| Enfield Lock | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Modern housing in Ordnance Road | |
  Enfield Lock Location withinGreater London | |
| Population | 16,469 (2011 Census. Ward)[1] |
| OS grid reference | TQ365985 |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ENFIELD |
| Postcode district | EN3 |
| Dialling code | 01992 / 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| UK Parliament | |
| London Assembly | |
| 51°40′07″N0°01′34″W / 51.6686°N 0.026°W /51.6686; -0.026 | |
Enfield Lock is an area in theLondon Borough of Enfield,north London. It is approximately located east of theHertford Road between Turkey Street and theHolmesdale Tunnel overpass, and extends to theRiver Lee Navigation, including theEnfield Island Village.[2] The locality gains its name from thelock on the River Lee Navigation. Today'sEnfield Lock was rebuilt in 1922.[3] The area forms part of theLee Valley Park and the Enfield Lock Conservation Area.[4] On its eastern boundary Enfield Lock has marshland formerly used as a testing site between theRoyal Small Arms Factory and the Gunpowder Mills, beyond this is the village of Sewardstone and the Epping forest boundary. To the south isBrimsdown, the northWaltham Cross and to the westBullsmoor andFreezywater. Enfield Lock forms part of the London boundary.
Enfield Lock is recorded thus in 1710, earlier asNorhtlok (1355),The Locke (1657), i.e. 'the (northern) lock or river barrier (near Enfield)', fromMiddle Englishlok.[5]
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The area was first developed from about 1812 when a government-owned rifle factory, which was later known as theRoyal Small Arms Factory (RSAF), Enfield, was built. The factory was built towards the end of theNapoleonic War on the instructions of theBoard of Ordnance on marshland at Enfield Lock on the banks of both theRiver Lea and theRiver Lee Navigation.The RSAF was closed in the late 1980s, shortly after privatisation, and the majority of the former site has now been redeveloped into a large housing development:Enfield Island Village.
The original machine shop frontage and the older part of the rear structure has been retained and was converted into workshops and retail units by the Enfield Enterprise Agency. Until the construction of theM25 in the 1980s, theEnfield island Village which began to house many families from local councils such as Harringey and Hackney, and the later building of theA1055, the area was much like a village with only a small population and consisting of only a few roads in the locality. Roads such as Ordnance Road, Salisbury Road and Medcalf Road are still populated by families who have lived in the Enfield Lock area for several generations.
Afterrioting had spread from neighbouringTottenham on 8 August 2011, theSony DADC/PIAS distribution centre on the Innova Business Park was looted and destroyed by fire.[6]TheHome Secretary,Theresa May, was shown the destroyed distribution centre bychief police officers andfirefighters on 12 August 2011.[7] In September 2012, thePrime Minister,David Cameron, opened the rebuilt warehouse.[8]
The Enfield Lock ward, which also coversEnfield Island Village, is 54% white (38% British, 15% Other, 1% Irish) as of the 2011 census. 23% of the population is black (15% African, 8% Caribbean, 4% Other).[9]
-Greater Anglia services northbound towardsHarlow andBishop's Stortford, and southbound towardsTottenham Hale andStratford in theEast End. Some services terminate atLiverpool Street in theCity of London.
-London Overground services fromCheshunt (northbound) to Liverpool Street viaSeven Sisters andHackney Downs (southbound).Enfield Lock and Turkey Street are inLondon Travelcard Zone 6. Brimsdown is inTravelcard Zone 5.Oyster Cards are valid at all three stations for travel southbound, and northbound as far asBroxbourne, or on some services,Hertford East. Enfield Lock is not on theLondon Underground network.[10]
TheA1010 (Hertford Road) passes north–south to the west of Enfield Lock, linking the area toEdmonton andTottenham to the south, andWaltham Cross,Waltham Abbey andCheshunt to the north. TheA1055 (Mollison Avenue) links Enfield Lock to theA10 (Great Cambridge Road) towardsHertford. Southbound, the road passes throughBrimsdown,Ponder's End andTottenham Hale.
TheM25 London Orbital Motorway forms the northern border of Enfield Lock. From Enfield Lock, the road can be accessed via the A10 at junction 25, to the north ofBulls Cross. The M25 carries traffic around London, giving Enfield Lock a direct link toHeathrow Airport, theM11 (forStansted Airport) and theM1 (forLuton Airport), along with several otherarterial routes across bothEast Anglia andSouth East England. The M25 passes through the Holmesdale Tunnel, just to the north of Enfield Lock.
TheRiver Lee Navigation passes north–south through Enfield Lock. Thelock after which the area is named is numbered "13" along the River Lee.
The navigable river links boats northbound toHertford and theRiver Stort. The River Stort is navigable for canal traffic toHarlow andBishop's Stortford.
Southbound, the River Lee passes throughPonders End,Tottenham Hale andStratford in theEast End. From Stratford, theHertford Union Canal carries canal traffic westbound towards theRegent's Canal, which eventually leads toCamden Lock andPaddington.[11]
Cycling infrastructure in Enfield Lock is primarily maintained by theLondon Borough of Enfield. Enfield Lock is well connected toNational andInternational cycle networks:
Section 18 of theLondon LOOP, along distance footpath, can be accessed at Enfield Lock railway station. The path connects with theLea Valley Walk aboveEnfield Lock at Ordnance Road.
Angling is allowed on the River Lee Navigation upstream and downstream of Enfield Lock. Information from the River Lea Anglers Club.[16]
National Cycle Route 1 follows the River Lea towpath to Gunpowder Park.
Gunpowder Park, which lies to the east of Enfield Lock, is a large open space consisting mostly of marshland and lakes. The land is owned and managed by theLee Valley Regional Park and is open to the public.[17]
