Epping Forest District is a

local government district Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, England. It is named after the ancient woodland 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 Lond ...

, a large part of which lies within the district. The district covers northeastern parts of the

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, including the suburban towns of Epping,

Loughton Loughton () is a suburban town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. The town borders Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell, Chingford, and Buckhurst Hill, and lies north-east of Charing Cross. For statistical purposes ...

Waltham Abbey Waltham Abbey is a suburban town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, within the London metropolitan area, metropolitan and urban area of London, England, East London, north-east of Charing Cross. It lies on the Greenwich ...

, Chigwell, and

Buckhurst Hill Buckhurst Hill is an affluent suburban town in Epping Forest District, Epping Forest, Essex, within the Greater London Urban Area and adjacent to the northern boundary of the London Borough of Redbridge. The area developed following the opening ...

, as well as rural areas beyond it. The district is situated in the west of the county, bordering north-eastern

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

. The administrative headquarters of Epping Forest District Council are in the town of Epping. Neighbouring districts are Brentwood, Broxbourne,

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...

East Hertfordshire East Hertfordshire is one of ten Non-metropolitan district, local government districts in Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Hertford, the county town of Hertfordshire. The largest town in the district is Bishop's Stortford, and th ...

, Enfield,

Harlow Harlow is a town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a Planned community, new town in 1947, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire, and occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the ...

, Havering, Redbridge,

Uttlesford Uttlesford is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Essex, England. Its council is based in the town of Saffron Walden. The district also includes the town of Great Dunmow and numerous villages, including Stansted Mountfitchet ...

and

Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is an outer London borough formed in 1965 from the merger of the municipal boroughs of Leyton, Walthamstow and Chingford. The borough's administrative headquarters are at Waltham Forest Town Hall, wh ...

. In 2021 it had a population of 134,909.

History

The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, covering the whole area of three former districts and most of a fourth, all of which were abolished at the same time: * Chigwell Urban District (which included Loughton and

as well as Chigwell itself) * Epping and Ongar Rural District (except the five parishes of Blackmore, Doddinghurst, Kelvedon Hatch, Navestock and Stondon Massey, which went to Brentwood) * Epping Urban District *

Waltham Holy Cross Urban District Waltham Holy Cross (also known as Waltham Abbey) was a local government district in the county of Essex, England. It was created as a local board of health district in 1850 when the parish of Waltham Holy Cross adopted the Public Health Act 18 ...

The new district was named Epping Forest after the ancient woodland of that name, much of which falls within the district. The woodland is in turn named after the town of Epping. Since 1974 there have been some changes to the district's boundary with Greater London: * In 1994, , which now form Enfield Island Village, were transferred to the

London Borough of Enfield The London Borough of Enfield () is a London boroughs, London borough in Greater London, England. The main communities in the borough are Edmonton, London, Edmonton, Enfield, London, Enfield, Southgate, London, Southgate and Palmers Green. Enfi ...

* In 1995 a small area around

Grange Hill ''Grange Hill'' is a British Children's television series, children's television drama series, originally produced by the BBC and portraying life in a typical Comprehensive school (England and Wales), comprehensive school. The show began its ru ...

and

Roding Valley Roding may refer to: * River Roding, Essex and Greater London, UK * Roding Automobile, an automotive manufacturer based in Germany * Roding, Germany, town in the Upper Palatinate of Bavaria * Roding, sound produced during the mating display of snip ...

stations was transferred to the London Borough of Redbridge.

Governance

Epping Forest District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by

Essex County Council Essex County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Essex in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county; the non-metropolitan county excludes Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock which ...

. The district is also entirely covered by

civil parish 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

es, which form a third tier of local government.

Political control

The council has been under

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

control since 2006. The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: (Put "Epping Forest" in search box to see specific results.)

Leadership

The leaders of the council since 2003 have been:

Composition

Following the 2024 election, and subsequent changes of allegiance up to May 2025, the composition of the council was: Two of the three independent councillors sit together as the "Epping Forest Independent Group". The next election is due in 2026.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2024 the council has comprised 54

councillor A councillor, alternatively councilman, councilwoman, councilperson, or council member, is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council. This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or re ...

s representing 18 wards, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) elected each time for a four-year term of offices. Essex County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no district council elections. The district straddles three parliamentary constituencies of

, Brentwood and Ongar, and

Premises

Epping Forest District Council is based at the Civic Offices at 323 High Street, Epping. When the council was first created it inherited four sets of offices from its predecessors and functions were initially divided between them: *Council Offices, Old Station Road, Loughton from Chigwell Urban District Council. *25 Hemnall Street, Epping from Epping Urban District Council. *323 High Street, Epping from Epping and Ongar Rural District Council. *

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

, Highbridge Street, Waltham Abbey from Waltham Holy Cross Urban District Council. The council subsequently built a large new building, Epping Civic Offices, adjoining the original converted house at 323 High Street in Epping. The new building was designed by Richard Reid and built between 1987 and 1992. It was designated a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

in 2017.

Geography

The north-east of the district is rural and sparsely populated for an area so close to London; this area includes

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 ...

and surrounding villages. The south-west of the district closer to the boundary with Greater London is more suburban and is dominated by Loughton, the largest town in the district. Most of the district has a wide range of architectural styles and periods. Loughton adjoins the woodland of Epping Forest to the west and is separated by farms, rivers and golf courses from other settlements in other directions. As an example of conserved physical geographic landscapes, the

and Three Forests Way (one end of the Stort Valley Way and the other end connecting to the Harcamlow Way in Hatfield Forest and National Nature Reserve,

which is north of Epping Forest District. The

River Roding The River Roding () is a river that 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 ...

runs through the eastern portion of the district, with the

Lea Valley The Lea Valley (also spelt Lee 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. The London 2012 Summer Olympics wer ...

in the west. Buckhurst Hill, Chigwell, Waltham Abbey and Loughton, although they are not within

, are included in the

Office for National Statistics The Office for National Statistics (ONS; ) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament. Overview The ONS is responsible fo ...

definition 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 ...

. Epping Forest district is bounded by the

and Brentwood districts of Essex, the

and Broxbourne districts of Hertfordshire, and the

London boroughs The London boroughs are the current 32 local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London, England; each is governed by a London borough council. The present London boroughs wer ...

of Havering, Redbridge,

and Enfield.

Transport

Rail

Roydon railway station on the West Anglia Main Line is the only

National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, a group representing passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the passenger services previously provided by ...

station within the district, which lies on the district boundary with East Hertfordshire. Sawbridgeworth railway station on the same line lies directly west of the district, within Hertfordshire, as does Waltham Cross railway station, which serves the district's town of Waltham Abbey. These stations are served by Greater Anglia trains either between London Liverpool Street and Ely, and London Stratford and

Bishop's Stortford Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in the county of Hertfordshire, England. It is in the London metropolitan area, London commuter belt, near the border with Essex, just west of the ...

, with direct connections to destinations such as Broxbourne,

Tottenham Hale Tottenham Hale is a district of north London and part of the London Borough of Haringey, bounded by the River Lea and located to the south/south-east of Tottenham proper. From 1850 to 1965, it was part of the Municipal Borough of Tottenham, in Mi ...

Audley End Audley End House is a largely early 17th-century country house outside Saffron Walden, Essex, England. It is a prodigy house, known as one of the finest Jacobean houses in England. Audley End is now one-third of its original size, but is st ...

and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

. The

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...

Central line passes through the southern portion of Epping Forest. Epping,

Theydon Bois Theydon Bois ( ) is a village and civil parish in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England. It is south of Epping, northeast of Loughton and south of Harlow. The population was 4,062 as at the 2011 Census. Theydon Bois is inside the M2 ...

, Debden and

stations in the borough fall in London fare zone 6, with

in zone 5 and

, Chigwell and

in zone 4. The Central line provides the district with direct connections with

East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...

, The City, the West End, and West London.

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

manages the London Underground network. A former portion of the Central line between Epping and

, via North Weald and Blake Hall, is part of 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 Centra ...

Road

Two motorways meet in the district - the M25 London Orbital motorway and the

M11 motorway The M11 is a motorway that runs north from the A406 road, North Circular Road (A406) in South Woodford to the A14 road (Great Britain), A14, northwest of Cambridge, England. Originally proposed as a trunk road as early as 1915, various plans ...

. The M25 motorway runs eastbound (clockwise) towards Brentwood and the Dartford Crossing. The motorway runs westbound (anticlockwise) towards Enfield,

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

and

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport , also colloquially known as London Heathrow Airport and named ''London Airport'' until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdo ...

. The M11 motorway runs northbound towards

Stansted Airport Stansted Airport is an international airport serving London, the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It is located near Stansted Mountfitchet, Uttlesford, Essex, northeast of Central London. As London's third-busiest airport, Stan ...

and

, and southbound towards East London. Junctions 5 ( A1168,

and Chigwell), 6 (M25), 7 ( A414,

) and 7A ( A1025, Harlow) fall within Epping Forest. Other main routes in the district include: * A414

primary route Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

- between Harlow and

, via Ongar. Onward connections towards Hemel Hempstead via Harlow, and Maldon; * A104 Epping New Road - between Wake Arms and Woodford. Onward connections towards

Leyton Leyton ( ) is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the Ri ...

and

Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

; * A112 - between Waltham Abbey and Sewardstone. Onward connections towards

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a town within the London Borough of Waltham Forest in east London. The town borders Chingford to the north, Snaresbrook and South Woodford to the east, Leyton and Leytonstone to the south, and Tottenham to the west. At ...

and Stratford; * A113 - between Chipping Ongar and Chigwell. Onward connections towards

Wanstead Wanstead () is an area in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders South Woodford to the north, Redbridge to the east and Manor Park to the south, with Leytonstone and Walthamstow to the west. It is located 8 m ...

; * A121 - between Waltham Cross and Woodford, via Waltham Abbey, Loughton and

; * A128 - Chipping Ongar. Onward connections towards Brentwood and

Thurrock Thurrock () is a unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Essex, England. It lies on the north bank of the River ...

; * A1069 - Onward connections towards

Chingford Chingford is a suburban town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The centre of Chingford is north-east of Charing Cross, with Waltham Abbey to the north, Woodford Green and Buckhurst Hill to the east, Walt ...

; * A1112 - Chigwell Row. Onward connections towards

Chadwell Heath Chadwell Heath is an area in East London, England. It is split between the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham and the London Borough of Redbridge, around west of Romford and east of Ilford, and north-east of Charing Cross. History Topon ...

; * A1168 - between Loughton and Chigwell; * B184 - between Ongar and

Great Dunmow Great Dunmow is a historic market town and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. It lies to the north of the A120 road, approximately midway between Bishop's Stortford and Braintree, Essex, Braintree, east of London Stanste ...

. Onward connections towards

Saffron Walden Saffron Walden is a market town and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England, north of Bishop's Stortford, south of Cambridge and north of London. It retains a rural appearance and some buildings of the medieval period. Th ...

; * B1393 - between Wake Arms and M11 junction 7, via Epping. Most public highways in the district are managed by

. The M11 and M25 motorways are managed by

National Highways National Highways (NH), formerly Highways England and before that the Highways Agency, is a State-owned enterprise, government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving Roads in England, motorways and major A roads in Eng ...

Cycling

National Cycle Network The National Cycle Network (NCN) was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout the United Kingdom, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the charity Sustrans who were aided by a £42.5 million N ...

Route 1 passes along the eastern boundary of the district near Broxbourne, through Harlow, and east-west through the district via High Laver, Moreton and Fyfield. A

shared-use path A shared-use path, mixed-use path or multi-use pathway is a path which is "designed to accommodate the movement of pedestrians and cyclists". Examples of shared-use paths include sidewalks designated as shared-use, Bridle path, bridleways and ra ...

runs alongside the Rivers Lee and Stort, which connect the district with other cycle routes in Hertfordshire and London. Epping Forest features a network of shared-use forest trails, managed by the

City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the local authority of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United Kingdom's f ...

Aviation

North Weald Airfield is owned by Epping Forest District Council and is open to general aviation. Flying out of North Weald began in 1916, during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Stapleford Aerodrome Stapleford Aerodrome is an operational general aviation aerodrome in the Epping Forest district of Essex, England, near the village of Abridge. It is about south of North Weald Airfield and north of Romford. The airfield is just within the ...

is home to a flight training centre within the district.

, an international passenger and freight airport, lies in the neighbouring district of Uttlesford, north of the district.

Rivers

The Lee Navigation and River Stort are navigable rivers which form the district's eastern boundary. They are managed by the

Canal and River Trust The Canal & River Trust (CRT), branded as in Wales, holds the guardianship of 2,000 miles of canals and rivers, together with reservoirs and a wide range of heritage buildings and structures, in England and Wales. Launched on 12 July 2012, the ...

, and connect with the Regent's Canal in London via Hertford Union Canal.

Media

In terms of television, the area is served by BBC London and ITV London with television signals received from the Crystal Palace TV transmitter. BBC East and ITV Anglia can also be received from Sandy Heath TV transmitter. Radio stations for the area are: * BBC Essex * BBC Three Counties Radio can also be received. * Heart East (formerly Ten-17) *Forest Gold Radio, a community based radio station the broadcast from near the St Margaret's Hospital in Epping. The '' Epping Forest Guardian'' is the local newspaper.

Nature reserves

Epping Forest District Council has nine nature local nature reserves (LNRs): * Chigwell Row Wood LNR * Church Lane Flood Meadow LNR * Home Mead LNR * Linder's Field LNR * Nazeing Triangle LNR * Roding Valley Meadows LNR * Roughtalley's Wood LNR * Thornwood Flood Meadow LNR * Weald Common Flood Meadows LNR Roding Valley Meadows Local Nature Reserve (LNR) is the district's oldest nature reserve, designated in 1986, and the largest at 56 hectares. Seven

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 ...

on the

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

* Cornmill Stream and Old River Lea * Hainault Forest * Hunsdon Mead (part) * Roding Valley Meadows * Turnford and Cheshunt Pits (part) *

Essex Wildlife Trust The Essex Wildlife Trust (EWT) is one of 46 The Wildlife Trusts, wildlife trusts which cover the United Kingdom. The EWT was founded in 1959, and it describes itself as Essex's leading conservation charity, which aims to protect wildlife for the ...

manages sites at: * Gernon Bushes Nature Reserve, near Coopersale * Hunsdon Mead, near Roydon * Roding Valley Meadows, near Chigwell The woodland of

partially falls within the Epping Forest district. It has been owned and conserved by the

- the local authority which governs the

Square Mile The square mile (abbreviated as sq mi and sometimes as mi2)Rowlett, Russ (September 1, 2004) University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved February 22, 2012. is an imperial and US unit of measure for area. One square mile is equa ...

- since the

Epping Forest Act 1878 During the middle of the nineteenth century, a number of initiatives were started to protect the rights of the public to use open spaces and for the areas to be conserved for their specific environmental features. Some notable people of the tim ...

Parishes

The district is divided into 28

es. The parish councils of Epping, Loughton, Ongar and Waltham Abbey take the style "town council". The five parishes of Bobbingworth, High Laver, Little Laver, Magdalen Laver and Moreton share a grouped parish council called Moreton, Bobbingworth and the Lavers Parish Council. * Abbess Beauchamp and Berners Roding * Bobbingworth *

* Chigwell * Epping (town) * Epping Upland * Fyfield * High Laver * High Ongar * Lambourne * Little Laver *

(town) * Magdalen Laver * Matching * Moreton * Nazeing * North Weald Bassett * Ongar (town) * Roydon * Sheering * Stanford Rivers * Stapleford Abbotts * Stapleford Tawney *

* Theydon Garnon * Theydon Mount *

(town) * Willingale

Arms

References

External links

{{authority control Non-metropolitan districts of Essex