| Leytonstone | |
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Leytonstone
Leytonstone shown within Greater London |
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| OS grid reference | TQ395875 |
|---|---|
| London borough | Waltham Forest |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | London |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LONDON |
| Postcode district | E11, E15 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| EU Parliament | London |
| UK Parliament | Leyton & Wanstead |
| London Assembly | North East |
| List of places: UK • England • London | |
Leytonstone is an area of east London and part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is a high density suburban area, located seven miles north east of Charing Cross in the ceremonial county of Greater London and the historic county of Essex. It borders Walthamstow to the northwest, Wanstead (in the London Borough of Redbridge) to the north, Leyton to the south, and Forest Gate (in the London Borough of Newham) to the east.
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The main thoroughfare in Leytonstone, High Road Leytonstone, which runs the length of Leytonstone to Stratford is an ancient pathway dating to pre-Roman times. Roman archaeological features have been found in the area.
The name Leytonstone — in early documents Leyton-Atte-Stone — may derive from the large stone standing at the junction of Hollybush Hill and New Wanstead; in the 18th-century an obelisk was mounted on top of it, and it has been claimed that it is the remains of a Roman milestone.
Two of the obelisk's inscriptions are still just legible: others are not.
It has been claimed that High Road Leytonstone is a prehistoric pathway dating from before the Romans built a road along the same route to London. However Roman roads have since been found during excavations.
The earliest known cartographic reference to Leytonstone is dated from 1545. It was part of Essex until 1965.
To the eastern side of Leytonstone lies the Lake House estate, which until its recent inclusion within the London Borough of Redbridge was also seen as belonging to the area.[1]
Leytonstone was the centre of protests against the construction of the M11 link road, in 1990. The protesters' final stand was staged at Claremont Road, Leytonstone and was ended by the forced eviction of protestors in 1994.
Leytonstone was part of the ancient parish of Leyton in the Becontree hundred of Essex. For ecclesiastical purposes it constituted a separate parish from 1845.[2] The parish of Leyton formed part of the West Ham Poor law union. In 1894 it became part of the Leyton Urban District, which was incoporated in 1926 as the Municipal Borough of Leyton. Leytonstone became part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest in 1965 upon the creation of Greater London.
The area is part of the Leyton and Wanstead constituency.
John Cryer was elected MP for the constituency in 2010, representing the Labour Party. For elections to the London Assembly it is part of the North East constituency and the AM is Jennette Arnold of the Labour Party. It is part of the London constituency for elections to the European Parliament.
| Walthamstow | Epping Forest | Wanstead | ||
| Leyton | Wanstead Flats | |||
| Leytonstone | ||||
| Temple Mills | Stratford | Forest Gate |
Leytonstone High Road was a Roman track from London to Epping Forest. This route became important for long distant coaches from the 14th century.[2] In the 1960s there was a problem of congestion around the shopping streets in Leytonstone,[3] a problem which continues with the one way system today.[4] In the 1990s the M11 link road was built through the area despite a long running protest by locals and road protestors. This and other protests led to the Conservative policy, Roads for Prosperity, being abandoned.[5]
Leytonstone tube station is on the Central Line of the London Underground.
Leytonstone High Road is a London Overground railway station.
The borough includes:
Thames Water supplies Leytonstones' water. EDF Energy Networks is the Distribution network operator licensed to distribute electricity from the transmission grid to homes and businesses in Leytonstone. Whipps Cross University Hospital, on Whipps Cross road, is a University Hospital administrated by Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust. London Ambulance Service responds to medical emergencies in Leytonstone. Home Office policing in Leytonstone is provided by the Metropolitan Police Service. Statutory emergency fire service is provided by the London Fire Brigade, which has a station on Leytonstone High Road.
Spike Milligan based the (fictional) closest heir to the British throne after the outbreak of nuclear war in that setting. She was a "Mrs. Ethel Shroake" of 393A High Street, Leytonstone, who appears in the final scene of the play and film The Bed-Sitting Room, 1969.
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