss (Con)
Eltham West Mick Hayes (Lab)
Bill Freeman (Lab)
Ray Walker (Lab)
Glyndon Don Austen (Lab)
Paul Tyler (Lab)
John Wakefield (Lab)
Greenwich West Maureen O'Mara (Lab)
David Grant (Lab)
Margaret Mythen (Lab)
Kidbrooke with Hornfair Graeme Coombes (Con)
Norman Adams (Lab)
Andy Jennings (Con)
Middle Park and Sutcliffe Brian Woodcraft (LibDem)
Clare Morris (Lab)
Paul Webbewood (LibDem)
Peninsula Mary Mills (Lab)
Dick Quibell (Lab)
Chris Roberts (Lab)
Plumstead Angela Cornforth (Lab)
Kanta Patel (Lab)
Sajid Jawaid (Lab)
Shooters Hill John Kelly (Lab)
Danny Thorpe (Lab)
Denise Hyland (Lab)
Thamesmead Moorings Peter Brooks (Lab)
Jackie Smith (Lab)
Peter Kotz (Lab)
Woolwich Common Beverley Jones (Lab)
Rajwant Sidhu (Lab)
Harry Singh (Lab)
Woolwich Riverside Barbara Barwick (Lab)
Terry Hales (Lab)
John Fahy (Lab)

[edit] Westminster Parliament

The borough contains the constituencies of:

As of the 2005 General Election, all three are represented by Labour MPs.

[edit] Education

[edit] Universities

The University of Greenwich main campus is located in the distinctive buildings of the former Royal Naval College. There is a further campus of the university at Avery Hill in Eltham, and also, outside the borough, in Medway. Near the main campus at Greenwich, the Trinity College of Music is housed in the buildings of the former Greenwich Hospital.

[edit] Sport within Borough

Greenwich has many sports centres and these are run by Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL). There are also many clubs including football clubs such as Charlton Athletic which not only trains kid but is also a professional football club playing in The Championship. There are also several Swimming clubs and Rugby clubs.

[edit] Transport

[edit] River crossings

There are foot tunnels under the River Thames between Greenwich and Island Gardens in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and between Woolwich and North Woolwich in the London Borough of Newham. The Woolwich Ferry takes vehicle traffic and links the North Circular Road to the South Circular Road which runs through the borough.

[edit] Railway stations

[edit] Tube/DLR stations

[edit] Places

[edit] Parks and open spaces

The borough contains the Greenwich Royal Park.

[edit] Churches

The Greenwich borough is predominantly Christian (2001 Census). The Christian Church is represented by various denominations, among which are Church of England, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Baptist, Evangelical, Brethren, Pentecostal, Quakers, etc. Non-Trinitarian groups also exist. Besides these there are various other religious minorities including Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus and Jews.

[edit] Localities

It includes the following areas:

As well as parts of

[edit] Postcode areas

SE2 (part), SE3 (part), SE7 (all), SE8 (part), SE9 (part), SE10 (part), SE12 (part), SE13 (part), SE18 (all), SE28 (part), DA15(part) BR7 (part).

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Data Management and Analysis Group, Greater London Authority, Demography Update October 2007, (2007)
  2. ^ Names for Nine New Boroughs of London. The Times. September 14, 1963

[edit] External links

Coordinates: 51°27′N, 0°03′E