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
Historic county	Essex
Created	1 April 1965
Admin HQ	Ilford
Government
• Type	London borough council
• Body	Redbridge London Borough Council
• Leadership	Leader & Cabinet Leader, Cllr Jas Athwal Deputy, Cllr Elaine Norman (Labour)
• Mayor	Roy Emmett
• London Assembly	Keith Prince (CON) AM for Havering and Redbridge
• MPs	John Cryer (LAB) Iain Duncan Smith (CON) Sam Tarry (LAB) Wes Streeting (LAB)
Area
• Total	21.78 sq mi (56.41 km2)
Area rank	257th (of 309)
Population  (mid-2019 est.)
• Total	305,222
• Rank	42nd (of 309)
• Density	14,000/sq mi (5,400/km2)
• Ethnicity[1]	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
Time zone	UTC (GMT)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+1 (BST)
Postcodes	E, IG, RM
Area code(s)	020
ONS code	00BC
GSS code	E09000026
Police	Metropolitan Police
Website	https://www.redbridge.gov.uk/

The London Borough of Redbridge is a London borough in East London, England.^[2] It is home to Redbridge Institute of Adult Education^[3] and Redbridge Football Club. It borders four other London boroughs: Waltham Forest to the west, Newham to the south-west, Barking and Dagenham to the south-east and Havering to the east, as well as the shire county of Essex to the north.

Its administrative headquarters is at Redbridge Town Hall in Ilford. Wanstead and Woodford are the other principal settlements. 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.^[4]

Places of interest[]

Parks and open spaces[]

Redbridge has more than 35 parks, playgrounds and open spaces. 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 range of flora and fauna and woodland areas; Valentines Park, including Valentines Mansion, ornamental gardens, bowling green and outdoor gym; and Claybury Woods and Park, a conservation area that features an ancient area of oak and hornbeam woodland, meadows and wildlife ponds.^[5]

Arts and culture[]

Valentines Mansion is a Georgian country house and gardens in the grounds of Valentines Park, Ilford.^[6]

Kenneth More Theatre in Oakfield Road, Ilford opened in 1975.^[7]

Redbridge Museum, which opened in 2000, is situated on the second floor of Redbridge Central Library, Clements Road, Ilford, along with the Redbridge Heritage Centre.^[8][9]

The Embassy Cinema is an Art Deco former cinema in Chadwell Heath. It opened in 1934 and closed in 1966, but is currently the focus of a major restoration project.^[10]

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:^[11]

Sport and leisure facilities[]

Redbridge has a number of sports and leisure facilities including the road and off-road cycling tracks at Redbridge Cycling Centre.^[12]

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.^[13]

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.^[14]

Geography[]

Demographics[]

In 2011 the population of Redbridge was recorded at 278,970.^[15] In common with the other London boroughs this continues a period of growth; between the 1991 and 2001 censuses the increase was 7.5%^[16] with a further rise of 15.3% by 2011.^[15] 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.^[17] 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).^[15]

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).^[18]

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.^[19] Redbridge's largest ethnic group is White British (34.5%), followed by Indian (16.4%),^[19] and Pakistani (Redbridge has the highest proportion of Pakistani residents of any London borough).^[19]

Population census

Year	Pop.	±%
1801	4,909	—
1811	6,317	+28.7%
1821	7,829	+23.9%
1831	8,572	+9.5%
1841	9,290	+8.4%
1851	9,921	+6.8%
1861	16,409	+65.4%
1871	22,897	+39.5%
1881	29,385	+28.3%
1891	51,250	+74.4%
1901	77,621	+51.5%
1911	117,735	+51.7%
1921	152,209	+29.3%
1931	196,790	+29.3%
1941	230,876	+17.3%
1951	270,876	+17.3%
1961	254,605	−6.0%
1971	239,337	−6.0%
1981	224,724	−6.1%
1991	231,198	+2.9%
2001	238,628	+3.2%
2011	278,970	+16.9%
Note:[20]

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%).^[19]

Ethnicity[]

Ethnic Group	2001[21]		2011[22]
	Number	%	Number	%
White: British	137,097	57.5%	96,253	34.5%
White: Irish	5,559	2.3%	3,900	1.4%
White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller			140	0.1%
White: Other	8,931	3.7%	18,353	6.6%
White: Total	151,587	63.5%	118,646	42.6%
Asian or Asian British: Indian	33,304	14.0%	45,660	16.4%
Asian or Asian British: Pakistani	14,888	6.2%	31,051	11.1%
Asian or Asian British: Bangladeshi	4,224	1.8%	16,011	5.7%
Asian or Asian British: Chinese	1,962	0.8%	3,000	1.1%
Asian or Asian British: Other Asian	7,207	3.0%	20,781	7.4%
Asian or Asian British: Total	61,585	25.8%	116,503	41.7%
Black or Black British: African	7,827	3.3%	12,357	4.4%
Black or Black British: Caribbean	9,126	3.8%	9,064	3.2%
Black or Black British: Other Black	1,159	0.5%	3,424	1.2%
Black or Black British: Total	18,112	7.6%	24,845	8.8%
Mixed: White and Black Caribbean	1,884	1.5%	3,204	1.1%
Mixed: White and Black African	742	0.8%	1,692	0.6%
Mixed: White and Asian	1,853	0.8%	3,251	1.2%
Mixed: Other Mixed	1,352	2.5%	3,309	1.2%
Mixed: Total	5,831	4.2%	11,456	4.1%
Other: Arab			1,551	0.6%
Other: Any other ethnic group	1,520	0.6%	5,969	2.1%
Other: Total	1,520	0.6%	7,520	2.7%
Black, Asian, and minority ethnic: Total	87,048	36.5%	160,324	57.3%
Total	238,635	100.00%	278,970	100.00%

Religion[]

According to the 2011 Census, the largest religious groupings are Christians (36.8 per cent), followed by Muslims (23.3 per cent), Hindus (11.4 per cent), those of no religion (11.0 per cent), no response (6.5 per cent), Sikhs (6.2 per cent), Jews (3.7 per cent), Buddhists (0.7 per cent) and other (0.5 per cent).

The number of Christians residing in Redbridge ranked fourth lowest in England and Wales, and 12 percent below the London average of 48.4%. The number of Muslims in Redbridge has more than doubled since 2001.^[24]

Transport[]

Walking and cycling[]

The Roding Valley Way is a designated walking and cycling route between Woodford and Ilford.^[25]

TfL Rail[]

hide v t Hainault Loop
Legend
Central line to Epping Roding Valley M11 motorway Chigwell Woodford Grange Hill Hainault depot Hainault Fairlop Barkingside Newbury Park A12 (Eastern Avenue) Gants Hill Redbridge Wanstead Ilford Curve closed 1947 Seven Kings Curve closed 1956 Leytonstone Central line to Central London TfL Rail to Shenfield Junction now site of Ilford Depot Seven Kings Ilford TfL Rail to Liverpool Street

Route	Frequency
Shenfield to London Liverpool Street	6 trains per hour

Station	Image	Opened[26]	Notes[26]
Ilford		20 June 1839
Seven Kings		1 April 1899
Goodmayes		18 February 1901
Chadwell Heath		11 January 1864

These services serving these stations will be rebranded from TfL Rail to Elizabeth Line in late 2020.

London Underground[]

Central line: Epping Branch.

Station	Image	Opened[26]	Notes[26]
Snaresbrook		14 December 1947	First opened by the Eastern Counties Railway in 1856
South Woodford		14 December 1947	First opened by the Eastern Counties Railway as South Woodford (George Lane) in 1856; renamed 1947
Woodford		14 December 1947	First opened by the Eastern Counties Railway in 1856. Terminus of Hainault Loop

Central line: Hainault Loop (follows the route of the A12 from Wanstead to Newbury Park)

Station	Image	Opened[26]	Notes[26]
Wanstead		14 December 1947
Redbridge		14 December 1947
Gants Hill		14 December 1947
Newbury Park		14 December 1947	First opened by the Great Eastern Railway in 1903
Barkingside		31 May 1948	First opened by the Great Eastern Railway in 1903
Fairlop		31 May 1948	First opened by the Great Eastern Railway in 1903
Hainault		31 May 1948	First opened by the Great Eastern Railway in 1903. Closed 1908 to 1930.
Grange Hill		21 November 1948	First opened by the Great Eastern Railway in 1903

Buses[]

Numerous London buses run through and within the borough.

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% all residents aged 16–74; underground, metro, light rail, tram, 18.4%; 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%.^[27]

History[]

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

Former local government district	Population (1961)[28]
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. The former town hall in Ilford is now known as Redbridge Town Hall.^[29]

Awards[]

In November 2018, Redbridge Council was reported as the sixth-most productive council in England overall and the most productive in provision of adult social care in a report published by the public service consultancy iMPOWER.^[30][31]

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[32][33]	No Overall Control	30	26	7	0
2009	No Overall Control	31	14	13	5
2006[34]	Conservative	33	18	10	2
2002	Conservative	33	21	9	-
1998	No overall control	23	30	9	0
1994	No overall control	24	29	9
1990[35]	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

Education[]

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. A 2017 report by Trust for London and the New Policy Institute found that Redbridge has the highest proportion of 19 year olds with Level 3 qualifications (equivalent to an A Level) of any London borough.^[36]

All schools in the borough take part in the Redbridge Schools Choral Festival, a bi-annual music festival held in the Royal Albert Hall in Knightsbridge.^[37]

Notable people[]

See also List of people from the London Borough of Redbridge.

• Rhian Brewster (born 2000), Sheffield United F.C. footballer
• Keith Flint (1969–2019), The Prodigy singer
• Dev Hynes (born 1985), singer and record producer
• Jessie J (born 1988), singer
• Reece James (born 1999), Chelsea F.C. footballer
• Louise Lombard (born 1970), actress
• Kele Okereke (born 1981), Bloc Party singer
• Ruth Rendell (1930–2015), novelist, author of thrillers.
• Louise Wener (born 1966), Sleeper singer and author

Gallery[]

• 

  Exchange shopping centre, Ilford

• 

  Fullwell Cross library, Barkingside

• 

  Gants Hill roundabout and station, Gants Hill

• 

  Newbury Park station, Newbury Park

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to London Borough of Redbridge.

• London Borough of Redbridge Council website
• Things to do in London Borough of Redbridge

Coordinates: 51°34′N 0°05′E / 51.567°N 0.083°E / 51.567; 0.083