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London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
Shown within Greater London
Geography
Status	London borough
Area — Total	Ranked 299th 36.09 km2 (13.9 sq mi)
ONS code	00AB
Admin HQ	Rainham Road North, Becontree Heath
Demographics
Population — Total (2008 est.) — Density	Ranked 101st (of 326) 168,900 4,680 /km2 (12,121 /sq mi)
Ethnicity White British White Irish Other White White & Black Caribbean White & Black African White & Asian Other Mixed Indian Pakistani Bangladeshi Other Asian Black Caribbean Black African Other Black Chinese Other	(2005 estimates)[1] 72.8% 1.5% 3.9% 1.0% 0.5% 0.4% 0.5% 2.8% 2.2% 1.1% 1.0% 2.4% 7.6% 0.5% 0.9% 1.3%
Politics
Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council
Leadership	Leader & Cabinet
Mayor	—
Executive	Labour
MPs	Jon Cruddas (Labour) Margaret Hodge (Labour)
London Assembly — Member	City and East John Biggs (Labour)
Coat of Arms
Official website	barking-dagenham.gov.uk

The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham ( pronunciation (help·info)) is a London borough in north east London^[2] and forms part of Outer London.

History

The borough was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963 as the London Borough of Barking. The constituent parts were the greater part of the Municipal Borough of Barking and the entire Municipal Borough of Dagenham, the former area of which was transferred to Greater London from Essex. At the time of the amalgamation the combined population of Barking and Dagenham was around 180,000,^[3] the northern tip of Dagenham having been incorporated into Redbridge and a small area of Barking in Newham.
The borough was renamed Barking and Dagenham in 1980.^[4]

Neighbours

The borough borders the London Borough of Havering to the east with the River Rom forming part of the boundary. It borders the London Borough of Newham to the west with the River Roding forming much of the border. To the south is the River Thames which forms the borough's boundary with the London Borough of Bexley and the London Borough of Greenwich. To the north the borough forms a thin protrusion between Havering and the London Borough of Redbridge in order to encompass Chadwell Heath.

Settlement

The borough consists of and includes the following areas:

• Barking
• Becontree
• Becontree Heath
• Chadwell Heath
• Creekmouth
• Dagenham
• Rush Green

Most of the housing in the borough was constructed by the London County Council during the interwar period of 1918-1939.^[3] Major settlement of the area, mostly escaping slum conditions in the East End of London, occurred during this period when the new motor and chemical industries such as the Ford Motor Company plant at Dagenham were set up.^[3] Since the decline of these industries in the 1980s, employment has shifted towards service sector jobs. Much of the borough is within the London Riverside area of the Thames Gateway zone and is the site of considerable house building and other development. A £500 million budget has been earmarked for redevelopment of the borough's principal district of Barking.^[5]

Demographics

In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough had a total population of 1,937; and the area was characterised by farming, woodland and the fishing fleet at Barking. This last industry employed 1,370 men and boys by 1850, but by the end of the century had ceased to exist; replaced by train deliveries of fresh fish from the East Coast ports.^[6] The population rose slowly through the 19th century, as the district became built up; and new industries developed around Barking.

The population rose dramatically between 1921 and 1931, when the London County Council developed the Becontree Estate. This public housing development of 27,000 homes housed over 100,000 people, split between the then urban district councils of Ilford, Dagenham and Barking. People were rehoused from the slums of the East End.^[7] In 1931, the Ford Motor Company relocated to a 500 acres (2.0 km²) site at Dagenham, and in 1932 the District Line was extended to Upminster; bringing further development to the area.

After World War II, further public housing projects were built to rehouse the many Londoners made homeless in the Blitz. As industry declined during the 1960s, the population entered a long decline, but has now begun to rise again with new housing developments on brownfield sites.

According to the Census of 2001 Barking and Dagenham had a population of 165,500, 48.2% of which were male, and 51.8% female. The racial distribution of the borough are as follows:^[8]

• 78.2% White
• 10.5% Black
• 7.2% Asian
• 2.4% Mixed
• 1.7% Chinese

88.98% of these were born in England, 1.53% elsewhere in the UK, 1.35% in the Republic of Ireland, 0.83% in the EU, and 9.31% elsewhere.^[9]

Borough Council

The composition of the council at each election was:

51 councillors form Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council. They are elected from the 17 wards which make up the borough. The wards are:

In the 2006 local elections, the British National Party gained 12 councillors in the borough and now form the second largest party represented on the council, after Labour (who have 38 councillors). There are more BNP councillors in Barking and Dagenham than there are in any other borough in the United Kingdom.

Twinning

London Borough of Barking and Dagenham is twinned with:

• Witten, Germany
• Tczew, Poland^[10]

Education

There are many schools and further education facilities in the borough. Situated near the Town Hall, the Barking Learning Centre is a learning facility providing a range of courses leading to recognised qualifications. It also includes a library with free public internet access, the Council's first One Stop Shop, conference and meeting space, a gallery and a café.

Transport

The London Borough Of Barking And Dagenham is served by the Hammersmith & City line, the District Line and the London Overground line. London Buses routes 5, 62, 66, 86, 103, 128, 145, 150, 169, 173, 174, 175, 179, 238, 247, 287, 296, 362, 364, 366, 368, 369, 387, 499, School buses route 687 and Night route N15.

London Fire Brigade

The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham has two fire stations within its boundary; Barking and Dagenham. Barking fire station operates two pumping appliances, a bulk foam unit and a command unit. The support units that are operated here will cover a large selection of station grounds and areas. Dagenham fire station operates two pumping appliances and a hydraulic platform.

Of the two stations; Dagenham is the busier, attending over 2,000 incidents in 2006/2007.^[11]

London Fire Brigade - Barking and Dagenham Profile

See also

• List of people from Barking and Dagenham

References

External links

• Barking and Dagenham Council
• NHS Barking and Dagenham

London Borough of Barking & Dagenham Districts Barking · Becontree · Becontree Heath · Castle Green · Chadwell Heath · Creekmouth · Dagenham · Dagenham Dock · Marks Gate · Rush Green Attractions Barking Abbey · Barking Market · Eastbury Manor House (NT) · Valence House Museum · theBROADWAY Constituencies Barking · Dagenham Parks and open spaces in Barking & Dagenham

Coordinates: 51°33′N 0°07′E / 51.55°N 0.117°E / 51.55; 0.117