London Borough of Redbridge

London Borough of Redbridge
London borough
Coat of arms Council logo
Redbridge shown within Greater London
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Constituent country	England
Region	London
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Status	London borough
Admin HQ	Ilford
Created	1 April 1965
Government
• Type	London borough council
• Body	Redbridge London Borough Council
• Leadership	Leader & Cabinet (Labour)
• Mayor	Cllr Ashley Kissin
• MPs	John Cryer Iain Duncan Smith Mike Gapes Wes Streeting
• London Assembly	Roger Evans AM for Havering and Redbridge
• EU Parliament	London
Area
• Total	21.78 sq mi (56.41 km2)
Area rank	263rd (of 326)
Population (mid-2014 est.)
• Total	293,055
• Rank	36th (of 326)
• Density	13,000/sq mi (5,200/km2)
• Ethnicity	34.5% White British 1.4% White Irish 0.1% White Gypsy or Irish Traveller 6.6% Other White 1.1% White & Black Caribbean 0.6% White & Black African 1.2% White & Asian 1.2% Other Mixed 16.4% Indian 11.1% Pakistani 5.7% Bangladeshi 1.1% Chinese 7.4% Other Asian 4.4% Black African 3.2% Black Caribbean 1.2% Other Black 0.6% Arab 2.1% Other
• ONS code	00BC
Time zone	GMT (UTC0)
• Summer (DST)	BST (UTC+1)
Postcodes	E, IG, RM
Area code(s)	020
Police force	Metropolitan Police
Website	www.redbridge.gov.uk

The London Borough of Redbridge (<phonos file="En-uk-LBRedbridge.ogg">pronunciation</phonos>) is a London borough in east London, England. It is known for its award winning parks and open spaces, excellent transport links, thriving shopping areas and high-performing schools. The borough is known as the 'leafy suburb' with one quarter of the borough covered by forest and green, and three quarters of homes are owner-occupied.

Its administrative headquarters is at Redbridge Town Hall in Ilford. The local authority is Redbridge London Borough Council.

Etymology

The name comes from a bridge over the River Roding which was demolished in 1921. The bridge was made of red brick, unlike other bridges in the area made of white stone. The name had first been applied to the Redbridge area and Redbridge tube station was opened in 1947. It was earlier known as Hocklee's Bridge.

Places of interest

Parks and open spaces

Redbridge is one of London's greenest Boroughs, with more than 35 parks, playgrounds and open spaces to enjoy. These include Hainault Forest Country Park, with 300 acres of countryside including adventure play areas, cafe and petting zoo. Roding Valley Park, a wildlife sanctuary with a wide range of flora and fauna and woodland areas to explore. Fairlop Waters Country Park, which offers a huge range of activities both on and off the water. The award winning Valentines Park, situated next to the beautiful Valentines Mansion, ornamental gardens, bowling green and outdoor gym among other attractions. Claybury Woods and Park, a conservation area that features and ancient area of oak and hornbeam woodland, meadows and wildlife ponds.

Six parks have attained the prestigious Green Flag Award.

For more information, see Redbridge parks and open spaces

Arts and culture

Valentines Mansion is a Georgian country house and gardens in the grounds of Valentines Park, Ilford. The 300-year-old restored building attracts thousands of visitors every year. There is also a Gardener's Cottage Café and regular art installations and exhibitions.

Redbridge Drama Centre in Churchfields, South Woodford, offers young people aged five to 21 the chance to take part in a professional performance and gives the public a year-round opportunity to see live shows in this part of the Borough. It has a television studio and edit suite where film and videos are made.

Kenneth More Theatre in Oakfield Road, Ilford opened in 1975 and the theatre in Ilford Town Centre has since served up a diverse programme of amateur and professional performances to the local community with new shows most weeks.

Redbridge Museum is situated in Redbridge Central Library, Clements Road, Ilford, Redbridge Museum explores the many places, people and events in over 150,000 years of the Borough's history. The museum also features interactive displays, a multi-media Children's Trail and touch displays to help bring the past to life. There are also regular changing exhibitions for visitors to enjoy.

Libraries

Redbridge has 13 libraries across the Borough. This includes the Redbridge Central Library, in Clements Road, Ilford, which had a major refurbishment in 2012. The libraries offer a number of services including reading clubs, story time sessions, study areas and learning resources.

The libraries in Redbridge are:

• Aldersbrook Library
• Clayhall Library
• Fullwell Cross Library
• Gants Hill Library
• Goodmayes Library
• Hainault Library
• Redbridge Central Library
• Keith Axon Library
• Seven Kings Library
• South Woodford Library
• Uphall School Library
• Wanstead Library
• Woodford Green Library

Sport and leisure facilities

Redbridge has a number of sports and leisure facilities including the fantastic road and off road cycling tracks at Redbridge Cycling Centre, top class water sports at Fairlop Activity Centre, in Fairlop Waters and sporting facilities at Redbridge Sports and Leisure Centre, in Forest Road, Fairlop. Fullwell Cross Leisure Centre, in Barkingside features a swimming pool, dance studio and spa.

There are also a number of outdoor gyms in the Borough's parks. The gyms can be found in the following parks:

• Ashton Playing Fields
• Claybury Woods and Park
• Elmhurst Gardens
• Forest Road Playing Fields
• Goodmayes Park
• Ray Park
• Valentines Park

There are two local football teams both playing in the Isthmian League Division One: Redbridge F.C. (not to be confused with Dagenham & Redbridge) and Ilford FC. In addition there is fellow Non-League football club Barkingside F.C. who play at The Oakside stadium.

The borough was one of the locations of the 2010 Mayor of London's Sky Ride. Along with Ealing, it was the first time the event took place in Outer London boroughs as well as in central London.

Redbridge's Valentines Park in Ilford acted as one of Essex County Cricket Club's home grounds in 1923-4 and from 1935 until 2002, when the club stopped playing there due to financial constraints.

Geography

Main article: List of districts in Redbridge

Demographics

In 2011 the population of Redbridge was recorded at 278,970. In common with the other London boroughs this continues a period of growth; between the 1991 and 2001 censuses the increase was 7.5% with a further rise of 15.3% by 2011. Redbridge has the third highest proportion of children and a higher-than-average proportion of older adults while the proportion of working age adults is slightly lower than average. The population density was last recorded at 4,945 residents per km² (the London regional density is 5,199, far higher than the England and Wales figure of 371).

The healthy life expectancy (HLE) at birth for Redbridge residents stands at 65.5 years for males and 62.4 years for females (the England average HLE is 63.4 for males and 64.1 for females).

Redbridge is one of the most ethnically diverse local authorities in the UK. 34% of respondents to the 2011 census stated that they were born outside the UK and 65.5% identified as belonging to an ethnic group other than white British. Redbridge's largest ethnic group is White British (34.5%), followed by Indian (16.4%), and Pakistani (Redbridge has the highest proportion of Pakistani residents of any London borough).

Ethnic and religious change

In common with many London boroughs, the most recent (2011) census showed notable ethnic and religious population mobility in Redbridge. Ethnic groups whose proportions fell in Redbridge were White British (-23% of the borough's total), Irish (-0.9%), and Caribbean (-0.6%). Ethnic groups whose proportions rose include Pakistani (+4.9%), other Asians (+4.4%), Bangladeshis (+3.9%), and other White (+2.9%). Religious groups whose proportions fell in Redbridge were Christian (-13.9%) and Jews (-2.5%). For Jews this represented a fall of over 50% of their number in some wards. Religious groups whose proportions rose include Muslims (+11.4%) followed by Hindu (+3.6%).

Educated 30–40 years old Asian residents of Redbridge who participated in a 2012 academic research project expressed nostalgia for an earlier Redbridge they described as more culturally diverse, by which they meant fewer British Asians.

Transport

TfL Rail

Fairlop Loop (Hainault Loop)
Legend
Central line to Epping (formerly to Ongar) File:BSicon ulHSTl.svg File:BSicon ulHSTr.svg Roding Valley M11 motorway Chigwell Woodford Grange Hill Hainault depot Hainault Fairlop Barkingside Newbury Park A12 Eastern Avenue connection closed 1956 (Ilford curve closed 1947) Gants Hill Redbridge Wanstead Leytonstone Central line to Central London GER to Shenfield Seven Kings Junction now site of Ilford Depot Ilford GER to London Liverpool Street

Route	Frequency
TfL Rail service between London Liverpool Street and Shenfield	6 trains per hour

Station	Image	Opened	Notes
Ilford		20 June 1839
Seven Kings		1 April 1899
Goodmayes		18 February 1901

These services serving these stations will be rebranded from TfL Rail to Crossrail in 2017.

London Underground

Central line Fairlop Loop Epping Branch.

Station	Image	Opened	Notes
Snaresbrook		14 December 1947
South Woodford		14 December 1947	Opened as South Woodford (George Lane); renamed 1947
Woodford		14 December 1947	Terminus of Hainault Loop

Hainault Branch following the route of the A12 road from Wanstead to Newbury Park.

Station	Image	Opened	Notes
Wanstead		14 December 1947
Redbridge		14 December 1947
Gants Hill		14 December 1947
Newbury Park		14 December 1947
Barkingside		31 May 1948
Fairlop		31 May 1948
Hainault	50px	31 May 1948
Grange Hill		21 November 1948	lies on the boundary between the London Borough of Redbridge and the Epping Forest district

Buses

Ilford Hainault Street Bus Station, where nine different bus routes terminate.

Numerous London buses run through and within the borough. These include routes 20, 62, 173, 368, 387, 397, 549; night bus routes N8, N15, N86; school bus route 667, 675, 679; and other routes 958. And also these routes :

Route Number	Route	Via	Operator	Operation
25	Ilford Hainault Street to Oxford Circus	Holborn , Aldgate , Stratford	First London	24 Hours. London Buses service. Times
66	Leytonstone Station to Romford Station	Wanstead , Redbridge , Gants Hill , Newbury Park	Arriva London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
86	Stratford Bus Station to Romford Station	Manor Park, Ilford , Seven Kings	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
101	Wanstead Station to Gallions Reach Shopping Centre	Manor Park , East Ham , Beckton	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
123	Ilford Hainault Street to Wood Green Bus Station	Gants Hill , Walthamstow, Tottenham, Turnpike Lane	Arriva London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
128	Claybury Broadway to Romford Station	Barkingside, Gants Hill , Ilford	Arriva London	24 Hours. London Buses service. Times
145	Leytonstone to Dagenham Asda	Redbridge , Ilford, Becontree	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
147	Ilford Hainault Street to Canning Town station	East Ham , Newham General Hospital, Custom House	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
150	Chigwell Row to Becontree Heath Bus Station	Hainault Barkingside, Gants Hill , Ilford	Arriva London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
167	Debden to Ilford Hainault Street	Loughton , Barkingside, Gants Hill	Blue Triangle	Daily. London Buses service. Times
169	Barking Town Centre to Clayhall The Glade	Ilford , Newbury Park, Barkingside	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
179	Chingford to Ilford Hainault Street	Woodford Green, South Woodford , Gants Hill	First London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
247	Barkingside Station to Romford Station	Hainault , Collier Row	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
275	Walthamstow St James Street Station to Barkingside Tesco	Highams Park, Woodford Green, Woodford Bridge	Arriva London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
296	Ilford Sainbury's to Romford Station	Gants Hill , Newbury Park, Rose Lane	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
308	Wanstead Station to Clapton Park Millfields Road	Forest Gate , Stratford , Leyton	First London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
362	Grange Hill to King George Hospital	Hainault, Marks Gate, Chadwell Heath	Blue Triangle	Daily. London Buses service. Times
364	Ilford Hainault Street to Dagenham East Station	Goodmayes , Becontree, Dagenham Heathway	Blue Triangle	Daily. London Buses service. Times
366	Redbridge Falmouth Gardens to Beckton Station	Redbridge , Ilford, Barking	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
396	Ilford Sainbury's to King George Hospital	Gants Hill , Newbury Park, Little Heath	Stagecoach London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
462	Hainault The Lowe to Ilford Hainault Street	Grange Hill , Barkingside, Gants Hill	Arriva London	Daily. London Buses service. Times
EL1	Ilford Station to Barking Reach	Ilford Lane, Barking , River Road	Blue Triangle	24 Hours. London Buses service. Times
EL2	Ilford Station to Dagenham Dock Station	Barking , Thames View Estate, Dagenham	Blue Triangle	Daily. London Buses service. Times
W12	Walthamstow Coppermill Lane to Wanstead Station	Walthamstow Central , Whipps Cross Hospital, South Woodford	HCT Group	Daily. London Buses service. Times
W13	Woodford Wells to Leytonstone Station	Woodford Green, Snaresbrook , Wanstead	HCT Group	Daily. London Buses service. Times
W14	Leyton Asda to Woodford Bridge	South Woodford , Wanstead , Leytonstone	Tower Transit	Daily. London Buses service. Times
W19	Walthamstow Angel Avenue to Ilford Station	Walthamstow Central , Leytonstone , Manor Park	Blue Triangle	Daily. London Buses service. Times

Travel to work

In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: driving a car or van, 23.5% of all residents aged 16–74; underground, metro, light rail, tram, 6.2%; train, 6.2%; bus, minibus or coach, 4.6%; on foot, 3.7%; work mainly at or from home, 2.6%; passenger in a car or van, 1.5%.

History

The borough was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963 as a merger of the former area of:

Redbridge Town Hall on Ilford High Road

Former local government district	Population (1961)
Municipal Borough of Ilford	178,024
Municipal Borough of Wanstead and Woodford	61,416
northern part of the Municipal Borough of Dagenham around Hog Hill	3,569
south eastern part of Chigwell Urban District around Hainault	7,071

All of which had been transferred from Essex to Greater London by the Act.

Destruction of Hainault Forest

In 1851 an act of parliament permitted the destruction of Hainault Forest and 92% of the forest was destroyed using machines specially designed for the task. The loss of this habitat outraged public opinion far beyond the local area. The naturalist Oliver Rackham argued that this led to the creation of the modern British conservation movement with the creation of organisations which successfully opposed such a fate happening to Epping Forest, which only lost around 10% of its area.

Redbridge London Borough Council

Summary of Council results:

	Overall control	Conservative	Labour	Lib Dem	Others
2014	Labour	25	35	3	0
2012	No Overall Control	29	25	7	2
2010	No Overall Control	30	26	7	0
2009	No Overall Control	31	14	13	5
2006	Conservative	33	18	10	2
2002	Conservative	33	21	9	-
1998	No overall control	23	28	9	2
1994	No overall control	23	30	9
1990	Conservative	42	18	3
1986	Conservative	45	17	1
1982	Conservative	51	12
1978	Conservative	50	13
1974	Conservative	45	15
1971	Conservative	42	18
1968	Conservative	55	5
1964	Conservative	45	15

In June 2007 Redbridge London Borough Council introduced Redbridge i, a website using personalisation and customisation techniques. In May 2008 Redbridge i was used as the basis for the Redbridge Conversation, a public consultation asking everyone who lives or works in the borough to talk about the long-term improvements they want to see, and how the council should pay for them.

Education

Main article: List of schools in Redbridge

Redbridge Council is the Local Education Authority. The Borough has the accolade of sending more young people to university than any other borough in the country in both 2011 and 2012. GCSE and A Level results are consistently higher than the Country's average.

All schools in the borough take part in the Redbridge Schools Choral Festival, a biennial music festival held in the Royal Albert Hall in Knightsbridge. It was inaugurated in 1976. Around 1,900 children from Redbridge schools take part in each festival, with the latest edition being held in 2012.

Maps

• ^map 4 Snaresbrook –
• ^map 5 South Woodford –
• ^map 6 Woodford –
• ^map 7 Wanstead –
• ^map 8 Redbridge –
• ^map 9 Gants Hill –
• ^map 10 Newbury Park –
• ^map 11 Barkingside –
• ^map 12 Fairlop –
• ^map 13 Hainault –
• ^map 14 Grange Hill –

References

http://www2.redbridge.gov.uk/cms/leisure_and_libraries/leisure_and_culture/enjoy_redbridge.aspx

External links

• London Borough of Redbridge Council website
• Things to do in London Borough of Redbridge
• Redbridge Roundabout Action Group (RedRag)

Gallery

• 

  Exchange shopping centre, Ilford

• 

  Fullwell Cross library, Barkingside

• 

  Gants Hill roundabout and station, Gants Hill

• 

  Newbury Park station, Newbury Park