London Borough of Redbridge Tourist Information

Location:

The London Borough of Redbridge is on the northeast side of London, It is seven miles from the City, to the north of the London Borough of Newham.

Facts and Figures:

The London Borough of Redbridge is 56km in area and has a population of just over 212,000, of which 21% are under the age of 16. It is a very family-orientated borough with 52 primary schools, 17 secondary schools and 6 independent schools. Pupils are among the highest achievers in London at GCSE level.

75% of Redbridge residents own their own home.

Redbridge's administrative centre is at Redbridge Town Hall in Ilford. The borough places a high emphasis on recycling and opened a £4.5 million state-of-the-art recycling centre in 2008.

Redbridge has been associated with several famous names from the world of politics. Winston Churchill was Wanstead's Member of Parliament for over 40 years, and fellow-former Prime Minister, Clement Atlee, also lived in Redbridge. Other notable residents include Bernard Ashmole, the founder of Oxford's Ashmolean Museum; TV presenter Noel Edmonds, cricketer Nasser Hussain and actress Dame Maggie Smith.

Description:

The leafy suburbs of the London Borough of Redbridge are rich in prehistoric remains; so rich in fact that the Victorians would go “elephant hunting' to look for mammoth skeletons which were discovered in this area.

Evidence of a more recent historical event can be found at the end of Blake Hall Road in Ilford where a deep crater marks the site where a bomb was dropped during World War II. A wrecked milk lorry was found lying in the crater after the air raid.

One quarter of the borough is designated as green-belt, a large part of which is Epping Forest, which gives the area a remarkably rural atmosphere. The borough has 14 conservation areas with many parks and woodland. Other areas of Redbridge are given over to sports facilities, housing and bustling shopping centres.

The London Borough of Redbridge organizes many arts and entertainments programmes including the annual Redbridge Show, literature festivals, concerts and tea dances. The schools all take part in a biennial choral festival which is held in the Royal Albert Hall.

Borough Attractions:

Epping Forest is one of Redbridge's main assets and attractions. Stretching over 6000 acres, the forest has miles of nature trails, a lake for watersports, country park areas and nature conservation attractions.

The London Development Agency has provided a mountain bike course at Hog Hill Cycle Track. It is close to the Hainault Forest Country Park which also has a farm of rare breed animals.

Other main attractions in Redbridge are the Goodmayes Park which has a lake, basketball and tennis courts; Seven Kings Park; Fairlop Water with two lakes and a golf course and Wanstead Flats which is popular for dog walking, bird watching, flying model aircraft and playing football.

Getting There:

The Central Line of London's Underground has many stops in the Borough of Redbridge with stations at Snaresbrook, South Woodford and Woodford on the Epping branch of the underground, and Hainault, Firlop, Barkingside, Newbury Park, Gants Hill, Redbridge and Wanstead on the Hainault branch.

The Great Eastern Mainline railway also serves Redbridge.