London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Encyclopedia
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough
to the east of the City of London
and north of the River Thames
. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End
. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks
and Canary Wharf
. Many of the tallest buildings in London are located on the Isle of Dogs
in the south of the borough. The borough has a population of 220,000, which includes one of the highest ethnic minority populations in the capital, consisting mainly of Bangladeshi
s. The local authority is Tower Hamlets London Borough Council
.
of the county of Middlesex
, covering not only the present borough, but also part of the present-day London Borough of Hackney
. The Constable of the Tower of London had special jurisdiction over the area from the 16th century until 1889. Inhabitants of Tower Hamlets were originally required to provide yeomen
for the Tower of London
. Later the Constable became Lord Lieutenant
of the area, raising and organising the local militia
. Under the Reform Act 1832
the area became a parliamentary borough
. The name continued to be used for constituencies until 1918.
The borough was formed in 1965 and took this historic name through amalgamation of the former metropolitan boroughs
of Bethnal Green
, Poplar
and Stepney
. These boroughs were the heart of the East End of London
.
Tower Hamlets Council is one of a number of local authorities who have submitted a bid for the grant of city status
as part of the celebrations of the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II
in 2012.
The borough is a part of the London constituency
for election to the European Parliament
. Labour has dominated national and local elections in Tower Hamlets, although other left-wing parties have won seats including Communists
and more recently the Respect Unity coalition. The British National Party
won its first council seat in 1993, when Derek Beackon
was elected as a Millwall
councillor.
constituency, one of fourteen constituencies which make up the London Assembly
, and is represented by John Biggs of the Labour Party.
Rahman had been selected as the Labour candidate for Mayor, and was a former Leader of the Council. However allegations were made against him and his supporters and he was suspended from the Labour Party before nominations closed. By deciding to run as a independent he was deemed to have resigned from the Labour Party. He then proceeded to create a cabinet of defectors from Labour.
At the May 2010 election, the composition of the Council was 41 Labour
, 8 Conservative
, 1 Respect and 1 Liberal Democrat
councillor. Since then Respect gained a seat from Labour at a by-election, and in three separate groups a total of 8 Labour Councillors and one Conservative defected to Lutfur Rahman's independent group.
This shifting of political allegiances is normal for Tower Hamlets. Between the 2006 and 2010 elections five Respect councillors defected to Labour; one Respect and one Labour councillor defected to the Conservatives; one Liberal Democrat defected to Labour; and one Labour councillor was gained through a by-election at the expense of the Liberal Democrats.
and north of the River Thames
in east London. The London Borough of Hackney
lies to the north of the borough while the River Lea forms the boundary with the London Borough of Newham
in the east. The River Lea also forms the boundary between those parts of London historically in Middlesex
, with those formerly in Essex
.
The Isle of Dogs
is formed from the lock entrances to the former West India Docks
and the largest current meander
of the River Thames
and the southern part of the borough forms a part of the historic flood plain of the River Thames; and but for the Thames Barrier
and other flood prevention works would be vulnerable to flooding.
The Regent's Canal
enters the borough from Hackney to meet the River Thames at Limehouse Basin
. A stretch of the Hertford Union Canal
leads from the Regent's canal, at a basin in the north of Mile End
to join the River Lea at Old Ford. A further canal, Limehouse Cut
, London's oldest, leads from locks at Bromley-by-Bow
to Limehouse Basin. Most of the canal tow-paths are open to both pedestrians and cyclists.
Victoria Park
was formed by Act of Parliament, and administered by the LCC
and its successor authority the GLC
. Since the latter authority's abolition, the park has been administered by Tower Hamlets.
Part of the borough is within the boundary of the Thames Gateway
development area.
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets forms the core of the East End. It lies east of the medieval walled City of London
and north of the River Thames
. Use of the term "East End" in a pejorative sense began in the late 19th century, as the expansion of the population of London led to extreme overcrowding throughout the area and a concentration of poor people and immigrants in the districts that made it up. These problems were exacerbated with the construction of St Katharine Docks
(1827) and the central London
railway termini (1840–1875) that caused the clearance of former slums and rookeries
, with many of the displaced people moving into the area. Over the course of a century, the East End became synonymous with poverty, overcrowding, disease and criminality.
The East End developed rapidly during the 19th century. Originally it was an area characterised by villages clustered around the City walls or along the main roads, surrounded by farmland, with marshes and small communities by the River, serving the needs of shipping and the Royal Navy
. Until the arrival of formal docks, shipping was required to land goods in the Pool of London
, but industries related to construction, repair, and victualling of ships flourished in the area from Tudor times. The area attracted large numbers of rural people looking for employment. Successive waves of foreign immigration began with Huguenot
refugees creating a new extramural suburb in Spitalfields
in the 17th century. They were followed by Irish
weavers, Ashkenazi Jews
and, in the 20th century, Bangladeshis
. Many of these immigrants worked in the clothing industry. The abundance of semi- and unskilled labour led to low wages and poor conditions throughout the East End. This brought the attentions of social reformers during the mid-18th century and led to the formation of unions and workers associations at the end of the century. The radicalism of the East End contributed to the formation of the Labour Party
and demands for the enfranchisement of women
.
Official attempts to address the overcrowded housing began at the beginning of the 20th century under the London County Council
. World War II
devastated much of the East End, with its docks, railways and industry forming a continual target, leading to dispersal of the population to new suburbs, and new housing being built in the 1950s. During the war, in the Boroughs making up Tower Hamlets a total of 2,221 civilians were killed and 7,472 were injured, with 46,482 houses destroyed and 47,574 damaged. The closure of the last of the East End docks in the Port of London
in 1980 created further challenges and led to attempts at regeneration and the formation of the London Docklands Development Corporation
. The Canary Wharf
development, improved infrastructure, and the Olympic Park
mean that the East End is undergoing further change, but some of its districts continue to contain some of the worst poverty in Britain.
Media reports in the 2000s and 2010s suggested that the area was becoming Islamised, and that residents were threatened for behaviour not in accordance with what The Daily Telegraph
called "fundamentalist Islamic norms". The Telegraph reported in 2011 that since 2007/2008 there had been an 80 percent increase in homophobic crimes in the area, while The Guardian
said there had been a 33 percent increase in homophobic incidents between April 2009 – March 2010 and April 2010 – March 2011. Delwar Hussain, writing in The Guardian, suggests that the perpetrators of such crimes are usually Bangladeshi, a group that faced hostility and violence when they first settled in the area. In February 2011 stickers appeared in the area with the message: "Arise and warn. Gay free zone. Verily Allah is severe in punishment." A man was fined for a public order offence in relation to the stickers in June 2011. In 2007 the Centre for Social Cohesion
issued a report saying that libraries in the area contained a large amount of extremist Islamist literature. In 2008 councillors were asked by the council's head of democratic services to observe the Ramadan
fast during meetings, a request that angered several of the councillors.
complex within Docklands on the Isle of Dogs
forms a group of some of the tallest buildings in Europe
. One Canada Square
was the first to be constructed and remains the tallest. Nearby are the HSBC Tower
, Citigroup Centres and One Churchill Place
, headquarters of Barclays Bank. Within the same complex are the Heron Quays
offices.
, around 1 miles (1.6 km) south of the town hall, at Mulberry Place:
– was already one of the most populated areas in London. Throughout the 19th century, the local population increased by an average of 20% every ten years. The building of the docks intensified land use and caused the last marshy areas in the south of the parish to be drained for housing and industry. In the north of the borough employment was principally in weaving, small household industries like boot and furniture making and new industrial enterprises like Bryant and May
. The availability of cheap labour drew in employers. To the south of the parish, employment was in the docks and related industries – such as chandler
y and rope making. By the middle of the century, the district of Tower Hamlets was characterised by overcrowding and poverty. The construction of the railways caused many more displaced people to settle in Tower Hamlets, and a massive influx of Eastern European Jews at the end of the 19th century added to the population. This influx peaked at the end of the century and population growth
entered a long decline, as the more affluent moved away and new suburbs were opened up in Essex
, east of the River Lea.
The metropolitan boroughs suffered badly during World War II
, during which considerable numbers of houses were destroyed or damaged beyond use. This coincided with a decline in work in the docks, and the closure of many traditional industries. The Abercrombie Plan for London
(1944) began an exodus from London towards the new towns
. This decline began to reverse, with the establishment of the London Docklands Development Corporation
bringing new industries and housing to the brownfield sites along the river. Also contributing was new immigration from Asia beginning in the 1970s. According to the 2001 census
the population of the borough is approximately 196,106. According to the ONS
estimate, the population is 237,900, as of 2010.
Crime in the borough increased by 3.5 percent from 2009 to 2010, according to figures from the Metropolitan Police
, having decreased by 24 percent between 2003/2004 and 2007/2008.
Tower Hamlets has one of the smallest indigenous populations of the boroughs of Britain. Majority of the residents in the borough are of White ethnicity, with a large Asian community, Bangladeshis
(20.6%) are the largest ethnic minority in the borough. Somalis represent the second largest minority ethnic group. There are also a number of Chinese
, Vietnamese
, Indian, Pakistani, and Black African/Caribbean
residents.
Bangladeshis are more likely to have large families living together. The number of Bangladeshis aged under 18 is almost double the proportion for all other Londoners. Most Bangladeshi children in London were born in the UK, while most adults were born in Bangladesh. 70% of the Bangladeshi community are below the age of 30, where 40% of these are aged 0–15 and 9% are aged 16–19. The Bangladeshi population was 33 per cent during the 2001 census, but has since dropped significantly to 21 per cent in based on the 2009 estimate, reflecting a movement to better economic circumstances and the larger houses available in the eastern suburbs.
The main religions practised in the borough are Christianity
and Islam
. Those identified as Christians are mostly White British and Black African, and Muslims are mainly of the Bangladeshi and Somali communities, including other ethnic groups. The Muslim proportion of the borough's population is the largest out of all local authorities in England and Wales
. There are 21 active churches in Tower Hamlets affiliated with the Church of England
, which include Christ Church of Spitalfields, St Paul's Church of Shadwell and St Dunstan's of Stepney
and also churches of many other Christian denominations. There are around 40 mosques, including Islamic centres. The largest are the East London Mosque
, the Brick Lane Mosque
and the Markazi Masjid. Other notable religious buildings include the Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue
, the Congregation of Jacob Synagogue, the London Buddhist Centre
, the Hindu Pragati Sangha Temple, and the Gurdwara Sikh Sangat.
The borough is one of the most deprived in the country, although there are small pockets of wealthy areas. Levels of unemployment are high.
HSBC
has its head office in 8 Canada Square, Canary Wharf
, Tower Hamlets. Barclays has its head office in One Churchill Place
, Canary Wharf.
According to Ellie Rose of EastLondonLines, the area is notorious for deprivation, joblessness, and child poverty. The borough has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the country; in 2010 57 percent of children were living in poverty, as defined by the Campaign to End Child Poverty in their review covering England, compared to a figure of 46 percent in the London Borough of Islington
, which had the second highest rate. A similar study, covering the whole of the UK, by Save the Children
gave a figure of 27 percent, which was joint highest with Manchester.
for state schools within the borough. As of January 2008 there are 19,890 primary-school pupils and 15,262 secondary-school pupils attending state schools in Tower Hamlets. Independent-school pupils account for 2.4 percent of schoolchildren in the borough. In 2010 51.8 percent of pupils achieved 5 A*–C GCSEs including Mathematics and English—the highest results in the borough's history—compared to the national average of 53.4 percent. Seventy-four percent achieved 5 A*–C GCSEs for all subjects (the same as the English average); the figure in 1997 was 26 percent. The percentage of pupils on free school meal
s in the borough is the highest in England and Wales
. In 2007 the council rejected proposals to build a Goldman Sachs
-sponsored academy.
Schools in the borough have high levels of racial segregation
. The Times
reported in 2006 that 47 percent of secondary schools were exclusively non-white, and that 33 percent had a white majority. About 60 percent of pupils entering primary and secondary school are Bangladeshi. The percentage of primary-school pupils who speak English as a second language is 78.
The council runs several Idea Stores in the borough, which combine traditional library services with other resources, and are designed to attract more diverse members. The flagship Whitechapel store
was designed by David Adjaye
and cost £16 million to build.
within Mile End Park
hosts an athletics stadium
and facilities for football and basketball
. Two football clubs, Bethnal Green United F.C.
and Sporting Bengal United F.C.
, are based there. The borough also has its own football club named Tower Hamlets FC, formed in 2009.
A leisure centre including a swimming pool at Mile End Stadium
was completed in 2006. Other pools are located at St Georges
, Limehouse
and York Hall
, in Bethnal Green
. York Hall is also a regular venue for boxing tournaments, and in May 2007 a public spa
was opened in the building's renovated Turkish baths.
The unusual Green Bridge, opened in 2000, links sections of Mile End Park that would otherwise be divided by Mile End Road. The bridge contains gardens, water features and trees around the path.
; the Olympic Park
is currently being constructed in the Lea Valley
.
, with the A13 starting at Aldgate
and heading east passing the entrance to the Blackwall Tunnel
towards Newham, and south-east Essex. The A12 also starts at Aldgate
, crosses the Lea at Bow, towards Colchester
and Great Yarmouth
. Roads are busy at all times, particular during the rush hours; and much of the borough is a controlled parking zone, to prevent commuter parking.
The principal rail services commence in the City at Fenchurch Street, with one stop at Limehouse; and Liverpool Street
, with stops at Bethnal Green
and Cambridge Heath
.
The Docklands Light Railway
was built to serve the docklands areas of the borough, with a principle terminus at Bank and Tower Gateway
. An interchange at Poplar
allows trains to proceed north to Stratford and south via Canary Wharf
towards Lewisham.
Three London Underground
services cross the district: the District
and Hammersmith and City lines share track between Aldgate East
and Barking. The Central Line
has stations at Bethnal Green
and Mile End
- where there is an interchange to the District Line. The Jubilee Line
has one stop at Canary Wharf
.
London buses routes 8, 15, 25, 26, 35, 40, 42, 47, 48, 55, 78, 100, 106, 108, 115, 135, 205, 254, 276, 277, 309, 323, 339, 388, 425, 488, D3, D6, D7, D8, RV1, Night route N8, N15, N26, N35, N55, N550 and N551.
London borough
The administrative area of Greater London contains thirty-two London boroughs. Inner London comprises twelve of these boroughs plus the City of London. Outer London comprises the twenty remaining boroughs of Greater London.-Functions:...
to the east of the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
and north of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End
East End of London
The East End of London, also known simply as the East End, is the area of London, England, United Kingdom, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames. Although not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries, the River Lea can be considered another boundary...
. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks
West India Docks
The West India Docks are a series of three docks on the Isle of Dogs in London, the first of which opened in 1802. The docks closed to commercial traffic in 1980 and the Canary Wharf development was built on the site.-History:...
and Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
. Many of the tallest buildings in London are located on the Isle of Dogs
Isle of Dogs
The Isle of Dogs is a former island in the East End of London that is bounded on three sides by one of the largest meanders in the River Thames.-Etymology:...
in the south of the borough. The borough has a population of 220,000, which includes one of the highest ethnic minority populations in the capital, consisting mainly of Bangladeshi
British Bangladeshi
A British Bangladeshi is a person of Bangladeshi origin who resides in the United Kingdom having emigrated to the UK and attained citizenship through naturalisation or whose parents did so; they are also known as British Bengalis...
s. The local authority is Tower Hamlets London Borough Council
Tower Hamlets London Borough Council
Tower Hamlets London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in Greater London, England. The council is unusual in that its executive function is controlled by a directly elected mayor of Tower Hamlets, currently Lutfur Rahman.Following the May 2010 election,...
.
Civic history
The name "Tower Hamlets" was historically applied to the Tower divisionTower division
The Tower Division was a liberty, a historical form of local government, in the ancient county of Middlesex, England. It was also known as the Tower Hamlets, and took its name from being under the special jurisdiction of the Constable of the Tower of London...
of the county of Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, covering not only the present borough, but also part of the present-day London Borough of Hackney
London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
. The Constable of the Tower of London had special jurisdiction over the area from the 16th century until 1889. Inhabitants of Tower Hamlets were originally required to provide yeomen
Yeomen Warders
The Yeomen Warders of Her Majesty’s Royal Palace and Fortress the Tower of London, and Members of the Sovereign's Body Guard of the Yeoman of the Guard Extraordinary, popularly known as the Beefeaters, are ceremonial guardians of the Tower of London...
for the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
. Later the Constable became Lord Lieutenant
Lord Lieutenant
The title Lord Lieutenant is given to the British monarch's personal representatives in the United Kingdom, usually in a county or similar circumscription, with varying tasks throughout history. Usually a retired local notable, senior military officer, peer or business person is given the post...
of the area, raising and organising the local militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
. Under the Reform Act 1832
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
the area became a parliamentary borough
Parliamentary borough
Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division, usually covering urban areas, that are entitled to representation in a Parliament...
. The name continued to be used for constituencies until 1918.
The borough was formed in 1965 and took this historic name through amalgamation of the former metropolitan boroughs
Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London
The term metropolitan borough was used from 1900 to 1965, for the subdivisions of the County of London created by the London Government Act 1899....
of Bethnal Green
Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green was a civil parish and a metropolitan borough in the East End of London, England. It was formed as a civil parish in 1743 from the Bethnal Green hamlet in Stepney ancient parish. The vestry became an electing authority to the Metropolitan Board of Works in 1855 and in 1889 it became...
, Poplar
Metropolitan Borough of Poplar
Poplar was a local government district in the metropolitan area of London, England. It was formed as a district of the Metropolis in 1855 and became a metropolitan borough in the County of London in 1900. It comprised the civil parishes of Bow, Bromley and Poplar until 1907, when it also became a...
and Stepney
Metropolitan Borough of Stepney
The Metropolitan Borough of Stepney was a Metropolitan borough in the County of London created in 1900. In 1965 it became part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.-Boundaries:...
. These boroughs were the heart of the East End of London
East End of London
The East End of London, also known simply as the East End, is the area of London, England, United Kingdom, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames. Although not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries, the River Lea can be considered another boundary...
.
Tower Hamlets Council is one of a number of local authorities who have submitted a bid for the grant of city status
City status in the United Kingdom
City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the British monarch to a select group of communities. The holding of city status gives a settlement no special rights other than that of calling itself a "city". Nonetheless, this appellation carries its own prestige and, consequently, competitions...
as part of the celebrations of the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II
Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II
The Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II is the forthcoming international celebration in 2012 marking the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II to the thrones of seven countries, upon the death of her father, King George VI, on 6 February 1952...
in 2012.
Parliament
For the 2010 general election, the borough was split into two constituencies:- Bethnal Green & Bow, represented by Rushanara AliRushanara AliRushanara Ali is a British Labour Party politician and Associate Director of the Young Foundation, who has been the Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow since 2010...
(Labour) - Poplar & LimehousePoplar and Limehouse (UK Parliament constituency)Poplar and Limehouse is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament using the first past the post system of election....
, represented by Jim FitzpatrickJim Fitzpatrick (politician)James Fitzpatrick is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Poplar and Limehouse since the 2010 General Election. From 1997 to the 2010 election he was the member for Poplar and Canning Town...
(Labour)
The borough is a part of the London constituency
London (European Parliament constituency)
London is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 8 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :The constituency corresponds to Greater London, in the south east of the United Kingdom....
for election to the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
. Labour has dominated national and local elections in Tower Hamlets, although other left-wing parties have won seats including Communists
Communist Party of Britain
The Communist Party of Britain is a communist political party in Great Britain. Although founded in 1988 it traces its origins back to 1920 and the Communist Party of Great Britain, and claims the legacy of that party and its most influential members Harry Pollitt and John Gollan as its...
and more recently the Respect Unity coalition. The British National Party
British National Party
The British National Party is a British far-right political party formed as a splinter group from the National Front by John Tyndall in 1982...
won its first council seat in 1993, when Derek Beackon
Derek Beackon
Derek William Beackon is a former British National Party councillor.Beackon joined the BNP in 1986 as an associate member, becoming a full member two years later...
was elected as a Millwall
Millwall
Millwall is an area in London, on the western side of the Isle of Dogs, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the south of the developments at West India Docks, including Canary Wharf.-History:...
councillor.
London Assembly
The borough lies within the City and EastCity and East (London Assembly constituency)
City and East is a constituency represented in the London Assembly. Since its creation in 2000 it has been represented by Labour's John Biggs.-Boundaries:...
constituency, one of fourteen constituencies which make up the London Assembly
London Assembly
The London Assembly is an elected body, part of the Greater London Authority, that scrutinises the activities of the Mayor of London and has the power, with a two-thirds majority, to amend the mayor's annual budget. The assembly was established in 2000 and is headquartered at City Hall on the south...
, and is represented by John Biggs of the Labour Party.
London Borough Council
In May 2010 a local referendum was held to decide whether to create a directly elected executive Mayor for the Borough. Following a campaign led from within the Bangladeshi community, the referendum was won and at the ensuing Mayoral election in October 2010, Lutfur Rahman was elected Mayor.Rahman had been selected as the Labour candidate for Mayor, and was a former Leader of the Council. However allegations were made against him and his supporters and he was suspended from the Labour Party before nominations closed. By deciding to run as a independent he was deemed to have resigned from the Labour Party. He then proceeded to create a cabinet of defectors from Labour.
At the May 2010 election, the composition of the Council was 41 Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, 8 Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, 1 Respect and 1 Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
councillor. Since then Respect gained a seat from Labour at a by-election, and in three separate groups a total of 8 Labour Councillors and one Conservative defected to Lutfur Rahman's independent group.
This shifting of political allegiances is normal for Tower Hamlets. Between the 2006 and 2010 elections five Respect councillors defected to Labour; one Respect and one Labour councillor defected to the Conservatives; one Liberal Democrat defected to Labour; and one Labour councillor was gained through a by-election at the expense of the Liberal Democrats.
Physical geography
Tower Hamlets is located to east of the City of LondonCity of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
and north of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
in east London. The London Borough of Hackney
London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
lies to the north of the borough while the River Lea forms the boundary with the London Borough of Newham
London Borough of Newham
The London Borough of Newham is a London borough formed from the towns of West Ham and East Ham, within East London.It is situated east of the City of London, and is north of the River Thames. According to 2006 estimates, Newham has one of the highest ethnic minority populations of all the...
in the east. The River Lea also forms the boundary between those parts of London historically in Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, with those formerly in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
.
The Isle of Dogs
Isle of Dogs
The Isle of Dogs is a former island in the East End of London that is bounded on three sides by one of the largest meanders in the River Thames.-Etymology:...
is formed from the lock entrances to the former West India Docks
West India Docks
The West India Docks are a series of three docks on the Isle of Dogs in London, the first of which opened in 1802. The docks closed to commercial traffic in 1980 and the Canary Wharf development was built on the site.-History:...
and the largest current meander
Meander
A meander in general is a bend in a sinuous watercourse. A meander is formed when the moving water in a stream erodes the outer banks and widens its valley. A stream of any volume may assume a meandering course, alternately eroding sediments from the outside of a bend and depositing them on the...
of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
and the southern part of the borough forms a part of the historic flood plain of the River Thames; and but for the Thames Barrier
Thames Barrier
The Thames Barrier is the world's second-largest movable flood barrier and is located downstream of central London. Its purpose is to prevent London from being flooded by exceptionally high tides and storm surges moving up from the sea...
and other flood prevention works would be vulnerable to flooding.
The Regent's Canal
Regent's Canal
Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London, England. It provides a link from the Paddington arm of the Grand Union Canal, just north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in east London....
enters the borough from Hackney to meet the River Thames at Limehouse Basin
Limehouse Basin
The Limehouse Basin in Limehouse, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets provides a navigable link between the Regent's Canal and the River Thames, through the Limehouse Basin Lock. A basin in the north of Mile End, near Victoria Park connects with the Hertford Union Canal leading to the River Lee...
. A stretch of the Hertford Union Canal
Hertford Union Canal
The Hertford Union Canal or Duckett's Canal is a short stretch of canal in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in east London. It connects the Regent's Canal to the Lee Navigation. It was opened in 1830 but quickly proved to be a commercial failure...
leads from the Regent's canal, at a basin in the north of Mile End
Mile End
Mile End is an area within the East End of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross...
to join the River Lea at Old Ford. A further canal, Limehouse Cut
Limehouse Cut
The Limehouse Cut is a straight, broad canal in the East End of London, which linked the lower reaches of the River Lee Navigation to the River Thames...
, London's oldest, leads from locks at Bromley-by-Bow
Bromley-by-Bow
Bromley-by-Bow, historically and officially Bromley, is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is an inner-city district situated east north-east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
to Limehouse Basin. Most of the canal tow-paths are open to both pedestrians and cyclists.
Victoria Park
Victoria Park, East London
Victoria Park is 86.18 hectares of open space that stretches out across part of the East End of London, England bordering parts of Bethnal Green, Hackney, and Bow, such as along Old Ford Road, London E3 and Victoria Park Road E9. The park is entirely within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets...
was formed by Act of Parliament, and administered by the LCC
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
and its successor authority the GLC
Greater London Council
The Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...
. Since the latter authority's abolition, the park has been administered by Tower Hamlets.
Part of the borough is within the boundary of the Thames Gateway
Thames Gateway
The Thames Gateway is an area of land stretching east from inner east London on both sides of the River Thames and the Thames Estuary. The area, which includes much brownfield land, has been designated a national priority for urban regeneration, taking advantage of the development opportunities...
development area.
History
- Tower Hamlets forms the main area of the East End of London. More detailed local histories may be available for each of the districts (above) within Tower Hamlets.
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets forms the core of the East End. It lies east of the medieval walled City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
and north of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
. Use of the term "East End" in a pejorative sense began in the late 19th century, as the expansion of the population of London led to extreme overcrowding throughout the area and a concentration of poor people and immigrants in the districts that made it up. These problems were exacerbated with the construction of St Katharine Docks
St Katharine Docks
St Katharine Docks, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, were one of the commercial docks serving London, on the north side of the river Thames just east of the Tower of London and Tower Bridge...
(1827) and the central London
Central London
Central London is the innermost part of London, England. There is no official or commonly accepted definition of its area, but its characteristics are understood to include a high density built environment, high land values, an elevated daytime population and a concentration of regionally,...
railway termini (1840–1875) that caused the clearance of former slums and rookeries
Rookery (slum)
A rookery was the colloquial British English term given in the 18th and 19th centuries to a city slum occupied by poor people...
, with many of the displaced people moving into the area. Over the course of a century, the East End became synonymous with poverty, overcrowding, disease and criminality.
The East End developed rapidly during the 19th century. Originally it was an area characterised by villages clustered around the City walls or along the main roads, surrounded by farmland, with marshes and small communities by the River, serving the needs of shipping and the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
. Until the arrival of formal docks, shipping was required to land goods in the Pool of London
Pool of London
The Pool of London is a part of the Tideway of the River Thames from London Bridge to below Tower Bridge. It was the original part of the Port of London. The Pool of London is divided into two parts, the Upper Pool and Lower Pool...
, but industries related to construction, repair, and victualling of ships flourished in the area from Tudor times. The area attracted large numbers of rural people looking for employment. Successive waves of foreign immigration began with Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
refugees creating a new extramural suburb in Spitalfields
Spitalfields
Spitalfields is a former parish in the borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London, near to Liverpool Street station and Brick Lane. The area straddles Commercial Street and is home to many markets, including the historic Old Spitalfields Market, founded in the 17th century, Sunday...
in the 17th century. They were followed by Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
weavers, Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim , are the Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities along the Rhine in Germany from Alsace in the south to the Rhineland in the north. Ashkenaz is the medieval Hebrew name for this region and thus for Germany...
and, in the 20th century, Bangladeshis
British Bangladeshi
A British Bangladeshi is a person of Bangladeshi origin who resides in the United Kingdom having emigrated to the UK and attained citizenship through naturalisation or whose parents did so; they are also known as British Bengalis...
. Many of these immigrants worked in the clothing industry. The abundance of semi- and unskilled labour led to low wages and poor conditions throughout the East End. This brought the attentions of social reformers during the mid-18th century and led to the formation of unions and workers associations at the end of the century. The radicalism of the East End contributed to the formation of the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
and demands for the enfranchisement of women
Suffragette
"Suffragette" is a term coined by the Daily Mail newspaper as a derogatory label for members of the late 19th and early 20th century movement for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, in particular members of the Women's Social and Political Union...
.
Official attempts to address the overcrowded housing began at the beginning of the 20th century under the London County Council
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
. World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
devastated much of the East End, with its docks, railways and industry forming a continual target, leading to dispersal of the population to new suburbs, and new housing being built in the 1950s. During the war, in the Boroughs making up Tower Hamlets a total of 2,221 civilians were killed and 7,472 were injured, with 46,482 houses destroyed and 47,574 damaged. The closure of the last of the East End docks in the Port of London
Port of London
The Port of London lies along the banks of the River Thames from London, England to the North Sea. Once the largest port in the world, it is currently the United Kingdom's second largest port, after Grimsby & Immingham...
in 1980 created further challenges and led to attempts at regeneration and the formation of the London Docklands Development Corporation
London Docklands Development Corporation
The London Docklands Development Corporation was a quango agency set up by the UK Government in 1981 to regenerate the depressed Docklands area of east London. During its eighteen-year existence it was responsible for regenerating an area of in the London Boroughs of Newham, Tower Hamlets and...
. The Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
development, improved infrastructure, and the Olympic Park
Olympic Park, London
The Olympic Park in London is a new sporting complex currently under construction, adjacent to the Stratford City development in Stratford, Bow, Leyton & Homerton in East London for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics....
mean that the East End is undergoing further change, but some of its districts continue to contain some of the worst poverty in Britain.
Media reports in the 2000s and 2010s suggested that the area was becoming Islamised, and that residents were threatened for behaviour not in accordance with what The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
called "fundamentalist Islamic norms". The Telegraph reported in 2011 that since 2007/2008 there had been an 80 percent increase in homophobic crimes in the area, while The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
said there had been a 33 percent increase in homophobic incidents between April 2009 – March 2010 and April 2010 – March 2011. Delwar Hussain, writing in The Guardian, suggests that the perpetrators of such crimes are usually Bangladeshi, a group that faced hostility and violence when they first settled in the area. In February 2011 stickers appeared in the area with the message: "Arise and warn. Gay free zone. Verily Allah is severe in punishment." A man was fined for a public order offence in relation to the stickers in June 2011. In 2007 the Centre for Social Cohesion
Centre for Social Cohesion
The Centre for Social Cohesion is a British think tank headquartered in London and founded in 2007.-Foundation and constitution:CSC was established with funding of circa £275,000 from Civitas. The organisation is constituted as a company limited by guarantee, and was incorporated and registered...
issued a report saying that libraries in the area contained a large amount of extremist Islamist literature. In 2008 councillors were asked by the council's head of democratic services to observe the Ramadan
Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
fast during meetings, a request that angered several of the councillors.
Local landmarks
Historical landmarks
- Brick LaneBrick LaneBrick Lane is a street in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. It runs from Swanfield Street in the northern part of Bethnal Green, crosses Bethnal Green Road, passes through Spitalfields and is linked to Whitechapel High Street to the south by the short stretch of...
- Cable StreetCable StreetCable Street is a mile-long road in the East End of London, with several historic landmarks nearby, made famous by "the Battle of Cable Street" of 1936.-Location:Cable Street runs between the edge of The City and Limehouse:...
- site of the Battle of Cable StreetBattle of Cable StreetThe Battle of Cable Street took place on Sunday 4 October 1936 in Cable Street in the East End of London. It was a clash between the Metropolitan Police, overseeing a march by the British Union of Fascists, led by Oswald Mosley, and anti-fascists, including local Jewish, socialist, anarchist,... - Hawksmoor's Christ Church, Spitalfields
- Site of two historic Royal MintRoyal MintThe Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK...
s - Tower of LondonTower of LondonHer Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
- Victoria ParkVictoria Park, East LondonVictoria Park is 86.18 hectares of open space that stretches out across part of the East End of London, England bordering parts of Bethnal Green, Hackney, and Bow, such as along Old Ford Road, London E3 and Victoria Park Road E9. The park is entirely within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets...
Modern landmarks
The Canary WharfCanary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
complex within Docklands on the Isle of Dogs
Isle of Dogs
The Isle of Dogs is a former island in the East End of London that is bounded on three sides by one of the largest meanders in the River Thames.-Etymology:...
forms a group of some of the tallest buildings in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. One Canada Square
One Canada Square
One Canada Square is a skyscraper in Canary Wharf in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is the tallest completed building in the United Kingdom since 1991, standing at above ground level and containing 50 storeys...
was the first to be constructed and remains the tallest. Nearby are the HSBC Tower
HSBC Tower, London
8 Canada Square is a skyscraper located at Canary Wharf in London Docklands, Borough of Tower Hamlets...
, Citigroup Centres and One Churchill Place
One Churchill Place
One Churchill Place is a 156 m tall skyscraper with 32 floors, serving as the headquarters of Barclays Bank. It is in the Docklands area of London in Canary Wharf...
, headquarters of Barclays Bank. Within the same complex are the Heron Quays
Heron Quays
Heron Quays forms part of the Canary Wharf area the Docklands, east London. It has a Docklands Light Railway station, which was moved south after the development was expanded....
offices.
Climate
This data was taken between 1971 and 2000 at the weather station in GreenwichGreenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
, around 1 miles (1.6 km) south of the town hall, at Mulberry Place:
Demographics
By 1891, Tower Hamlets – roughly the civil parish of StepneyStepney (parish)
Stepney was an ancient civil and ecclesiastical parish in the historic county of Middlesex to the east and north east of the City of London, England.-Origins:...
– was already one of the most populated areas in London. Throughout the 19th century, the local population increased by an average of 20% every ten years. The building of the docks intensified land use and caused the last marshy areas in the south of the parish to be drained for housing and industry. In the north of the borough employment was principally in weaving, small household industries like boot and furniture making and new industrial enterprises like Bryant and May
Bryant and May
For the Bryant and May series of crime mystery books, see the author Christopher Fowler.Bryant and May was a United Kingdom company created in the mid-nineteenth century specifically to make matches. Their original Bryant and May Factory was located in Bow, London...
. The availability of cheap labour drew in employers. To the south of the parish, employment was in the docks and related industries – such as chandler
Ship chandler
A ship chandler is a retail dealer in special supplies or equipment for ships.For traditional sailing ships items that could be found in a chandler might include: rosin, turpentine, tar, pitch , linseed oil, whale oil, tallow, lard, varnish, twine, rope and cordage, hemp, oakum, tools A ship...
y and rope making. By the middle of the century, the district of Tower Hamlets was characterised by overcrowding and poverty. The construction of the railways caused many more displaced people to settle in Tower Hamlets, and a massive influx of Eastern European Jews at the end of the 19th century added to the population. This influx peaked at the end of the century and population growth
Population growth
Population growth is the change in a population over time, and can be quantified as the change in the number of individuals of any species in a population using "per unit time" for measurement....
entered a long decline, as the more affluent moved away and new suburbs were opened up in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, east of the River Lea.
The metropolitan boroughs suffered badly during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, during which considerable numbers of houses were destroyed or damaged beyond use. This coincided with a decline in work in the docks, and the closure of many traditional industries. The Abercrombie Plan for London
Patrick Abercrombie
Sir Leslie Patrick Abercrombie ) was an English town planner. Educated at Uppingham School, Rutland; brother of Lascelles Abercrombie, poet and literary critic.-Career:...
(1944) began an exodus from London towards the new towns
New towns in the United Kingdom
Below is a list of some of the new towns in the United Kingdom created under the various New Town Acts of the 20th century. Some earlier towns were developed as Garden Cities or overspill estates early in the twentieth century. The New Towns proper were planned to disperse population following the...
. This decline began to reverse, with the establishment of the London Docklands Development Corporation
London Docklands Development Corporation
The London Docklands Development Corporation was a quango agency set up by the UK Government in 1981 to regenerate the depressed Docklands area of east London. During its eighteen-year existence it was responsible for regenerating an area of in the London Boroughs of Newham, Tower Hamlets and...
bringing new industries and housing to the brownfield sites along the river. Also contributing was new immigration from Asia beginning in the 1970s. According to the 2001 census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
the population of the borough is approximately 196,106. According to the ONS
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
estimate, the population is 237,900, as of 2010.
| Population since 1801 - Source: A Vision of Britain through Time | |||||||||||||
| Year | 1801 | 1851 | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1941 | 1951 | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population Tower Hamlets | 130,871 | 330,548 | 578,143 | 571,438 | 529,114 | 489,956 | 337,774 | 232,860 | 195,833 | 164,699 | 139,989 | 167,985 | 196,121 |
Crime in the borough increased by 3.5 percent from 2009 to 2010, according to figures from the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
, having decreased by 24 percent between 2003/2004 and 2007/2008.
Ethnicity
British Bangladeshi
A British Bangladeshi is a person of Bangladeshi origin who resides in the United Kingdom having emigrated to the UK and attained citizenship through naturalisation or whose parents did so; they are also known as British Bengalis...
(20.6%) are the largest ethnic minority in the borough. Somalis represent the second largest minority ethnic group. There are also a number of Chinese
British Chinese
British Chinese , including British-born Chinese are people of Chinese ancestry who were born in, or have migrated to, the United Kingdom. They are part of the Chinese diaspora, or overseas Chinese...
, Vietnamese
Vietnamese people
The Vietnamese people are an ethnic group originating from present-day northern Vietnam and southern China. They are the majority ethnic group of Vietnam, comprising 86% of the population as of the 1999 census, and are officially known as Kinh to distinguish them from other ethnic groups in Vietnam...
, Indian, Pakistani, and Black African/Caribbean
Black British
Black British is a term used to describe British people of Black African descent, especially those of Afro-Caribbean background. The term has been used from the 1950s to refer to Black people from former British colonies in the West Indies and Africa, who are residents of the United Kingdom and...
residents.
| Tower Hamlets: Ethnicity: 2009 Office of National Statistics estimates | |||
| Tower Hamlets % | London % | England % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 57.1 | 69.7 | 87.5 |
| Mixed | 2.8 | 3.5 | 1.9 |
| Asian or Asian British | 30.6 | 13.2 | 6.0 |
| Black or Black British | 6.3 | 10.1 | 2.9 |
| Chinese or Other Ethnic Group | 3.1 | 3.5 | 1.6 |
| Total | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
Bangladeshis are more likely to have large families living together. The number of Bangladeshis aged under 18 is almost double the proportion for all other Londoners. Most Bangladeshi children in London were born in the UK, while most adults were born in Bangladesh. 70% of the Bangladeshi community are below the age of 30, where 40% of these are aged 0–15 and 9% are aged 16–19. The Bangladeshi population was 33 per cent during the 2001 census, but has since dropped significantly to 21 per cent in based on the 2009 estimate, reflecting a movement to better economic circumstances and the larger houses available in the eastern suburbs.
Religion
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. Those identified as Christians are mostly White British and Black African, and Muslims are mainly of the Bangladeshi and Somali communities, including other ethnic groups. The Muslim proportion of the borough's population is the largest out of all local authorities in England and Wales
England and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
. There are 21 active churches in Tower Hamlets affiliated with the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
, which include Christ Church of Spitalfields, St Paul's Church of Shadwell and St Dunstan's of Stepney
St Dunstan's, Stepney
St Dunstan's, Stepney is an Anglican Church which stands on a site which has been used for Christian worship for over a thousand years. It is located in Stepney High Street, in Stepney, London Borough of Tower Hamlets.-History:...
and also churches of many other Christian denominations. There are around 40 mosques, including Islamic centres. The largest are the East London Mosque
East London Mosque
The East London Mosque, situated in the inner London Borough of Tower Hamlets between Whitechapel and Aldgate, serves one of the UK's largest Muslim communities. It lies near the edge of the City of London, the capital's busy business area, and just a couple of miles from the fast-expanding London...
, the Brick Lane Mosque
Brick Lane Mosque
Brick Lane Jamme Masjid formerly known as the London Jamme Masjid , is located in the area of Spitalfields alongside the street of Brick Lane and Fournier Street in east London, England...
and the Markazi Masjid. Other notable religious buildings include the Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue
Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue
Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue, located at 41 Fieldgate Street in the East End of London, was established in 1899. In 1950 it was rebuilt after damaged caused by a German air raid during WWII. It is currently surrounded on three sides by the East London Mosque...
, the Congregation of Jacob Synagogue, the London Buddhist Centre
London Buddhist Centre
The London Buddhist Centre in Bethnal Green, East London, is the main London base of the Triratna Buddhist Community, formerly known as the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order. It opened in 1978, and is located in an ornate, vernacular redbrick Victorian fire station, completed in 1888, and in...
, the Hindu Pragati Sangha Temple, and the Gurdwara Sikh Sangat.
| Religion | Tower Hamlets % | National % |
|---|---|---|
| Christian | 38.6% | 71.7% |
| Muslim | 36.4% | 3.0% |
| Buddhist | 0.9% | 1.1% |
| Jewish | 0.9% | 0.6% |
| Hindu | 0.8% | 0.5% |
| Sikh | 0.4% | 0.3% |
| Other | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| No religion | 14.2% | 14.8% |
| Religion not stated | 7.4% | 7.7% |
Economic profile
HSBC
HSBC
HSBC Holdings plc is a global banking and financial services company headquartered in Canary Wharf, London, United Kingdom. it is the world's second-largest banking and financial services group and second-largest public company according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine...
has its head office in 8 Canada Square, Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
, Tower Hamlets. Barclays has its head office in One Churchill Place
One Churchill Place
One Churchill Place is a 156 m tall skyscraper with 32 floors, serving as the headquarters of Barclays Bank. It is in the Docklands area of London in Canary Wharf...
, Canary Wharf.
According to Ellie Rose of EastLondonLines, the area is notorious for deprivation, joblessness, and child poverty. The borough has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the country; in 2010 57 percent of children were living in poverty, as defined by the Campaign to End Child Poverty in their review covering England, compared to a figure of 46 percent in the London Borough of Islington
London Borough of Islington
The London Borough of Islington is a London borough in Inner London. It was formed in 1965 by merging the former metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury. The borough contains two Westminster parliamentary constituencies, Islington North and Islington South & Finsbury...
, which had the second highest rate. A similar study, covering the whole of the UK, by Save the Children
Save the Children
Save the Children is an internationally active non-governmental organization that enforces children's rights, provides relief and helps support children in developing countries...
gave a figure of 27 percent, which was joint highest with Manchester.
Education
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is the local education authorityLocal Education Authority
A local education authority is a local authority in England and Wales that has responsibility for education within its jurisdiction...
for state schools within the borough. As of January 2008 there are 19,890 primary-school pupils and 15,262 secondary-school pupils attending state schools in Tower Hamlets. Independent-school pupils account for 2.4 percent of schoolchildren in the borough. In 2010 51.8 percent of pupils achieved 5 A*–C GCSEs including Mathematics and English—the highest results in the borough's history—compared to the national average of 53.4 percent. Seventy-four percent achieved 5 A*–C GCSEs for all subjects (the same as the English average); the figure in 1997 was 26 percent. The percentage of pupils on free school meal
Free school meal
A Free School Meal, provided to a child or young person during a school break, is paid for by Government. For a child to qualify for a Free School Meal, their parent or carer must be receiving particular qualifying benefits as stated by Government...
s in the borough is the highest in England and Wales
England and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
. In 2007 the council rejected proposals to build a Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
-sponsored academy.
Schools in the borough have high levels of racial segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
. The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
reported in 2006 that 47 percent of secondary schools were exclusively non-white, and that 33 percent had a white majority. About 60 percent of pupils entering primary and secondary school are Bangladeshi. The percentage of primary-school pupils who speak English as a second language is 78.
The council runs several Idea Stores in the borough, which combine traditional library services with other resources, and are designed to attract more diverse members. The flagship Whitechapel store
Whitechapel Idea Store
The Whitechapel Idea Store is a library in Whitechapel, London, England. It opened in September 2005 and was designed by the architect David Adjaye and constructed at a cost of £12 million by William Verry with engineering by Arup....
was designed by David Adjaye
David Adjaye
David Adjaye OBE is a British architect.-Early life:David Adjaye was born in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The son of a Ghanaian diplomat who has lived in Tanzania, Egypt, Yemen and Lebanon before moving to Britain at the age of nine, he led a privileged life and was privately educated...
and cost £16 million to build.
Universities
- Queen MaryQueen Mary, University of LondonQueen Mary, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, a constituent college of the University of LondonUniversity of London-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
which includes Barts and The London, Queen Mary's School of Medicine and DentistryBarts and The London, Queen Mary's School of Medicine and DentistryBarts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry is the medical school of Queen Mary, University of London. The school was formed in 1995 by the merger of the London Hospital Medical College , the Medical College of St Bartholomew's Hospital Barts and The London School of Medicine and... - London Metropolitan UniversityLondon Metropolitan UniversityLondon Metropolitan University , located in London, England, was formed on 1 August 2002 by the amalgamation of the University of North London and the London Guildhall University . The University has campuses in the City of London and in the London Borough of Islington.The University operates its...
Volunteering
- Volunteer Centre Tower Hamlets helps residents find volunteering work and provides support to organisations involving volunteers.
Sports and leisure
Mile End StadiumMile End Stadium
Mile End Stadium, also known as the East London Stadium, is a multi-sports stadium situated in Mile End Park, east London, England. The stadium comprises an athletics stadium and a number of floodlit Astroturf football pitches and basketball courts....
within Mile End Park
Mile End Park
Mile End Park is a park located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a linear park of some , and was created on industrial land devastated by World War II bombing...
hosts an athletics stadium
Stadium
A modern stadium is a place or venue for outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.)Pausanias noted that for about half a century the only event...
and facilities for football and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
. Two football clubs, Bethnal Green United F.C.
Bethnal Green United F.C.
Bethnal Green United F.C. is an English football club based in Bethnal Green, Greater London. The club are currently members of the Essex Senior League and play at the Mile End Stadium.-History:The club was established in 2000 as a community club...
and Sporting Bengal United F.C.
Sporting Bengal United F.C.
Sporting Bengal United Football Club is an English football team from Mile End, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. They currently play in the Essex Senior League.-History:...
, are based there. The borough also has its own football club named Tower Hamlets FC, formed in 2009.
A leisure centre including a swimming pool at Mile End Stadium
Mile End Stadium
Mile End Stadium, also known as the East London Stadium, is a multi-sports stadium situated in Mile End Park, east London, England. The stadium comprises an athletics stadium and a number of floodlit Astroturf football pitches and basketball courts....
was completed in 2006. Other pools are located at St Georges
St George in the East (parish)
St George in the East was a parish in the metropolitan area of London, England.-History:The parish was largely rural at the time of its creation, the main settlement a hamlet known as Wapping Stepney...
, Limehouse
Limehouse
Limehouse is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is on the northern bank of the River Thames opposite Rotherhithe and between Ratcliff to the west and Millwall to the east....
and York Hall
York Hall
The York Hall is a health and leisure centre and one of Britain's best known boxing venues.The venue is situated on Old Ford Road in Bethnal Green, London, England. The hall, opened in 1929 with a capacity of 1,200, stages boxing as well as providing a gymnasium and swimming pool.The hall is owned...
, in Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green is a district of the East End of London, England and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, with the far northern parts falling within the London Borough of Hackney. Located northeast of Charing Cross, it was historically an agrarian hamlet in the ancient parish of Stepney,...
. York Hall is also a regular venue for boxing tournaments, and in May 2007 a public spa
Spa
The term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy. Spa towns or spa resorts typically offer various health treatments. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are...
was opened in the building's renovated Turkish baths.
The unusual Green Bridge, opened in 2000, links sections of Mile End Park that would otherwise be divided by Mile End Road. The bridge contains gardens, water features and trees around the path.
The Olympics
Tower Hamlets is one of five host boroughs for the 2012 Summer Olympics2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the "London 2012 Olympic Games", are scheduled to take place in London, England, United Kingdom from 27 July to 12 August 2012...
; the Olympic Park
Olympic Park, London
The Olympic Park in London is a new sporting complex currently under construction, adjacent to the Stratford City development in Stratford, Bow, Leyton & Homerton in East London for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics....
is currently being constructed in the Lea Valley
Lea Valley
The Lea Valley, the valley of the River Lea, has been used as a transport corridor, a source of sand and gravel, an industrial area, a water supply for London, and a recreational area...
.
Museums
- Island History TrustIsland History TrustThe Island History Trust is a local history institution based on the Isle of Dogs in east London, England. The Trust was created by volunteers, who started to collect photographs of local life in 1981. At that time the docks and nearly all the local factories had closed, and the transformation of...
- Museum in DocklandsMuseum in DocklandsThe Museum of London Docklands is a museum on the Isle of Dogs, east London that tells the history of London's River Thames and Docklands...
- Ragged School MuseumRagged School MuseumThe Ragged School Museum is a museum in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The museum was opened in 1990, in the premises of the former Dr Barnardo's Copperfield Road Ragged School. The school opened in 1877 to serve the children of Mile End with a basic education...
- V&A Museum of ChildhoodV&A Museum of ChildhoodThe V&A Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green in the East End of London is a branch of the Victoria and Albert Museum , which is the United Kingdom's national museum of applied arts.-History:...
Transport
Transport radiates across the borough from the City of LondonCity of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
, with the A13 starting at Aldgate
Aldgate
Aldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
and heading east passing the entrance to the Blackwall Tunnel
Blackwall Tunnel
The Blackwall Tunnel is a pair of road tunnels underneath the River Thames in east London, linking the London Borough of Tower Hamlets with the London Borough of Greenwich, and part of the A102 road. The northern portal lies just south of the East India Dock Road in Blackwall; the southern...
towards Newham, and south-east Essex. The A12 also starts at Aldgate
Aldgate
Aldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
, crosses the Lea at Bow, towards Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
and Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
. Roads are busy at all times, particular during the rush hours; and much of the borough is a controlled parking zone, to prevent commuter parking.
The principal rail services commence in the City at Fenchurch Street, with one stop at Limehouse; and Liverpool Street
Liverpool Street station
Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England...
, with stops at Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green railway station
Bethnal Green railway station is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in east London. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by National Express East Anglia, on the West Anglia route, and it is in Travelcard Zone 2...
and Cambridge Heath
Cambridge Heath railway station
Cambridge Heath railway station is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in east London. The station, and all trains serving it, is operated by National Express East Anglia, on the West Anglia route, and it is in Travelcard Zone 2....
.
The Docklands Light Railway
Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway is an automated light metro or light rail system opened on 31 August 1987 to serve the redeveloped Docklands area of London...
was built to serve the docklands areas of the borough, with a principle terminus at Bank and Tower Gateway
Tower Gateway DLR station
Tower Gateway is a Docklands Light Railway station near the Tower of London. It is in Travelcard Zone 1. It adjoins the tracks to Fenchurch Street station and is on the site of the closed Minories railway station....
. An interchange at Poplar
Poplar DLR station
Poplar is a station on the Docklands Light Railway in Travelcard Zone 2. It is served by three of the six regular routes on the DLR making it one of the busiest stations on the network in terms of services.-History:Long before the opening of the DLR in 1987, there had been three stations with the...
allows trains to proceed north to Stratford and south via Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf DLR station
Canary Wharf DLR station is a Docklands Light Railway station in London, England. Built into the base of One Canada Square, between two parts of a shopping centre, it serves the Canary Wharf office complex...
towards Lewisham.
Three London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
services cross the district: the District
District Line
The District line is a line of the London Underground, coloured green on the Tube map. It is a "sub-surface" line, running through the central area in shallow cut-and-cover tunnels. It is the busiest of the sub-surface lines. Out of the 60 stations served, 25 are underground...
and Hammersmith and City lines share track between Aldgate East
Aldgate East tube station
Aldgate East is a London Underground station located between Aldgate and Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.The station is in Travelcard Zone 1...
and Barking. The Central Line
Central Line
The Central line is a London Underground line, coloured red on the tube map. It is a deep-level "tube" line, running east-west across London, and, at , has the greatest total length of track of any line on the Underground. Of the 49 stations served, 20 are below ground...
has stations at Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green tube station
Bethnal Green tube station is a station on the Central Line of the London Underground in Bethnal Green, East London. It lies between Liverpool Street and Mile End stations, and in Travelcard Zone 2. The station was opened as part of the long planned Central Line eastern extension on 4 December...
and Mile End
Mile End tube station
Mile End is a London Underground station in Tower Hamlets, East London, served by the Hammersmith & City, District and Central Lines. It is in Travelcard Zone 2.-History:...
- where there is an interchange to the District Line. The Jubilee Line
Jubilee Line
The Jubilee line is a line on the London Underground , in the United Kingdom. It was built in two major sections—initially to Charing Cross, in central London, and later extended, in 1999, to Stratford, in east London. The later stations are larger and have special safety features, both aspects...
has one stop at Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf tube station
Canary Wharf tube station is a London Underground station on the Jubilee Line, between and . It is in Travelcard Zone 2 and was opened by Ken Livingstone setting an escalator in motion on 17 September 1999 as part of the Jubilee Line Extension. It is maintained by Tube Lines...
.
London buses routes 8, 15, 25, 26, 35, 40, 42, 47, 48, 55, 78, 100, 106, 108, 115, 135, 205, 254, 276, 277, 309, 323, 339, 388, 425, 488, D3, D6, D7, D8, RV1, Night route N8, N15, N26, N35, N55, N550 and N551.
Sources
- Dancygier, Rafaela M. (2010). Immigration and Conflict in Europe, Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
.
Further reading
- Cornwell, Jocelyn (1984). Hard-Earned Lives: Accounts of Health and Illness from East London, Tavistock Publications.
- Hill, Dave. "Tower Hamlets: politics, poverty and faith", The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 19 September 2010, accessed 11 July 2011.
External links
- Tower Hamlets Council
- LBTH find your councillor
- LBTH Ward data report (2005) Information on Tower Hamlets at the ward level