Epping Forest District
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Epping Forest is a
local government district The districts of England (also known as local authority districts or local government districts to distinguish from unofficial city districts) are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. As the st ...
in
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...
, England. Situated in the west of the county, bordering northeastern Greater London, it is named after, and contains a large part of,
Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the London ...
. The district, though wholly within the county of
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...
, is partly contiguous with Greater London to the south and southwest, and the area around
Buckhurst Hill Buckhurst Hill is an affluent suburban town in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. It is part of the Greater London Urban Area and adjacent to the northern boundary of the London Borough of Redbridge. The area developed following the o ...
,
Chigwell Chigwell is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England. It is part of the urban and metropolitan area of London, and is adjacent to the northern boundary of Greater London. It is on the Central line of the Lond ...
,
Waltham Abbey Waltham Abbey is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, within the metropolitan and urban area of London, England, north-east of Charing Cross. It lies on the Greenwich Meridian, between the River Lea in the west and ...
and
Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...
is statistically part of the
Greater London Built-up Area The Greater London Built-up Area, or Greater London Urban Area, is a conurbation in south-east England that constitutes the continuous urban sprawl of London, and includes surrounding adjacent urban towns as defined by the Office for National Sta ...
and forms part of the Ilford (IG) postcode area (except for Waltham Abbey, which forms part of the Enfield (EN) postcode area and
Sewardstone Sewardstone is a hamlet and district of southern Waltham Abbey, in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England, lying between Epping Forest and the built-up areas of Waltham Abbey, Chingford and Enfield. It is 11.6 miles north-northeast of Cent ...
, which forms part of the Eastern (E) postcode area). Epping Forest District also borders Hertfordshire both to the northeast and southwest of the neighbouring district of Harlow.


Settlement

The whole district is divided into
civil parishes In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. ...
a majority of which, particularly in the north and east of the district are rural and sparsely populated for an area so close to
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
; it includes the town of
Chipping Ongar Chipping Ongar () is a market town and former civil parish, now in the parish of Ongar, in the Epping Forest District of the county of Essex, England. It is located east of Epping, southeast of Harlow and northwest of Brentwood. In 2020 th ...
and surrounding villages. The south is more suburban and dominated by
Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...
, the largest town in the district. Most of the District has a wide range of architectural styles and periods. Loughton is beside Epping Forest to the west and separated by farms, rivers and golf courses from other settlements in other directions. As an example of conserved physical geographic landscapes, the Roding Valley and Three Forests Way (one end of the
Stort Valley Way The River Stort is a river in Essex and Hertfordshire, England. It is 24 miles (38 km) long and flows from just south of the village of Langley, Essex, Langley to the River Lea at Hoddesdon. The river's name is a back-formation; the town o ...
and the other end connecting to the Harcamlow Way in Hatfield Forest and National Nature Reserve,
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...
which is north of Epping Forest District. The settlements here are close to, and in places (
Chigwell Chigwell is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England. It is part of the urban and metropolitan area of London, and is adjacent to the northern boundary of Greater London. It is on the Central line of the Lond ...
and
Buckhurst Hill Buckhurst Hill is an affluent suburban town in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. It is part of the Greater London Urban Area and adjacent to the northern boundary of the London Borough of Redbridge. The area developed following the o ...
) are
contiguous Contiguity or contiguous may refer to: *Contiguous data storage, in computer science *Contiguity (probability theory) *Contiguity (psychology) *Contiguous distribution of species, in biogeography *Geographic contiguity of territorial land *Contigu ...
with, London's conurbation. Although entirely outside Greater London, for Eurostat statistical purposes the district is included in the
Greater London Urban Area The Greater London Built-up Area, or Greater London Urban Area, is a conurbation in south-east England that constitutes the continuous urban sprawl of London, and includes surrounding adjacent urban towns as defined by the Office for National Sta ...
, demonstrating a degree of close economic dependence on the capital.


History

The district was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of
Chigwell Urban District Chigwell was a local government district in south west Essex, England.Vision of Britain Chigwell UDhistoric map ) It contained the settlements of Chigwell, Loughton and Buckhurst Hill; and formed part of the Metropolitan Police District. Formati ...
, Epping Urban District and
Waltham Holy Cross Urban District Waltham Holy Cross was an urban district in the county of Essex, England, which was abolished and amalgamated with other local government districts in 1974 to form the Epping Forest District. The district consisted of the area of the ancient pa ...
, along with most of
Epping and Ongar Rural District Epping and Ongar Rural District was a rural district in the county of Essex, England from 1955 to 1974.http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit_page.jsp?u_id=10074174 Creation It was created in 1955 by the merger of the disbanded Ongar Rural Distri ...
. Since then there have been some changes to the Greater London boundary: * In 1994, , which now form
Enfield Island Village Enfield Island Village is a modern housing estate in Enfield Lock, in the London Borough of Enfield, north London. Before April 1994, Enfield Island Village formed part of the Epping Forest district of Essex, but it was transferred to the borough ...
, were transferred to the
London Borough of Enfield The London Borough of Enfield () is a London borough in North London. It borders the London boroughs of Barnet to the west, Haringey to the south, and Waltham Forest to the southeast. To the north are the districts of Hertsmere, Welwyn Hat ...
* In 1995 a small area around
Grange Hill ''Grange Hill'' is a British children's television drama series, originally produced by the BBC and portraying life in a typical comprehensive school. The show began its run on 8 February 1978 on BBC1, and was one of the longest-running progra ...
and Roding Valley stations was transferred to the London Borough of Redbridge.


Transport

The district can be traced on maps by reference to the M25 motorway and the M11 motorway which form a junction at Theydon Garnon. From the junction the towns of
Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...
and
Buckhurst Hill Buckhurst Hill is an affluent suburban town in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. It is part of the Greater London Urban Area and adjacent to the northern boundary of the London Borough of Redbridge. The area developed following the o ...
are south-west,
Chigwell Chigwell is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England. It is part of the urban and metropolitan area of London, and is adjacent to the northern boundary of Greater London. It is on the Central line of the Lond ...
is south,
Waltham Abbey Waltham Abbey is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, within the metropolitan and urban area of London, England, north-east of Charing Cross. It lies on the Greenwich Meridian, between the River Lea in the west and ...
is west,
Epping Epping may refer to: Places Australia * Epping, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Epping railway station, Sydney * Electoral district of Epping, the corresponding seat in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly * Epping Forest, Kearns, a he ...
north-west, and Ongar north-east. Rail transport in the district is provided by the Central line of the
London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The ...
, which is entirely above ground in the District, and the
West Anglia Main Line The West Anglia Main Line is one of the two main lines that operate out of , the other being the Great Eastern Main Line, which operates services to Ipswich and Norwich via Colchester. It runs generally north through Cheshunt, Broxbourne, Har ...
. Further National Rail stations are available at Harlow, and
Sawbridgeworth Sawbridgeworth is a town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, close to the border with Essex. It is east of Hertford and north of Epping. It is the northernmost part of the Greater London Built-up Area. History Prior to the Norman ...
, along the District's boundary. The stations in the district are: *
Buckhurst Hill tube station Buckhurst Hill is a London Underground station, in the Epping Forest district of Essex. It is served by the Central line and is between Woodford and Loughton. It is the larger of the two Underground stations in the town of Buckhurst Hill, with ...
*
Chigwell tube station Chigwell is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England. It is part of the urban and metropolitan area of London, and is adjacent to the northern boundary of Greater London. It is on the Central line of the London ...
*
Debden tube station Debden is a London Underground station on the Central line in the east of Loughton, in the Epping Forest district of Essex. The station is between Loughton and Theydon Bois. It is located in Station Approach off Chigwell Lane ( A1168) and is i ...
*
Epping tube station Epping is a London Underground station in the market town of Epping in Essex, England. The station serves as the north-eastern terminus of the Central line. Located in Travelcard Zone 6, it is one of eight London Underground stations in th ...
*
Grange Hill tube station Grange Hill is a London Underground station on the Central line which lies in the parish of Chigwell in the Epping Forest district of Essex. The boundary with the London Borough of Redbridge is immediately to the east of the station buildings. ...
(on the boundary with the London Borough of Redbridge) *
Loughton tube station Loughton () is a London Underground station in the Epping Forest district of Essex. It is entirely above ground, and platforms are accessed by staircases which rise from ground level. It is served by the Central line and lies between Buckhurst ...
*
Roding Valley tube station Roding Valley is a London Underground station situated in Buckhurst Hill in the Epping Forest (district), Epping Forest district of Essex, straddling the boundary between that council and Greater London (the London Borough of Redbridge). The st ...
(on the boundary with the London Borough of Redbridge) *
Theydon Bois tube station Theydon Bois (, ) is a London Underground station in the village of Theydon Bois in Essex, England. It is served by the Central line and is between Debden and Epping. For the purposes of fare charging it is in Zone 6. History The station wa ...
* Roydon - The only
National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, an unincorporated association whose membership consists of the passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the ...
station within the district. Unlike the section of the Metropolitan line outside Greater London, where a special fare structure exists, each station in the district is in one of
Travelcard The Travelcard is an inter-modal travel ticket for unlimited use on the London Underground, London Overground, Elizabeth line, Docklands Light Railway, London Trams, London Buses and National Rail services in the Greater London area. Tr ...
zones 4, 5 or 6. From 2 January 2007, the stations on the
Hainault Loop The Hainault Loop was originally opened as the Fairlop Loop, a branch line of the Great Eastern Railway (GER). It once connected Woodford on the Ongar (now Epping) branch to Ilford on the Main Line, with an eastward connection for goods, ...
in the southern part of the district (Roding Valley, Chigwell and Grange Hill), which had previously been in
Travelcard The Travelcard is an inter-modal travel ticket for unlimited use on the London Underground, London Overground, Elizabeth line, Docklands Light Railway, London Trams, London Buses and National Rail services in the Greater London area. Tr ...
zone 5, were reallocated to zone 4 in an attempt by Transport for London to encourage greater use of this section of the line. Until November 2006, services to Roding Valley, Chigwell and Grange Hill stopped at around 8pm but since then the service has run to around midnight. However, the service to these stations is still not as frequent as to those wholly within Greater London or to those between Buckhurst Hill and Epping. The Central line used to have an extension from Epping to Ongar, with intermediate stations at
North Weald North Weald Bassett or simply North Weald is a village and civil parish in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. The village is within the North Weald Ridges and Valleys landscape area. A market is held every Saturday and Bank Holiday Mo ...
and
Blake Hall Blake Hall is a country house and gardens in the village and civil parish of Bobbingworth, near Chipping Ongar, Essex. The house incorporates an original fabric dating from the 17th century or older, but was largely rebuilt in the 18th century ...
. However, patronage on this line was never high, and it ceased to be a part of the London Underground when it closed in 1994, with the remote Blake Hall station having closed 13 years earlier, in 1981, reputedly having only served six passengers a day. The line was nonetheless reopened in 2004 as the
Epping Ongar Railway The Epping Ongar Railway is a heritage railway in south-west Essex, England, run by a small number of paid staff and a team of volunteers. It was the final section of the Great Eastern Railway branch line, later the London Underground's Centr ...
, which runs heritage services on Sundays and bank holidays.
North Weald Airfield North Weald Airfield is an operational general aviation aerodrome, in the civil parish of North Weald Bassett in Epping Forest, Essex, England. It was an important fighter station during the Battle of Britain, when it was known as the RAF Stati ...
, a
Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
airfield, is owned by the District Council, and has a long runway allowing use of jet aircraft. Stapleford Aerodrome is another local airfield, and offers pleasure and charter flights.


Nature reserves

There are two
Sites of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
in Epping Forest district,
Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the London ...
itself, and
Roding Valley Meadows Roding Valley Meadows is an biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Buckhurst Hill in Essex. It is part of a 65.2 hectare Local Nature Reserve with the same name, which is owned by Epping Forest District Council and Grange Farm Trust, ...
, as well as nine local nature reserves: Chigwell Row Wood, Church Lane Flood Meadow, Home Mead, Linder's Field, Nazeing Triangle, Roding Valley Meadows, Roughtalley's Wood, Thornwood Flood Meadow and
Weald Common Flood Meadows Weald Common Flood Meadows is a 1.9 hectare Local Nature Reserve in North Weald Bassett in Essex. It is owned and managed by Epping Forest District Council. The site consists of two meadows created for flood defence, and managed for biodiversity ...
.


Politics

Following the general election of 8 June 2017, the current
members of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for the district are: *
Eleanor Laing Dame Eleanor Fulton Laing, (' Pritchard; born 1 February 1958) is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Epping Forest constituency since 1997. Laing is a member of the Conservative Party and has served as a De ...
(
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
) -
Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the London ...
constituency, covering the majority of the west of the district, including the towns of Buckhurst Hill, Loughton, Chigwell, Theydon Bois, Epping and Waltham Abbey. *
Alex Burghart Michael Alex Burghart (born 7 September 1977) is a British politician, academic and former teacher who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar since 2017. A member of the Conservative Party, he was formerly a special ad ...
(Conservative) -
Brentwood and Ongar Brentwood and Ongar is a constituency in Essex represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Alex Burghart, a Conservative, serving since September 2021 as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Apprenticeships and ...
constituency, mostly covering the part of the district east of the
River Roding The River Roding () rises at Molehill Green, Essex, England, then flows south through Essex and London and forms Barking Creek as it reaches the River Thames. Course The river leaves Molehill Green and passes through or near a group of eight ...
, including the parish of Ongar and village of
North Weald Bassett North Weald Bassett or simply North Weald is a village and civil parish in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. The village is within the North Weald Ridges and Valleys landscape area. A market is held every Saturday and Bank Holiday Mo ...
. *
Robert Halfon Robert Henry Halfon (; born 22 March 1969) is a British Conservative Party politician, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Harlow since 2010. Halfon was formerly a researcher for Conservative MPs, including as Chief of Staff to Shadow Chancellor ...
(Conservative) - Harlow constituency, which includes the villages of Roydon and Lower
Nazeing Nazeing is a village and parish in Essex, England. Within the parish are the separate settlements of Upper Nazeing, Middle Nazeing, and Lower Nazeing. The Prime Meridian passes to the west of Lower Nazeing. Location and topography Nazeing is ...
to the west of Harlow, and Sheering, Matching and
Hastingwood Hastingwood is a hamlet in the North Weald Bassett civil parish of the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. The hamlet is centred on the junction of Hastingwood Road, which runs southwest to the A414 road and the Hastingwood Junction 7 of th ...
to the east.


County Council

Of the seven Essex County Councillors elected for Epping Forest divisions in the most recent county council elections in 2021, six are from the
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
, and one is from
Loughton Residents Association Loughton Residents Association is a residents association and local political party formed (as the Central Loughton Residents' Association) in 1981, and based in Loughton, Essex, United Kingdom. LRA has always sought to influence events by putt ...
.


Local government

The district council is now based in Epping, roughly in the centre of the district. Its offices were previously located in Loughton. Since 2002, when the ward boundaries were reorganised resulting in the loss of one council seat, the district has had 58 Councillors representing 32 wards. Each ward is represented by one, two or three Councillors, depending on the ward's population, so that each Councillor represents a roughly equal proportion of the district's electorate. Councillors serve for a four-year term. They are elected on a cycle of thirds, i.e. in three years out of every four, a third of the council is up for election, and no elections take place in the fourth year. When the ward boundaries were reorganised in 2002, all 58 seats were up for election. The wards are:


District council election results since 2002

The table below summarises the number of seats held by each party after each year's elections (no elections took place in 2005, 2009, 2013 and 2017). The council returned to Conservative control following the gain of a seat in a by-election in December 2006 after being under no overall control since 1994.


List of parishes in Epping Forest district

*Abbess Beauchamp and Berners Roding *Bobbingworth *Buckhurst Hill *Chigwell *Epping (town council) *Epping Upland *Fyfield *High Laver *High Ongar *Lambourne *Little Laver *Loughton (town council) *Magdalen Laver *Matching *Moreton *Nazeing *North Weald Bassett *Ongar (town council) *Roydon *Sheering *Stanford Rivers *Stapleford Abbotts *Stapleford Tawney *Theydon Bois *Theydon Garnon *Theydon Mount *Waltham Abbey (town council) *Willingale


Arms


Notes


References


External links

{{authority control Non-metropolitan districts of Essex