The London Borough of Newham () is a

London borough The London boroughs are the current 32 districts of England, 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 ...

created in 1965 by the

London Government Act 1963 The London Government Act 1963 (c. 33) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which created Greater London and a new local government structure within it. The Act significantly reduced the number of local government districts in the ...

. It covers an area previously administered by the

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 ...

county boroughs of West Ham and

East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Essex, East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a ...

, authorities that were both abolished by the same act. The name Newham reflects its creation and combines the compass points of the old borough names. Situated in the

Inner London Inner London is the group of London boroughs that form the interior part of Greater London and are surrounded by Outer London. With its origins in the bills of mortality, it became fixed as an area for statistics in 1847 and was used as an area ...

part of East London, Newham has a population of 387,576, which is the fourth highest of the London boroughs and also makes it the 25th most populous district in England. The local authority is Newham London Borough Council. It is east of the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

, north of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

(the Woolwich Ferry and Woolwich foot tunnel providing the only crossings to the south), bounded by the

River Lea The River Lea ( ) is in the East of England and Greater London. It originates in Bedfordshire, in the Chiltern Hills, and flows southeast through Hertfordshire, along the Essex border and into Greater London, to meet the River Thames at Bow Cr ...

to its west and the North Circular Road to its east. Newham was one of the six host boroughs for the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and contains most of the Olympic Park including the

London Stadium London Stadium (formerly and also known as the Olympic Stadium and the Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park) is a multi-purpose outdoor stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in the Stratford, London, Stratford district of London. It is loc ...

, and also contains the

London City Airport London City Airport is an international airport in London, England. It is located in the Royal Docks in the London Borough of Newham, Borough of Newham, about east of the City of London and east of Canary Wharf. These are the two centres ...

. Major districts include

, West Ham, Stratford, Plaistow, Forest Gate, Beckton and Canning Town.

History

The borough was formed on 1 April 1965 under the

, as a borough of the newly formed

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 ...

. It broadly covered the areas of the county borough of East Ham and the county borough of West Ham that were abolished by the same act. These in turn were successors to the ancient civil and ecclesiastical parishes of

and West Ham. Green Street and Boundary Road mark the former boundary between the two. North Woolwich also became part of the borough (previously part of the Metropolitan Borough of Woolwich, the majority of which lay south of the

), as did a small area around Gallions Reach west of 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 ...

which had previously been part of the

Municipal Borough of Barking Barking was a local government district, and later civil parish and borough, in southwest Essex, England from 1882 to 1965. It was known as Barking Town from 1882 to 1931. The district included the town of Barking, eastern Beckton and the south ...

. East Ham, West Ham and Barking had all historically been part of the county of

, whilst Woolwich had been part of

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

prior to becoming part of the

County of London The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government A ...

in 1889. ''Newham'' was devised for the borough as an entirely new name.

Manor of Ham

The area of the modern borough was at one time occupied by a manor (an estate or landholding with certain legal responsibilities) called 'Ham'. The name comes from

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

'hamm' and means 'a dry area of land between rivers or marshland', referring to the location of the settlement within boundaries formed by the rivers Lea,

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

and Roding and their marshes. The first known written use of the term, as 'Hamme', is in an Anglo-Saxon charter of 958, in which King Edgar granted the area to Ealdorman Athelstan. The territory was undivided at that time. A subsequent charter of 1037 describes a transfer of land which has been identified with East Ham, indicating that the division of the territory occurred between 958 and 1037. The

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

shows landholdings divided further, and by the end of the 12th century these manors were being served, singly or in groups of manors, by the familiar ancient parishes of West Ham,

and Little Ilford (now also known as Manor Park), with some areas by the Roding a part of Barking, and the area now known as North Woolwich attached to Woolwich. The earliest recorded use of the name West Ham, ''Westhamma'', comes in 1186, and East Ham, ''Estham'', is recorded in 1204. The boundary between

West West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...

and

was drawn from the now lost Hamfrith Waste and Hamfrith Wood in the north (then the southernmost parts 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 ...

which extended as far south as the Romford Road at that time), along Green Street down to the small, also lost, natural harbour known as Ham Creek. Ham Creek was filled-in in the nineteenth century, but the small residual head of the creek still formed the boundary between the two areas into the late 20th century, when what remained was also filled in. The formation of the modern borough in 1965 saw the merger of

and

, together with North Woolwich and Barking west of the

. Little Ilford had become part of East Ham as part of earlier local government reorganisations.

Medieval period

The prosperity of the area increased due to the construction of Bow Bridge, the only bridge over the Lea, and the creation of Stratford Langthorne Abbey.

Governance

The local authority is Newham Council, which meets at Newham Town Hall in East Ham and has its main offices at 1000 Dockside Road, overlooking the Royal Albert Dock. Since 2002 the council has been led by a directly elected Mayor of Newham.

Greater London representation

Since 2000, for elections to the

London Assembly The London Assembly is a 25-member 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 supermajority, to amend the Mayor's annual budget and to reject t ...

, the borough forms part of the City and East constituency.

Demography

Population figures

Newham has, after Barnet and Croydon, the third highest population of the London boroughs, with a population numbering 382,984 as of 2021. Despite growing since the 1980s, it is still drastically lower than its pre-war peak. In the period between 1951 and 1981, Newham's population shrunk by 28.87% owing to factors such as the war bombings and the increasingly high unemployment. The redevelopment of the Docklands as well as development related to the 2012 Olympics have contributed to reversing its declining trend.

Regeneration and housing

Newham has experienced significant regeneration in recent years, leading to increased housing development and rental demand. Some neighbourhoods have benefited from improved transport links and local amenities, attracting young professionals and families seeking affordable housing options.

Ethnicities

Population pyramid of Newham by ethnicity in 2021

Ethnic makeup of Newham in single year age groups

UK born and foreign born population pyramid in Newham in 2021

Newham has the youngest overall population and one of the lowest White British populations in the country according to the

2011 UK Census A census of the population of the United Kingdom is taken every ten years. The 2011 census was held in all countries of the UK on 27 March 2011. It was the first UK census which could be completed online via the Internet. The Office for National ...

. At 32%, the borough has the second-highest percentage of Muslims in the UK, after the neighbouring

London Borough of Tower Hamlets The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London boroughs, borough in London, England. Situated on the north bank of the River Thames and immediately east of the City of London, the borough spans much of the traditional East End of London and ...

. A 2017 report from Trust for London and the New Policy Institute found that 36% of local employees in Newham are in low paid work; the highest percentage of any London borough. Newham also has a 37% poverty rate, which is the second-highest rate in London. Newham is very ethnically diverse. When using Simpson's Diversity Index on 10 aggregated ethnic groups, the 2001 UK Census identified Newham as the most ethnically diverse district in England and Wales, with 9 wards in the top 15. However, when using the 16 ethnic categories in the Census so that White Irish and White Other ethnic minorities are also included in the analysis, Newham becomes the second-most ethnically diverse borough with six out of the top 15 wards, behind Brent with 7 out of the top 15 wards. Newham has the lowest percentage of both total White and White British residents of all of London's boroughs. The joint-lowest wards with White British population are Green Street East and Green Street West, each having 4.8% – the third-lowest behind Southall Broadway and Southall Green in

Ealing Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...

. East Ham North follows closely, at 4.9%. As of the 2021 UK census, people of "Bangladeshi" ethnicity are the largest single group in the borough at 15.9%. "White British" are the second largest group at 14.8%, with "White Other" third largest at 14.6%, "African" fourth largest at 11.6%, "Indian" next largest at 11% and then "Pakistani" at 8.9%. Newham has had a large Asian community for many decades; more than half of Newham's Upton and Kensington wards were of ethnic minority origin in 1981. The nationality to increase the most in number since 1991 is the Bangladeshi community. Newham has the largest total population of Asian origin in London; it is notably a borough with high populations of all three largest British Asian nationalities, having the 5th highest Indian population in London and the 2nd highest each for both Pakistani and Bangladeshi. Newham has 1,340 residents who were born in Ukraine, the highest population of Ukrainians in the UK.

Health

In 2018, Newham had the lowest life expectancy and the highest rate of

heart disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is any disease involving the heart or blood vessels. CVDs constitute a class of diseases that includes: coronary artery diseases (e.g. angina pectoris, angina, myocardial infarction, heart attack), heart failure, ...

of all London boroughs together with the

. In 2019, the BBC reported that Newham had the highest rate of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

in the UK at 107 per population, which was higher than

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

(69) and

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

(45) according to WHO figures from 2013. More than 80% of TB cases in London occur in people born abroad. The UK average was 13.

Religion

Religious makeup of Newham by single year age groups in 2021

The following table shows the religious identity of residents residing in Newham according to the 2001, 2011 and the 2021 censuses.

Transgender identity

The 2021 census showed that 1.5% of adults in Newham identified as

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

, derived from the Census question, "Is the gender you identify with the same as your sex registered at birth?". This gave Newham the highest proportion of transgender adults with the Borough of Brent coming second (at 1.3%). The overall proportion in England and Wales was 0.5% with Brighton, an area well known for its LGBT communities, 1%. However, Prof Michael Biggs of Oxford University showed there was a correlation between the proportion of transgender people in these areas and the proportion for whom English was not their first language (35% in Newham and 34% in Brent, compared to 9% nationally), suggesting the question was not fully understood by some. Prof Biggs described the figures as "irredeemably flawed". In September 2024, Mary Gregory, a deputy director at the ONS said some people may have misunderstood the question, saying there was "potential bias" in how the question was answered "by those who responded that they had lower levels of English proficiency, some of whom may have mistakenly given an answer suggesting they were trans". As a result, the ONS downgraded the data from "accredited official statistics" to "official statistics in development" to reflect the possible flaws.

Education

A 2017 report b
Trust for London
and th
New Policy Institute
finds that the GCSE attainment gap between advantaged and disadvantaged pupils in Newham is the 4th best out of 32 London boroughs.

Schools and colleges

The Borough is the education authority for the district providing education in a mix of Foundation,

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

and voluntary aided schools. The borough also owns and operates Debden House, a residential adult education college in

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 ...

, and is home to th
Rosetta Art Centre
a dedicated

visual art The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, image, filmmaking, design, crafts, and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and texti ...

organisation which delivers courses at its base in Stratford and produces participatory art projects, programmes and initiatives. The Essex Primary School in Sheridan Road with over 900 pupils is one of the biggest primary schools in London.

Universities

The

University of East London University of East London (UEL) is a public university located in the London Borough of Newham, London, England, based at three campuses in Stratford, London, Stratford and London Docklands, Docklands, following the opening of University Squar ...

has two campuses in Newham: *the Stratford Campus, at Stratford *the Docklands Campus, next to the regenerated Royal Albert Dock Birkbeck Stratford is a collaboration between

Birkbeck, University of London Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a Public university, public research university located in London, England, and a constituent college, member institution of the University of London. Establ ...

and UEL to increase participation in adult learning. This is based on the UEL/Birkbeck shared campus, USS (University Square Stratford), in the centre of Stratford. The University of East London had formed a partnership with the

United States Olympic Committee The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) is the National Olympic Committee (NOC) and the National Paralympic Committee (NPC) for the United States. It was founded in 1895 and is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado ...

which resulted in the United States Olympic Team using University of East London campuses as training bases during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Places of interest

Community

* The Hub, a community resource centre built by the local community, in Star Lane, E16, featuring up to the minute "green" features *

Grassroots A grassroots movement is one that uses the people in a given district, region or community as the basis for a political or continent movement. Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from volunteers at the local level to imp ...

, another innovative green resource centre built by the community. Grassroots is in Memorial Recreation Ground, E15 * Rosetta Art Centre, situated in walking distance to Grassroots, also in E15

Libraries

Newham has ten libraries (Beckton, Canning Town, Custom House, East Ham, Green Street, Manor Park, North Woolwich, Plaistow, Stratford and Forest Gate).

Museums

* North Woolwich Old Station Museum. Closed in 2008. * Three Mills, a mill complex on the east bank of the

. A trading site for nearly a thousand years, the House Mill was built in 1776 and was (and remains) the country's largest tide mill. It has been restored and contains much of its original machinery including four large waterwheels, millstones and grain chutes.

Markets

There are a number of local markets in the Borough, including Queens Market, which the council was controversially seeking to redevelop. The proposal was successfully opposed b
Friends of Queens Market

Parks and open spaces

80 hectares within the borough are designated as part of the Metropolitan Green Belt.

Performance

Stratford Circus Arts Centre
, a community arts venue which presents theatre, dance, music, circus and comedy from around the world for communities in Newham and East London. The organisation works with schools and local groups in Newham to provide classes, workshops and outreach opportunities. Stratford Circus Arts Centre partners with Newham Council fo
Every Child a Theatre Goer
which invites every year 6 child to a performance at the venue * Theatre Royal Stratford East * St Mark's Church, Silvertown The church was designed by Samuel Saunders Teulon. It was built between 1861 and 1862 after a cholera epidemic swept the district and local clergy appealed through the columns of The Times for funds to provide an architectural, as well as spiritual, beacon for the area. It is now the home of the Brick Lane Music Hall.

Shopping and exhibitions

* Queen's Market – an historic street market * ICC London – ExCeL – International Conference Centre * Gallions Reach Shopping Park * East Shopping Centre – Europe's first purpose-built boutique Asian shopping centre * Green Street – a shopping street mostly catering for the Asian community * Stratford Centre * Westfield Shopping Centre, Stratford – The largest Westfield Shopping Centre in Europe.

Sport

* Newham was one of the six host boroughs for the

* West Ham United F.C. plays its home matches at the

(formerly the

Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports ...

) in Stratford * The Newham and Essex Beagles Athletics Club has its headquarters at the London Marathon Community Track in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park adjacent to the

. * Clapton F.C., a non-league football club, plays at the Terence McMillan Stadium in Plaistow * Clapton Community F.C., a fan-owned non-league football team in Forest Gate, playing at The Old Spotted Dog Ground * Athletic Newham F.C., a non-league football club, plays at the Terence McMillan Stadium in Plaistow * London APSA F.C., a non-league football club, plays at the Flanders Playing Fields in Napier Road,

* London Regatta Centre, a charitable organisation promoting water sports such as rowing and dragon boats, is in Beckton

Newspapers

The local newspaper is the '' Newham Recorder''.

Districts

See '' List of districts in the London Borough of Newham'' for the full list, including neighbourhoods or localities which form part of the areas listed below. * Beckton * Canning Town *

Custom House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...

* Forest Gate * Little Ilford * Manor Park * North Woolwich * Plaistow *

Royal Docks Royal Docks is an area in the London Borough of Newham in the London Docklands in East London, England. The area is named after three docks – the Royal Albert Dock, the Royal Victoria Dock and the King George V Dock. They are more corre ...

* Silvertown * Stratford * Upton Park * West Ham

Parishes

The borough is covered by the following ecclesiastical parishes of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

: *Parish of the Divine Compassion, Plaistow and North Canning Town ** St Martin's Church, Plaistow ** St Mary's Church, Plaistow ** St Philip and St James Church, Plaistow ** St Matthias' Church, Canning Town * St Luke's Church, Canning Town * Church of the Ascension, Victoria Docks * St John's Church, North Woolwich *St Mark's Church, Beckton *Parish of East Ham, Holy Trinity ** St Bartholomew's Church, East Ham ** St Mary Magdalene's Church, East Ham ** St Alban's Church, Upton Park ** St Edmund's Church, Forest Gate * St George's and St Ethelbert's Church, East Ham * St Paul's Church, East Ham *Little Ilford ** St Mary's Church, Little Ilford ** St Michael's Church, Romford Road * St Barnabas, Little Ilford * Emmanuel Forest Gate, with St Peter's, Upton Cross * St Mark's Church, Forest Gate * St Saviour and St James, Forest Gate *St Margaret with St Columba, Leytonstone * St Paul and St James, Stratford * St John with Christchurch, Stratford * All Saints Church, West Ham

Transport

Since the 1980s, public transport in Newham has undergone many upgrades and improvements are still continuing to this day. The

Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated medium-capacity rail system, light metro system primarily serving the redeveloped London Docklands, Docklands area of London and providing a direct connection between London's two major financi ...

(DLR) first opened in 1987, and was extended from Tower Hamlets through to Beckton in 1994. The network has undergone many extensions since, including to serve

, as well as Stratford International station in 2011 after its High Speed 1 link opened in late 2009. The Jubilee Line Extension was completed in 1999, including new or improved stations at Canning Town, West Ham and Stratford. The DLR network compensates for Newham's lack of tube stations, of which there are only 6, in comparison with other London boroughs. The

Crossrail Crossrail is a completed railway project centred on London. It provides a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system, akin to the Réseau Express Régional, RER in Paris and the S-Bahn systems of German-speaking countries, kn ...

scheme - opening as the

Elizabeth line The Elizabeth line is a railway line that runs across Greater London and nearby towns, operating similarly to the Réseau Express Régional, RER in Paris and the S-Bahn systems of German-speaking countries. It runs services on dedicated infras ...

in 2022 - also delivered improved rail connections to several stations as it heads through the borough on an east west axis. Of the 28 stations in Newham, only 4 stations lack step free access - thanks to the recent age of many of the stations in the borough. As a result of all the recent developments, the borough contains one of only two airports located within the

boundary and currently the only railway station outside of central London that is served by high speed rail. BACF departure London city Airport

List of stations

* Abbey Road DLR station * Beckton DLR station * Beckton Park DLR station * Cyprus DLR station * Canning Town station –

Jubilee line The Jubilee line is a London Underground line that runs between in suburban north-west London and in east London, via the West End of London, West End, South Bank and London Docklands, Docklands. Opened in 1979, it is the newest line on the ...

and DLR *

Custom House station Custom House is an interchange station by the Royal Docks, in Custom House, Newham, Custom House in the London Borough of Newham, London for Docklands Light Railway (DLR) – on which it is branded Custom House for ExCeL – and Elizabeth line ...

and DLR * East Ham tube station –

District A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

and Hammersmith & City lines * Forest Gate railway station – Elizabeth line * Gallions Reach DLR station * King George V DLR station * London City Airport DLR station * Manor Park railway station – Elizabeth line * Maryland railway station – Elizabeth line * Plaistow tube station – District and Hammersmith & City lines * Pontoon Dock DLR station * Prince Regent DLR station * Pudding Mill Lane DLR station * Royal Albert DLR station * Royal Victoria DLR station * Star Lane DLR station * Stratford station – Greater Anglia, c2c,

, Jubilee and Central lines,

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, it now serves a large part of Greate ...

and DLR * Stratford High Street DLR station * Stratford International station – Southeastern, DLR * Upton Park tube station – District and Hammersmith & City lines * Wanstead Park railway station – London Overground *

West Ham station West Ham () is an interchange station in West Ham, London, England. It provides London Underground, Docklands Light Railway (DLR) and National Rail services. The station was opened in 1901 by the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway on the r ...

– c2c, Jubilee, District and Hammersmith & City lines, and DLR * West Silvertown DLR station * Woodgrange Park railway station – London Overground

Travel to work

In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: underground, metro, light rail, tram, 23.0% of all residents aged 16–74; driving a car or van, 7.6%; bus, minibus or coach, 7.6%; train, 7.2%; on foot, 4.1%; work mainly at or from home, 1.4%; bicycle, 1.0%.

River services

* Woolwich Ferry * Royal Wharf

Cable car

London Cable Car The London cable car, also known as the Dangleway and officially as the IFS Cloud Cable Car for Naming rights, sponsorship reasons, is a Aerial lift, cable car link across the River Thames in London, England. The line was built by Doppelmayr Gar ...

International services

* Dutchflyer rail-sea service via Stratford station to the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

* Stratford International station (No Eurostar trains stop)

Bus routes

Over 30 London Buses bus routes serve the London Borough of Newham, with main interchanges at Stratford, Stratford City and Beckton bus stations, with large bus interchanges also available at

and Upton Park.

Town twinning

Newham is twinned with: * Kaiserslautern, Germany

Coat of arms

The borough adopted West Ham's coat of arms, but with a motto adapted from that of

. The arms include the following elements: * The

crosier A crozier or crosier (also known as a paterissa, pastoral staff, or bishop's staff) is a stylized staff that is a symbol of the governing office of a bishop or abbot and is carried by high-ranking prelates of Roman Catholic, Eastern Catho ...

signified the

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

Stratford Langthorne Abbey. * The sword and the red and yellow chevronells are taken from the arms of William de Montfitchet, a major local landowner and founder of the abbey. * The crossed hammers represent the

Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company The Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company, Limited was a shipyard and iron works straddling the mouth of Bow Creek at its confluence with the River Thames, at Leamouth Wharf (often referred to as Blackwall) on the west side and at Cann ...

, once a major local employer. * The ship in full sail represents the maritime trades and the area's links to the sea. * The arms also include a sun rising in the east. The borough's motto, ''"Progress with the People"'' is an English translation of East Ham's Latin ''"Progressio cum Populo"''.

Freedom of the Borough

The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the Borough of Newham.

Individuals

* Sir Jack Petchey: 27 May 2010. * Mark Noble: 15 December 2016.

Military Units

* G Company 7th Battalion

The Rifles The Rifles is an infantry regiment of the British Army. Formed in 2007, it consists of four Regular battalions and three Reserve battalions. Each Regular battalion was formerly an individual battalion of one of the two large regiments of the ...

: 23 June 2012.

Notable people

References and notes

Newham The London Borough of Newham () is a London boroughs, London borough created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. It covers an area previously administered by the Essex county boroughs of County Borough of West Ham, West Ham and County ...

Local authorities adjoining the River Thames 1965 establishments in the United Kingdom Pakistani-British culture in London