London Borough of Bromley | |
|---|---|
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 Council logo | |
| Motto(s): Servire populo (To serve the people) | |
 Bromley shown withinGreater London | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Region | London |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Created | 1 April 1965 |
| Admin HQ | Stockwell Close, Bromley |
| Government | |
| • Type | London borough council |
| • Body | Bromley London Borough Council |
| • London Assembly | Thomas Turrell (Conservative) AM forBexley and Bromley |
| • MPs | Gareth Bacon (Conservative) Liam Conlon (Labour) Clive Efford (Labour) Peter Fortune (Conservative) |
| Area | |
• Total | 57.97 sq mi (150.15 km2) |
| • Rank | 166th(of 296) |
| Population (2024) | |
• Total | 335,319 |
| • Rank | 33rd(of 296) |
| • Density | 5,784.0/sq mi (2,233.2/km2) |
| Ethnicity(2021) | |
| • Ethnic groups | |
| Religion(2021) | |
| • Religion | List
|
| Time zone | UTC (GMT) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (BST) |
| Postcodes | |
| Area codes | 01689, 01959, 020 |
| ISO 3166 code | GB-BRY |
| ONS code | 00AF |
| GSS code | E09000006 |
| Police | Metropolitan Police |
| Website | http://www.bromley.gov.uk/ |
TheLondon Borough of Bromley (/ˈbrɒmli/ ⓘ) is aborough inGreater London, England. It is the largest and southeasternmost borough in London, and borders the counties ofSurrey andKent, the latter of which it formed part until 1965. The borough's population in the 2021 census was 329,991. It is named afterBromley, its principal town. Other districts arePenge,Hayes,West Wickham,Chislehurst,Beckenham andOrpington. The local authority isBromley London Borough Council.[n 1]
The borough is the largest in Greater London by area and occupies 59 square miles (153 km2). The majority of the borough isMetropolitan Green Belt, including nearly all of the land south of the A232-A21 route between West Wickham and Pratt's Bottom.[2] Consequently, it is also perhaps the most rural borough and contains more of theNorth Downs than any other, as that escarpment is broad between Bromley and Banstead. This is also reflected in its population density, which is the lowest of the 32 London boroughs.[3]
Most of the population lives in the north and west of the borough, with an outlier atBiggin Hill in the far south. The borough shares borders with the London Boroughs ofLewisham andGreenwich to the north,Bexley to the north-east,Southwark andLambeth to the north-west, andCroydon to the west. It also borders theSevenoaks District ofKent to the east and south, and theTandridge District ofSurrey to the south-west.
Westerham Heights, thehighest point in London and Kent at an altitude of 804 feet (245 m), is on the southern boundary. ThePrime Meridian passes through Bromley.
About 30% of the land in Bromley is farmland, the highest figure of a London borough.[4]
Alocal government district called Bromley was created in 1867, covering the parish ofBromley.[5][6] The neighbouring parish ofBeckenham was also made a local government district in 1878.[7] Such districts were reconstituted asurban districts under theLocal Government Act 1894.[8] Other urban districts were subsequently created forPenge andChislehurst in 1900,[9] andOrpington in 1934.[10]
Bromley was incorporated to become amunicipal borough in 1903,[11] as was Beckenham in 1935.[12] Chislehurst Urban District merged with the neighbouringSidcup Urban District in 1934.[13]
The modern borough was created in 1965 under theLondon Government Act 1963, covering the combined area of the formerMunicipal Borough of Bromley,Municipal Borough of Beckenham,Orpington Urban District,Penge Urban District and the Chislehurst area from theChislehurst and Sidcup Urban District (the Sidcup area went to theLondon Borough of Bexley).Penge Urban District was the only part of the new borough which had been within the boundaries of theLondon County Council andMetropolitan Board of Works, voting to leave in 1899 to become self-governing until 1965. The area was transferred fromKent to Greater London, to become one of the 32 London boroughs.[14]
In 1969, after a local campaign, the village ofKnockholt was removed from the borough and transferred to the neighbouringSevenoaks Rural District; before 1965, it had been part of the Orpington Urban District.Knockholt railway station however remains inOrpington.[15]
The borough is partly urban and partly rural, the former to the north and very much part of the built-up area of suburban London.
The principal parts of the northern section, from west to east, areBeckenham, which includesEden Park andElmers End;Bromley withBickley, Bromley Park andBromley Common, Park Langley, Plaistow,Shortlands and Southborough;Chislehurst, withElmstead andSundridge. The built-up area aroundOrpington not only encompasses its direct outskirts ofChelsfield, Crofton, Derry Downs,Goddington, Kevingtown, andPetts Wood; it also includes the erstwhile separate settlements ofFarnborough,Green Street Green,Pratt's Bottom,St Mary Cray andSt Paul's Cray. Other smaller suburban areas includePenge,Anerley, and parts of nearbyCrystal Palace including itspark. In addition, parts ofMottingham,Sydenham,Swanley andRuxley lie within the borough boundaries.
There are two main built-up areas in the southern part of the borough:Hayes andWest Wickham.Biggin Hill,Downe andKeston withLeaves Green and Nash are separate, smaller, rural settlements.
Local attractions includeDown House (the home ofCharles Darwin),Chislehurst Caves,Holwood House (the home ofWilliam Pitt the Younger),Crofton Roman Villa, and the site ofThe Crystal Palace.
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The local authority is Bromley Council, based at the Civic Centre atBromley Palace.
Since 2000, for elections to theLondon Assembly, the borough forms part of theBexley and Bromley constituency.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1801 | 8,944 | — |
| 1811 | 10,186 | +13.9% |
| 1821 | 11,455 | +12.5% |
| 1831 | 13,302 | +16.1% |
| 1841 | 14,878 | +11.8% |
| 1851 | 17,192 | +15.6% |
| 1861 | 33,144 | +92.8% |
| 1871 | 49,095 | +48.1% |
| 1881 | 65,046 | +32.5% |
| 1891 | 84,729 | +30.3% |
| 1901 | 99,502 | +17.4% |
| 1911 | 116,851 | +17.4% |
| 1921 | 140,960 | +20.6% |
| 1931 | 170,073 | +20.7% |
| 1941 | 216,821 | +27.5% |
| 1951 | 276,438 | +27.5% |
| 1961 | 290,065 | +4.9% |
| 1971 | 304,414 | +4.9% |
| 1981 | 294,547 | −3.2% |
| 1991 | 294,723 | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 295,560 | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 309,392 | +4.7% |
| 2021 | 329,991 | +6.7% |
| Source:A Vision of Britain through time | ||
In 1801, thecivil parishes that form the modern borough had a total population of 8,944. This rose slowly throughout the nineteenth century, as the district became built up; reaching 17,192 in the middle of the century. When the railways arrived, the rate ofpopulation growth increased. The population peaked in the 1970s, when industry began to relocate from London.
The most recent2021 United Kingdom census the borough showed a total population of 329,991, up from 309,392 in2011.[16]All major religions are represented, but of those stating a choice, 48.3% described themselves asChristian down from 60.7% in 2011.[16]
In 2001, of the population, 43.47% were in full-time employment and 11.06% in part-time employment – compared to a London average of 42.64% and 8.62%, respectively. Residents were predominantly owner-occupiers, with 32.53% owning their house outright, and a further 42.73% owning with a mortgage. Only 1.42% were inlocal authority housing, with a further 12.74% renting from ahousing association, or other registered social landlord.[17]
A study in 2017 showed that Bromley had the second lowest poverty rate (15%) of any London borough.[18]
The following table shows the ethnic group of respondents in the 2001 and 2011 census in Bromley.
| Ethnic Group | Year | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 est.[19] | 1981 est.[20] | 1991 census[21] | 2001 census[22] | 2011 census[23] | 2021 census[24] | |||||||
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| White: Total | – | 98.1% | 280,764 | 96.4% | 277,028 | 95.3% | 270,666 | 91.59% | 260,870 | 84.32% | 252,295 | 76.5% |
| White:British | – | – | – | – | – | – | 255,618 | 86.49% | 239,478 | 77.40% | 219,493 | 66.5% |
| White:Irish | – | – | – | – | – | – | 4,652 | 1.57% | 4,463 | 1.44% | 4,954 | 1.5% |
| White:Gypsy or Irish Traveller | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 580 | 0.19% | 578 | 0.2% |
| White: Roma | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 551 | 0.2% |
| White:Other | – | – | – | – | – | – | 10,396 | 3.52% | 16,349 | 5.28% | 26,719 | 8.1% |
| Asian or Asian British: Total | – | – | – | – | 6,746 | 2.32% | 9,349 | 3.16% | 16,067 | 5.19% | 27,307 | 8.1% |
| Asian or Asian British:Indian | – | – | – | – | 3,126 | 1.1% | 4,458 | 1.51% | 6,215 | 2.01% | 12,326 | 3.7% |
| Asian or Asian British:Pakistani | – | – | – | – | 379 | 0.1% | 691 | 0.23% | 1,014 | 0.33% | 1,784 | 0.5% |
| Asian or Asian British:Bangladeshi | – | – | – | – | 436 | 0.2% | 868 | 0.29% | 1,265 | 0.41% | 1,748 | 0.5% |
| Asian or Asian British:Chinese | – | – | – | – | 1,160 | 0.4% | 1,799 | 0.61% | 2,768 | 0.89% | 5,075 | 1.5% |
| Asian or Asian British: Other Asian | – | – | – | – | 1,645 | 0.6% | 1,533 | 0.52% | 4,805 | 1.55% | 6,374 | 1.9% |
| Black or Black British: Total | – | – | – | – | 4,548 | 1.56% | 8,614 | 2.91% | 18,686 | 6.04% | 25,149 | 7.6% |
| Black or Black British:African | – | – | – | – | 990 | 3,373 | 1.14% | 9,819 | 3.17% | 13,193 | 4.0% | |
| Black or Black British:Caribbean | – | – | – | – | 2,562 | 4,637 | 1.57% | 6,609 | 2.14% | 8,169 | 2.5% | |
| Black or Black British:Other Black | – | – | – | – | 996 | 604 | 0.20% | 2,258 | 0.73% | 3,787 | 1.1% | |
| Mixed or British Mixed: Total | – | – | – | – | – | – | 5,516 | 1.87% | 10,897 | 3.52% | 17,740 | 5.3% |
| Mixed: White and Black Caribbean | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1,887 | 0.64% | 3,897 | 1.26% | 5,489 | 1.7% |
| Mixed: White and Black African | – | – | – | – | – | – | 577 | 0.20% | 1,335 | 0.43% | 2,431 | 0.7% |
| Mixed: White and Asian | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1,716 | 0.58% | 3,016 | 0.97% | 4,747 | 1.4% |
| Mixed: Other Mixed | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1,336 | 0.45% | 2,649 | 0.86% | 5,073 | 1.5% |
| Other: Total | – | – | – | – | 2,287 | 0.78% | 1,387 | 0.47% | 2,872 | 0.93% | 7,500 | 2.3% |
| Other: Arab | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 870 | 0.28% | 1,203 | 0.4% |
| Other: Any other ethnic group | – | – | – | – | 2,287 | 0.78% | 1,387 | 0.47% | 2,002 | 0.65% | 6,297 | 1.9% |
| Ethnic minority: Total | – | 1.9% | 10,477 | 3.6% | 13,581 | 4.7% | 24,866 | 8.41% | 48,522 | 15.68% | 77,696 | 23.5% |
| Total | – | 100% | 291,241 | 100% | 290,609 | 100% | 295,532 | 100.00% | 309,392 | 100.00% | 329,991 | 100% |
The following shows the religious identity of residents residing in Bromley according to the 2001, 2011 and the 2021 censuses.
| Religion | 2001[25] | 2011[26] | 2021[27] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| Holds religious beliefs | 224,673 | 76.0 | 204,895 | 66.2 | 185,730 | 56.3 |
| Christian | 212,871 | 72.0 | 187,656 | 60.7 | 159,452 | 48.3 |
| Muslim | 4,926 | 1.7 | 7,841 | 2.5 | 10,876 | 3.3 |
| Sikh | 600 | 0.2 | 736 | 0.2 | 1,068 | 0.3 |
| Hindu | 3,350 | 1.1 | 4,987 | 1.6 | 9,644 | 2.9 |
| Buddhist | 953 | 0.3 | 1,580 | 0.5 | 2,100 | 0.6 |
| Jewish | 1,098 | 0.4 | 957 | 0.3 | 966 | 0.3 |
| Other religion | 875 | 0.3 | 1,138 | 0.4 | 1,704 | 0.5 |
| No religion | 48,279 | 16.3 | 80,303 | 26.0 | 122,943 | 37.3 |
| Religion not stated | 22,580 | 7.7 | 24,194 | 7.8 | 21,238 | 6.4 |
| Total population | 295,532 | 100.0 | 309,392 | 100.0 | 329,991 | 100.0 |
Bromley is one of only six London Boroughs[28] not to have at least oneLondon Underground station within its boundaries. However, the borough has many railway stations served byLondon Overground,Thameslink,Southeastern andSouthern. The borough also has several stops on theTramlink network.
Stations operated byLondon Overground (all are also served bySouthern):
National Rail stations:
Tramlink stops:
In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: driving a car or van, 27.4% of all residents aged 16–74; train, 5.1%; bus, minibus or coach, 5.1%; on foot, 4.3%; work mainly at or from home, 4.0%; underground, metro, light rail, tram, 2.3%; passenger in a car or van, 1.5%.[29]
The Borough has several sporting clubs:
The borough is also home to an extensivelibraries service, containing 14 branches,[30] currently operated byGreenwich Leisure Limited under their trademark Better on behalf of Bromley council.
TheBromley Times andBromley News Shopper publish local news in the borough.
London Fire Brigade has four fire stations within the London Borough of Bromley. The borough is the largest in the city: about 150 km2. With just one pumping appliance, Orpington has one of the largest areas to cover in London, measuring 46.7 km2. In 2006/2007, Orpington attended 1,308 incidents. There is also a high volume pump at the station. Beckenham, Bromley and Biggin Hill cover the rest of the borough with four pumping appliances and a hose layer.[35]
In 2006/2007 just under 4000 incidents were attended in the borough. Noticeably, compared to 2005/2006 there was an 11% decrease in special service calls (road traffic collisions, chemical incidents, flooding etc.).[35]
Bromley istwinned with:
The locations a number of notable residents over the years have been lived have been recognised withblue plaques these residents include:[36]
51°20′N0°05′E / 51.333°N 0.083°E /51.333; 0.083
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