| London Borough of Wandsworth | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| — London borough — | |||
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| Wandsworth shown within Greater London | |||
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom | ||
| Constituent country | England | ||
| Region | London | ||
| Ceremonial county | Greater London | ||
| Status | London borough | ||
| Admin HQ | Wandsworth | ||
| Incorporated | 1 April 1965 | ||
| Government | |||
| • Type | London borough council | ||
| • Body | Wandsworth London Borough Council | ||
| • Leadership | Leader & Cabinet (Conservative) | ||
| • Mayor | Councillor Mrs Jane Cooper | ||
| • MPs | Justine Greening (Con) Sadiq Khan (Lab) Jane Ellison (Con) |
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| • London Assembly | Richard Tracey (Con) AM for Merton and Wandsworth | ||
| • EU Parliament | London | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 13.2 sq mi (34.26 km2) | ||
| Area rank | 303rd (of 326) | ||
| Population (2010 est.) | |||
| • Total | 289,600 | ||
| • Rank | 32nd (of 326) | ||
| • Density | 21,893.2/sq mi (8,453/km2) | ||
| • Ethnicity[1] | 66.2% White British 2.6% White Irish 10.5% Other White 1.0% White & Black Caribbean 0.5% White & Black African 0.9% White & Asian 0.8% Other Mixed 3.1% Indian 1.9% Pakistani 0.7% Bangladeshi 1.4% Other Asian 3.9% Black Caribbean 3.1% Black African 0.8% Other Black 1.0% Chinese 1.5% Other |
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| Time zone | GMT (UTC0) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | BST (UTC+1) | ||
| Postcodes | SW | ||
| Area code(s) | 020 | ||
| Police force | Metropolitan Police | ||
| Website | www.wandsworth.gov.uk | ||
The London Borough of Wandsworth i/ˈwɒndzwɜrθ/ is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.
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The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but excluding Clapham and most of Streatham, both of which were transferred to the London Borough of Lambeth.
The borough borders the London Borough of Lambeth to the east, the London Borough of Merton and the Royal Borough of Kingston Upon Thames to the south, the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames to the west and to the north (across the River Thames) three boroughs, namely the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the City of Westminster.
According to the 2001 census Wandsworth has a population of 260,380. 78% of the population is White, 9.6% Black and 6.9% South Asian.
Clapham Junction railway station is located in Battersea, rather than Clapham. There are many new or refurbished buildings along the borough's prosperous riverside including the large Chelsea Bridge Wharf. The Peace Pagoda in Battersea Park stands out looking into the borough from across the Thames.
The first Mayor of Wandsworth was Sir Luke Brown of Demster Road (alleged to be a former Opium Baron), who was elected to the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth in 1900. Sir Luke Brown's initials are highlighted in the diamonds in the centre of the Mayor's chain of office.
The current Mayor is Cllr Mrs Jane Cooper.
The Cabinet has nine Conservative members and is presided over by Cllr Ravi Govindia. Cllr Govindia succeeded Sir Edward Lister, who stood down as Leader of the Council following his appointment to City Hall to work as Boris Johnson's Chief of Staff. Sir Edward Lister was Leader of the Council from 1992 to 2011.
The Arms retain many of the features of the arms of the former Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth.
The fess, or crossing, of the shield is chequered blue and gold representing the arms of William de Warren, created first Earl of Surrey by William Rufus. Each gold square bears a teardrop representing the tears of the French Huguenots, many of whom settled in Wandsworth from 1685.
The ship at the top may refer to the Wendels, a tribe of sea-raiders from the Continent who supposedly gave their name to the district, for Wendelsworth was an early variation of Wandsworth. The four shields and oars on the ship represent the four parishes of Battersea, Putney, Tooting and Wandsworth.
The dove to the left is taken from the former Battersea coat of arms and the black dragon to the right was taken from the former Wandsworth arms and also refers to London, being similar to the City of London coat of arms.
Wandsworth is administered by 60 councillors, 3 apiece from 20 wards. Since the 2010 election, 47 of these councillors are Conservative and 13 are Labour. The Conservatives have had an overall majority on the council since 1978, despite demographics that would suggest a higher level of support for Labour and the Liberal Democrats.
| Overall control | Conservative | Labour | Lib Dem | – | |
| 2010 | Conservative | 47 | 13 | – | |
| 2006 | Conservative | 51 | 9 | – | |
| 2002 | Conservative | 50 | 10 | – | |
| 1998 | Conservative | 50 | 11 | – | |
| 1994 | Conservative | 45 | 16 | – | |
| 1990 | Conservative | 48 | 13 | – | |
| 1986 | Conservative | 31 | 30 | – | |
| 1982 | Conservative | 33 | 27 | 1 | |
| 1978 | Conservative | 36 | 25 | – | |
| 1974 | Labour | 12 | 48 | – | |
| 1971 | Labour | 7 | 53 | – | |
| 1968 | Conservative | 48 | 12 | – | |
| 1964 | Labour | 13 | 47 | – |
The borough contains three parliamentary constituencies:
Five bridges join Wandsworth to the three London Boroughs on the north side of the Thames (from downstream following the river up):
There are also a number of bridges crossing the River Wandle which runs through the centre of Wandsworth town and divides the borough in two.
National Rail services are operated from London Waterloo by South West Trains to Earlsfield, Putney, Queenstown Road (Battersea), Wandsworth Town and the borough's most major station, Clapham Junction. This last station is also served from London Victoria by Southern as are Balham, Battersea Park and Wandsworth Common.
London Underground services are provided on the District Line to East Putney and Southfields and on the Northern Line to Balham, Clapham South, Tooting Bec and Tooting Broadway.
Wandsworth has the notable Elliott School, a specialist Language College, and former school of Pierce Brosnan. In 1842 Whitelands College was founded in Chelsea by the Church of England, and heavily under the influence of John Ruskin. In 1930/1931 the college relocated to West Hill (Wandsworth Borough) and occupied an enormous purpose-built site, with buildings designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. These buildings, now listed, were one of the Borough's largest educational sites until 2005 when the College, again moved, this time to a site in Roehampton, where it is now a constituent College of Roehampton University. The borough has other schools such as Southfields Community College, St. John Paul II and Ashcroft Technology Academy.
The dominant religion of the borough is Christianity, although the area is also home to a number of other religious communities. The community is home to a number of Sikhs, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus.
In 1984, following persecution in Pakistan, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community moved its headquarters to the London Borough of Wandsworth. The Fazl Mosque, known colloquially as the "London Mosque", is located in Southfields, Wandsworth and is the home of the Khalifatul Masih. It is also the first purpose-built Mosque in London.
According to the 2001 Census, approximately 29% of Wandsworth identified as being non-religious, or chose not to state their faith.[2]
Wandsworth has responsibility for three Metropolitan Open Spaces:
These three large green spaces together with a range of smaller parks and playgrounds (such as Wandsworth Park) are patrolled by a Wandsworth Council's own parks police known as Wandsworth Parks Police.
Also within the borough's boundaries are Putney Heath and part of Putney Lower Common, which are managed as part of Wimbledon Common, and the west side of Clapham Common, which is managed by the London Borough of Lambeth.
SW4 (part), SW8 (part), SW11 (all), SW12 (part), SW15 (part), SW16 (part), SW17 (part), SW18 (all), SW19 (part)
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