London Borough of Waltham Forest
| London Borough of Waltham Forest | |||
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| — London borough — | |||
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| Waltham Forest shown within Greater London | |||
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom | ||
| Constituent country | England | ||
| Region | London | ||
| Ceremonial county | Greater London | ||
| Status | London borough | ||
| Admin HQ | Walthamstow | ||
| Incorporated | 1 April 1965 | ||
| Government | |||
| - Type | London borough council | ||
| - Body | Waltham Forest London Borough Council | ||
| - Leadership | Leader (Cllr Chris Robbins) & Cabinet (Labour) | ||
| - Mayor | Cllr Masood Ahmad | ||
| - MPs | John Cryer Stella Creasy Iain Duncan Smith |
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| - London Assembly | Jennette Arnold AM for North East | ||
| - EU Parliament | London | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 15 sq mi (38.82 km2) | ||
| Area rank | 295th (of 326) | ||
| Population (2008 est.) | |||
| - Total | 223,200 | ||
| - Rank | 63rd (of 326) | ||
| - Density | 14,891.4/sq mi (5,749.6/km2) | ||
| - Ethnicity[1] | 53.5% White British 2.1% White Irish 7.6% Other White 1.4% White & Black Caribbean 0.7% White & Black African 0.9% White & Asian 1.0% Other Mixed 3.7% Indian 7.7% Pakistani 1.2% Bangladeshi 2.3% Other Asian 7.7% Black Caribbean 6.4% Black African 1.4% Other Black 0.9% Chinese 1.5% Other |
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| Time zone | GMT (UTC0) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | BST (UTC+1) | ||
| Postcodes | {{{postcode_areas}}} | ||
| Police force | Metropolitan Police | ||
| Website | walthamforest.gov.uk | ||
The London Borough of Waltham Forest is a borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. It is a mix of built-up residential development and a fifth of the borough is made up of forestland, reservoirs, open space, parks and playing fields. It is located between part of Epping Forest in the east and the River Lee in the west which form two green corridors, passing into London from the surrounding countryside. It is sometimes confused with the adjoining Epping Forest district, which is not in Greater London. Waltham Forest is one of five London boroughs which have been designated host boroughs for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
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History
Many Stone Age remains are found in the area. Roman remains have also been found scattered around the borough proving it was a significant area of Roman occupation. The borough was formed in 1965, by the London Government Act 1963, from the area of the former Municipal Borough of Chingford, Municipal Borough of Leyton and Municipal Borough of Walthamstow which was transferred to Greater London from Essex. The borough was named Waltham Forest after the forest the area used to reside in, now known as Epping Forest. The Epping Forest Act of 1878 not only assisted in preserving the forest but also helped develop the towns around it: Chingford, Walthamstow and Leyton. The borough's location between the City of London and Epping Forest encouraged the large scale urban development of much of the borough.
Settlement
The main centres of population in the borough are Chingford in the north, Walthamstow in the centre (and the administrative hub including the council offices) and Leyton and Leytonstone to the south. Waltham Forest has the fifth largest Muslim population in England and the third largest in London (coming after its neighbouring boroughs, Newham and Tower Hamlets).
Arts, culture and leisure
Waltham Forest is home to many musicians who have made it on the UK charts in many years including East 17 and Blazin' Squad. Waltham Forest is one of the two boroughs in London which brought the music scene grime the new up and coming genre formed in 2000. Many grime acts hail from this borough such as More Fire Crew, Lethal Bizzle, Neeko, Jammer (rapper), Ozzie B and many more underground artists. Already well known as the seat of the Arts & Crafts movement under the stewardship of the William Morris, Waltham Forest has continued to succour many contemporary artists & art groups. Most notably the North East London Independent Artists (NELIA) based at the Changing Room Gallery in Lloyd Park, the 491 Gallery in Leytonstone and a plethora of independent artists mainly in the Leytonstone area. The annual E17 Art Trail, which includes open studios, exhibitions and events is the biggest art event in the borough, and there is now a similar event in Leytonstone. Eamon Everall founder member of the influential Stuckism Art Movement is a long-time resident in the borough where he also maintains a studio. Sally Moore, Welsh Artist of the Year 2005, also lives in the borough.
Waltham Forest Theatre is situated in Lloyds Park, but will be demolished shortly as the council are unable to fund the only theatre in the borough. A vigorous local campaign was launched to save it.[2]
Olympics
Waltham Forest is one of five host boroughs in East London for the 2012 Olympics.
Eton Manor in Leyton forms the northern part of the Olympic Park. During the Olympic Games the area will house three Olympic-size swimming pools, one sychronised swimming pool and one water polo pool. These pools will be used for athlete training.
During the Paralympic Games, Eton Manor will host the Wheelchair Tennis events, with temporary seating for 10,500 spectators.
Education
Infant and primary schools
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Secondary schools
Districts
- Highams Park
- Leyton
- Leytonstone
- Walthamstow
- Chingford
- Temple Mills
- Lea Bridge
Wards
- Cann Hall
- Cathall
- Chapel End
- Chingford Green
- Endlebury
- Forest
- Grove Green
- Hale End and Highams Park
- Hatch Lane
- High Street
- Higham Hill
- Hoe Street
- Larkswood
- Lea Bridge
- Leyton
- Leytonstone
- Markhouse
- William Morris
- Wood Street
- Valley
Postcodes
- E4
- E5
- E7
- E10
- E11
- E15
- E17
- IG8
Transport
The Central line of the London Underground serves the south of the borough, running alongside the A12 road with stations at Leyton and Leytonstone. The Victoria Line runs roughly through the middle of the borough with stations at Walthamstow Central and Blackhorse Road. The Gospel Oak to Barking line of London Overground has stations at Walthamstow Queens Road, Blackhorse Road, Leyton Midland Road and Leytonstone High Road. National Express East Anglia services from Liverpool Street station in the City of London serve stations at St James Street, Walthamstow Central, Wood Street, Highams Park and Chingford.
London Buses routes 20, 34, 48, 55, 56, 58, 66, 69, 97, 123, 145, 158, 179, 212, 215, 230, 257, 275, 308, 313, 357, 379, 385, 397, 444, W11, W12, W13, W14, W15, W16, W19, School buses route 675, other route 505, 853 and Night route N8, N26, N38, N55 and N73.
Law enforcement
Waltham Forest has a Magistrates' Court, located next to the Town Hall. There are five police stations, in Chingford, Leyton, Leytonstone, Walthamstow and Walthamstow Town Centre, and a number of additional patrol centres throughout the borough.
Notable residents
Waltham Forest is the birthplace of William Morris, best known as one of the principal founders of the British Arts and Crafts Movement. Morris was a designer of wallpaper and patterned fabrics, a writer of poetry and fiction, and a pioneer of the socialist movement in Britain.
Other notable people such as Footballer and former England Captain David Beckham, I, Claudius star Derek Jacobi, former Essex and England Cricket Captain Graham Gooch, film director and producer Alfred Hitchcock were also born in the borough, the heavy metal band Iron Maiden was formed in Leyton and Eastenders actress Rita Simons born in Leytonstone.
Sport teams
- Leyton Orient Football Club
- Leyton Football Club
- Waltham Forest F.C.
- Lee Valley Lions
Twinned cities
The London Borough of Waltham Forest is twinned[3] with:–
Friendship Links have also been established with:
St John's, Antigua and Barbuda
Roseau, Dominica
Mirpur, Pakistan
See also
- Waltham Forest parks and open spaces
- Whipps Cross Hospital
Gallery
 Walthamstow Town Hall |
 Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge |
 Walthamstow Stadium |
 Leyton Town Hall |
 Walthamstow Marshes |
 Leytonstone Station |
 All Saints and St Paul's Tower |
References
- ↑ Data Management and Analysis Group, Greater London Authority, Demography Update October 2007, (2007)
- ↑ Teenage twins in bid to take over theatre Sarah Cosgrove The Waltham Forest Guardian
- ↑ http://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/index/community/twinning.htm
External links
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