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 West Ham is a district in East London, England and is in the London Borough of Newham. It is an inner-city suburb located east of Charing Cross. The area was originally an ancient parish formed to serve parts of the older Manor of Ham, a ...

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 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 ...

, 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 Newham London Borough Council also known as Newham Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Newham in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London. The council has been under Labour majority co ...

. 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 The Woolwich Ferry is a free vehicle and pedestrian ferry across the River Thames in East London, connecting Woolwich on the south bank with North Woolwich on the north. It is licensed and financed by London River Services, the maritime arm ...

and

Woolwich foot tunnel The Woolwich foot tunnel crosses under the River Thames in Woolwich, in East London from Old Woolwich in the Royal Borough of Greenwich to North Woolwich in the London Borough of Newham. The tunnel (open 24/7) offers pedestrians and cyclists an ...

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 The North Circular Road (officially the A406 and sometimes known as simply the North Circular) is a ring road around Central London. It runs from Chiswick in the west to North Woolwich in the east via suburban north London, connecting var ...

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 An Olympic Park is a sports campus for hosting the Olympic Games. Typically it contains the Olympic Stadium and the International Broadcast Centre. It may also contain the Olympic Village or some of the other sports venues, such as the aquatics ...

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

, Stratford, Plaistow,

Forest Gate Forest Gate is a district of West Ham in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England. It is located northeast of Charing Cross. The area's name relates to its position adjacent to Wanstead Flats, the southernmost part of Epping Forest. ...

Beckton Beckton is a suburb in east London, England, located east of Charing Cross and part of the London Borough of Newham. Adjacent to the River Thames, the area consisted of unpopulated marshland known as the East Ham Levels in the parishes of Bark ...

and

Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...

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 East Ham was a local government district in the far south west of Essex from 1878 to 1965. It extended from Wanstead Flats in the north to the River Thames in the south and from Green Street, London, Green Street in the west to Barking Creek in t ...

and the

county borough of West Ham West Ham was a local government district in the extreme south west of Essex from 1886 to 1965, forming part of the built-up area of London, although outside the County of London. It was immediately north of the River Thames and east of the Rive ...

that were abolished by the same act. These in turn were successors to the ancient civil and ecclesiastical parishes of

and

. Green Street and Boundary Road mark the former boundary between the two.

North Woolwich North Woolwich is an area in the London Borough of Newham in East London, England, on the northern bank of the River Thames, across the river from Woolwich. It is connected to Woolwich by the Woolwich Ferry and Woolwich foot tunnel. Despite ...

also became part of the borough (previously part of the

Metropolitan Borough of Woolwich The Metropolitan Borough of Woolwich was a Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London, metropolitan borough in the County of London from 1900 to 1965. It was formed from the civil parishes of Eltham, Plumstead and Woolwich (parish), Woolwich. ...

, the majority of which lay south of the

), as did a small area around

Gallions Reach Gallions Reach is a stretch of the River Thames between Woolwich and Thamesmead. The area is named for the Galyons, a 14th-century family who owned property along this stretch of the river,Hidden London http://hidden-london.com/gazetteer/gal ...

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 Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient hi ...

and

Little Ilford Little Ilford is a district of London, England in the London Borough of Newham. It gives its name to the Little Ilford ward. Toponymy Little Ilford and Ilford (historically known as Great Ilford)Mills, A., ''Oxford Dictionary of London Place Na ...

(now also known as Manor Park), with some areas by the Roding a part of

Barking Barking may refer to: Places * Barking, London, a town in East London, England ** London Borough of Barking, 1965–1980 ** Municipal Borough of Barking, 1931–1965 ** Barking (UK Parliament constituency) ** Barking (electoral division), Greater ...

, and the area now known as

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

and

west of the

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 Stratford Langthorne Abbey, or the Abbey of St Mary's, Stratford Langthorne was a Cistercian monastery founded in 1135 at Stratford Langthorne — then Essex but now Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. The Abbey, also known as West Ha ...

Governance

The local authority is Newham Council, which meets at

Newham Town Hall Newham Town Hall, formerly East Ham Town Hall, is a municipal building in Barking Road, East Ham, London. The town hall, which is the headquarters of Newham London Borough Council, is a Grade II* listed building. History In the early 20th cent ...

in East Ham and has its main offices at 1000 Dockside Road, overlooking the

Royal Albert Dock Albert Dock may refer to: * Albert Dock, Hull, in Kingston upon Hull, England *Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool The Royal Albert Dock is a complex of dock buildings and warehouses in Liverpool, England. Designed by Jesse Hartley and Philip Hardwi ...

. Since 2002 the council has been led by a directly elected

Mayor of Newham The Mayor of Newham is a directly elected mayor responsible for the executive function of Newham London Borough Council in east London, England. The position is different from the previously existing (and largely ceremonial) annually appointed ...

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 White British is an ethnicity classification used for the White population identifying as English, Scottish, Welsh, Cornish, Northern Irish, or British in the United Kingdom Census. In the 2011 census, the White British population was 49 ...

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 On 10 August 1878 a royal commission was established to investigate the parochial charities. It reported on 12 March 1880, which led to the City of London Parochial Charities Act 1883. This provided that the five largest parishes should continue t ...

and the

New Policy Institute The New Policy Institute, often shortened to just NPI, is a British think tank based in London. It was established in 1996, and focusses on social and economic issues from a progressive perspective. History The New Policy Institute was founded ...

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 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 2001 UK census was organised by the Office for National ...

identified Newham as the most

ethnically diverse An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

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 Brent () is a borough in north-west London, England. It is known for landmarks such as Wembley Stadium, the Swaminarayan Temple and the Kiln Theatre. It also contains the Welsh Harp reservoir and the Park Royal commercial estate. The local au ...

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 Foundation(s) or The Foundation(s) may refer to: Common uses * Foundation (cosmetics), a skin-coloured makeup cream applied to the face * Foundation (engineering), the element of a structure which connects it to the ground, and transfers loads f ...

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 A voluntary aided school (VA school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a religious organisation) contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school. In m ...

schools. The borough also owns and operates Debden House, a residential

adult education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained educating activities in order to gain new knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralph G. ''The Pr ...

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

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 The Hub may refer to: Places * The Hub, Bronx, an area of the South Bronx, New York, known for its convergence of subway and bus lines * The Hub (Edinburgh), former church in Edinburgh that is now home to the Edinburgh International Festival * T ...

, 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 The Three Mills are former working mills and an island of the same name on the River Lea. It is one of London’s oldest surviving industrial centres. The mills lie in the London Borough of Newham, but despite lying on the Newham side of the Lea ...

, a mill complex on the east bank of the

. A trading site for nearly a thousand years, the

House Mill The House Mill is a major Grade I listed building on the River Lea in Mill Meads, and part of the Three Mills complex. The original Tide mill, tidal mills at this site date back to the Domesday Book, Domesday book of 1086, and the present st ...

was built in 1776 and was (and remains) the country's largest

tide mill A tide mill is a water mill driven by tidal rise and fall. A dam with a sluice is created across a suitable tidal inlet, or a section of river estuary is made into a reservoir. As the tide comes in, it enters the mill pond through a one-way ga ...

. 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 The Metropolitan Green Belt is a statutory green belt around London, England. It comprises parts of Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey, parts of two of the three districts of Bedfordshire and a s ...

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 Stratford East (formerly known as Theatre Royal Stratford East) is a 460 seat Victorian producing theatre in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. Since 1953, it has been the home of the Theatre Workshop company, famously associated with di ...

St Mark's Church, Silvertown St Mark's Church, Silvertown or St Mark's Church, Victoria Docks is a former church building in Silvertown in east London, located on North Woolwich Road. It takes one of its names from the nearby Royal Docks. It was listed as Grade II* in 1971 a ...

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 A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...

Shopping and exhibitions

* Queen's Market – an historic street market * ICC London – ExCeL – International Conference Centre *

Gallions Reach Shopping Park Gallions Reach Shopping Park is a major Out-of-town shopping centres in the United Kingdom, out-of-town retail park in Beckton, east London, England. Located on Armada Way beside the River Thames, Gallions Reach is the largest retail park within ...

East Shopping Centre East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that eas ...

– Europe's first purpose-built boutique Asian shopping centre * Green Street – a shopping street mostly catering for the Asian community *

Stratford Centre Stratford Centre is a Shopping mall and indoor market in Stratford town centre in east London. It is situated east of the busy Stratford Regional station, separated only by the Stratford bus station, collectively contributing to the high fo ...

* 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. West Ham United Football Club is a professional football club based in Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, having moved from their ...

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 Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is a sporting complex and public park in Stratford, Hackney Wick, Leyton and Bow, in east London. It was purpose-built for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, situated adjacent to the Stratford City devel ...

adjacent to the

. * Clapton F.C., a

non-league football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...

club, plays at the Terence McMillan Stadium in Plaistow * Clapton Community F.C., a fan-owned non-league football team in

, playing at

The Old Spotted Dog Ground The Old Spotted Dog Ground in Forest Gate is the oldest senior football ground in London. Clapton Community FC the fan-owned club purchased the ground in June 2020, having been initially awarded the lease. The previous tenants Clapton FC ...

* 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 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 ...

, a charitable organisation promoting water sports such as rowing and dragon boats, is in

Newspapers

The local newspaper is the ''

Newham Recorder The ''Newham Recorder'' is a local weekly newspaper distributed in the London Borough of Newham. It is published weekly, on a Wednesday, in the tabloid format by Archant, the UK's largest independently owned regional media business, with a digi ...

''.

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. *

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 ...

* Manor Park *

* 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 Silvertown is a district of West Ham in the London Borough of Newham, in east London, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, Thames and was historically part of the parishes of West Ham and East Ham, Becontree Hundred, hund ...

* Stratford * Upton Park *

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 Mary's Church is a Church of England church in Plaistow in the (East-) London Borough of Newham. With the three churches of St Matthias’, St Martin's, and St Philip and St James’, it formed part of the Parish of the Divine Compassion. ...

** St Philip and St James Church, Plaistow ** St Matthias' Church, Canning Town *

St Luke's Church, Canning Town St Luke's Church, Canning Town or St Luke's Church, Victoria Docks is a Church of England church, originally housed in a building on Boyd Road in the Royal Docks area of West Ham in east London. Planned by Henry Boyd, vicar of St Mark's Church, ...

Church of the Ascension, Victoria Docks The Church of the Ascension, West Ham, or Church of the Ascension, Victoria Docks, is a Church of England church on Baxter Road in West Ham, east London. It was first built in 1887 as a mission hall for St Luke's Church, Canning Town, St Luke's Ch ...

* 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 Mary Magdalene's Church, East Ham is a parish church in East Ham, east London, dedicated to St Mary Magdalene. Its nave, chancel and apse date to the first half of the 12th century and the tower probably to the early 13th century but partly re ...

** St Alban's Church, Upton Park ** St Edmund's Church, Forest Gate *

St George's and St Ethelbert's Church, East Ham St George and St Ethelbert's Church, East Ham, is a Church of England church in East Ham, east London. St Mary Magdalene's Church, East Ham built a temporary mission hall known as St George's on the corner of Boston Road and Masterman Road by 1 ...

* St Paul's Church, East Ham *Little Ilford **

St Mary's Church, Little Ilford St Mary's Church, or Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin, is a Church of England church in Little Ilford, east London. It is situated on Church Road (B165) between St Mary's Approach (to the west), St Winefride's Avenue (to the east) and Rectory ...

** 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 Mark's Church is a Church of England parish church in Forest Gate, east London. History It is sited on Lorne Road and originated as a mission church of Emmanuel Church. It was meant to serve the area between Wanstead Flats and the Romford Roa ...

* 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 All Saints Church is a parish church in West Ham, an area in east London. It has been a Grade I listed building since 1984. History Medieval and Tudor In the medieval era the church's parish included all of West Ham, with the one exception of th ...

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

in 1994. The network has undergone many extensions since, including to serve

, as well as

Stratford International station Stratford International is a National Rail station in Stratford and a separate Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station nearby, located in East Village in London. Despite its name, no international services stop at the station; plans for it to ...

in 2011 after its

High Speed 1 High Speed 1 (HS1), officially the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), is a high-speed railway linking London with the Channel Tunnel. It is part of the line carrying international passenger traffic between the United Kingdom and mainland Euro ...

link opened in late 2009. The

Jubilee Line Extension The Jubilee Line Extension (JLE) is the extension of the London Underground's Jubilee line from to through south and east London. An eastward extension of the line was first proposed in the 1970s. As part of the development of London Dockland ...

was completed in 1999, including new or improved stations at

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 Abbey Road DLR station is a Docklands Light Railway station in West Ham in the London Borough of Newham, in east London, England. It is located on the Stratford International extension of the Docklands Light Railway. History The station is buil ...

Beckton DLR station Beckton is the eastern terminus of the Beckton branch of the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in the Beckton area of east London. It is in Travelcard Zone 3. History When the London Docks and Beckton Gasworks were active, they were served by ...

* Beckton Park DLR station * Cyprus DLR station *

Canning Town station Canning Town is an interchange station located in Canning Town, London for London Underground, Docklands Light Railway (DLR) and London Buses services. It is designed as an intermodal metro and bus station, opening in 1999 as part of the Jub ...

–

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 East Ham () is a London Underground station, located on High Street North in the East Ham neighbourhood of the London Borough of Newham in east London, England. It is on the District and Hammersmith & City lines between Upton Park and Barkin ...

–

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 Forest Gate railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line serving Forest Gate in the London Borough of Newham, east London. It is down the line from Liverpool Street station, London Liverpool Street and is situated between and . Its three- ...

– Elizabeth line *

Gallions Reach DLR station Gallions Reach DLR station is a station on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in the Royal Docks area of east London. It serves the recent residential developments around Royal Albert Dock, London, Royal Albert Dock. The station is located on t ...

King George V DLR station King George V is a Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station in North Woolwich, East London, which opened on 2 December 2005. The station replaced North Woolwich railway station on the North London line and is named after King George V Dock near ...

London City Airport DLR station London City Airport is a light metro station on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) Stratford-Woolwich and Bank-Woolwich Lines; serving London City Airport in East London. It opened on 2 December 2005. It was first located on what was initially Ki ...

Manor Park railway station Manor Park railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line serving Manor Park in the London Borough of Newham, east London. It is down the line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between and . Its three-letter station code is MNP ...

– Elizabeth line *

Maryland railway station Maryland railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line serving the Maryland area of the London Borough of Newham, east London. It is down the line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between Stratford and . Its three-letter statio ...

– Elizabeth line *

Plaistow tube station Plaistow ( or ) is a London Underground station on Plaistow Road in the London Borough of Newham in Greater London. It is on the District and Hammersmith & City lines between West Ham and Upton Park stations, and is located in Travelcard Zo ...

– District and Hammersmith & City lines * Pontoon Dock DLR station *

Prince Regent DLR station Prince Regent DLR station is a station on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in Custom House, Newham in east London. The station was opened on 28 March 1994 and provides access to the eastern end of the ExCeL Exhibition Centre and ICC London. Th ...

Pudding Mill Lane DLR station Pudding Mill Lane is a Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station in Stratford in London, England. It opened in 1996 on the road of the same name, once a light industrial area in Stratford, now being redeveloped into housing development called Pudd ...

* Royal Albert DLR station *

Royal Victoria DLR station Royal Victoria DLR station is on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in Canning Town, east London. The station opened in 1994 and is named after the nearby Royal Victoria Dock. It is on the DLR's Beckton branch, in Travelcard Zone 3, and is the ...

Star Lane DLR station Star Lane is a Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station in Canning Town, east London. Located on the Docklands Light Railway#Stratford International extension, Stratford International extension of the Docklands Light Railway between Stratford, Lond ...

Stratford station Stratford is a major multi-level interchange station serving the town of Stratford and the mixed-use development known as Stratford City, in the London Borough of Newham, East London for London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light ...

–

Greater Anglia Greater Anglia (legal name Transport UK East Anglia Limited) is a British train operating company owned as a joint venture by Transport UK Group and Mitsui & Co. It operates the East Anglia franchise, providing the commuter and inter-city se ...

c2c Trenitalia c2c, trading as c2c, is a British train operating company that operates commuter services from its London terminus at to parts of East London and south Essex along the London, Tilbury and Southend line, as part of the Essex Thame ...

Jubilee A jubilee is often used to refer to the celebration of a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term comes from the Hebrew Bible (see, "Old Testament"), initially concerning ...

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 High Street is a Docklands Light Railway station in Stratford, London, Stratford in Greater London, London, England. It is located on the Docklands Light Railway#Extension to Stratford International (2011), Stratford International bra ...

– Southeastern, DLR *

Upton Park tube station Upton Park is a London Underground station on Green Street in the Upton Park area of the London Borough of Newham, east London. It is on the District and Hammersmith & City lines between Plaistow and East Ham stations. It is in London fare z ...

– District and Hammersmith & City lines *

Wanstead Park railway station Wanstead Park is a railway station in Forest Gate, London. It is on the Suffragette line of the London Overground in Zone 3, down the line from and situated between and . Despite its name, Wanstead Park station is not situated in Wanstead bu ...

– 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 Woodgrange Park is a railway station on Romford Road in Manor Park in the London Borough of Newham, east London. It is served by the Suffragette line of the London Overground. It is located down the line from ; it lies in Travelcard Zones ...

– 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

* 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 ''Dutchflyer'' is an integrated passenger service between the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Formerly known as ''Amsterdam Express'', ''Dutchflyer'' is a rail/sea/rail service operated jointly by Stena Line, the Dutch state railway operator ...

rail-sea service via

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 ...

(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 Stratford City is a mixed-use development project in Stratford, London, England, to the north of Stratford town centre. The main developers are the Westfield Group and Lendlease. Stratford City is the name given to the urban community centre ...

and

bus stations, with large bus interchanges also available at

and Upton Park.

Town twinning

Newham is twinned with: *

Kaiserslautern Kaiserslautern (; ) is a town in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, 666 kilometers (414 m ...

, 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 ...

. * 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 Mark James Noble (born 8 May 1987) is an English former professional Association football, footballer who played as a midfielder. He is currently the sporting director of Premier League club West Ham United F.C., West Ham United. A fan of the c ...

: 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

History

Manor of Ham

Medieval period

Governance

Greater London representation

Demography

Population figures

Regeneration and housing

Ethnicities

Health

Religion

Transgender identity

Education

Schools and colleges

Universities

Places of interest

Community

Libraries

Museums

Markets

Parks and open spaces

Performance

Shopping and exhibitions

Sport

Newspapers

Districts

Parishes

Transport

List of stations

Travel to work

River services

Cable car

International services

Bus routes

Town twinning

Coat of arms

Freedom of the Borough

Individuals

Military Units

Notable people

See also

References and notes

External links