| Chadwell Heath | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Chadwell Heath Location withinGreater London | |
| Population | 24,278 (ward,2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | TQ485885 |
| • Charing Cross | 12 mi (19 km) SW |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ROMFORD |
| Postcode district | RM6 |
| Post town | DAGENHAM |
| Postcode district | RM8 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| UK Parliament | |
| London Assembly | |
| 51°34′33″N0°08′38″E / 51.5757°N 0.144°E /51.5757; 0.144 | |
Chadwell Heath is an area inEast London, England. It is split between theLondon Borough of Barking and Dagenham and theLondon Borough of Redbridge, around 2 miles (3.2 km) west ofRomford and 4 miles (6.4 km) east ofIlford, and 12 miles (19 km) north-east ofCharing Cross.
The name 'Chadwell' was first recorded in 1254 asChaudewell and means 'the cold spring'.[2] The name was first applied to a settlement on theBarking (laterIlford) side of the ancient boundary between Dagenham and Barking and it was also known as Chadwell Street,[3] 'Street' having the older meaning of a hamlet.[2] In the 17th century the Blackheath Common in Dagenham parish was renamed Chadwell Heath.[3] As the settlements merged the Chadwell Street name was lost in favour of Chadwell Heath.
The London to ColchesterRoman road led to some early development while much of the rest of the area remained rural.
The railway was constructed through the area from Romford and Ilford and in 1864Chadwell Heath Railway Station was opened.[3] It was the end of the line for both the London tram system and later the electric trolley bus service from Aldgate. The trolley buses turned around at Station Road and Wangey Road.
Suburban growth commenced in 1900 and proceeded rapidly untilWorld War I, increasing after the war.[3]
Chadwell Heath formed a hamlet in the ancient parish ofDagenham, Essex.[3] As Chadwell Heath grew it absorbed the neighbouring hamlet of Chadwell Street in the Chadwell ward of the parish ofBarking.[4] The Barking section of Chadwell Heath became part of the new parish of Ilford in 1888. This becameIlford Urban District in 1894. The Dagenham section became part ofRomford Rural District in 1894. The parish was removed from the rural district and becameDagenham Urban District in 1926. During the 1920s and 1930s, the local government arrangements of the area came under review and various proposals would have merged the two sections of Chadwell Heath into a single district, however this was not acted upon.[5]
Ilford was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1926 and Dagenham was incorporated in 1938. The arrangements of the area were reviewed again in the 1950s and 1960s. The whole area was considered to form part of the Greater London conurbation and in 1957 formed part of the review area of theRoyal Commission on Local Government in Greater London. Following the review, in 1965 theLondon Government Act 1963 abolished the municipal boroughs of Dagenham and Ilford, and transferred their former area from Essex toGreater London, to form part of the newLondon Borough of Barking and theLondon Borough of Redbridge.
The area suffered several bomb hits duringWorld War II. A large parachute mine also exploded causing extensive residential damage in Bennett Road, destroying the school, while a second failed to explode and its parachute became entangled in horse-chestnut trees near Chadwell Heath Station. It did not explode because it was cradled in very soft soil as the result of digging near Hemmings Bakery. It was found by Walter Wiffen, a train guard from Cedar Park Gardens on his way to work at the station early the next morning. He reported it at the police station, which is now the Eva Hart pub, and oversaw the evacuation of Cedar Park Gardens to the bomb shelter at the corner of Wangey Road and the High Road. AV2 rocket landed on Blackbush Avenue killing several people and blowing out windows for half a mile around. Later, the local council replaced the windows with much more modern frames, and the results provided an incongruous look to the older house designs. A heavy anti-aircraft battery was located east of Whalebone Lane North and traces of the concrete emplacements remain today. A V2 Rocket destroyed two houses in Woodlands Avenue and damaged the houses that had been repaired after the landmine that had destroyed the Whalebone Junior school in Bennett Road.
In the2011 census, the combined wards of Chadwell inRedbridge and Chadwell Heath inBarking and Dagenham had a total population of 24,278 people.
The two combined wards had no single ethnic majority, with the largest group beingWhite British people comprising 44.3% of the population. The next largest groups wereIndians (9.5%),Black Africans (9.3%),Black Caribbeans (5.7%),Bangladeshis (5.6%),Pakistanis (5.5%) andOther Whites (5.2%).[6][7]
Chadwell Heath is split between the London Boroughs ofRedbridge andBarking & Dagenham. Most of the major buildings, such as the local school and former police station lie in theLondon Borough of Redbridge.Royal Mail includes Chadwell Heath as part of theRM6 postcode district and the Post Town ofRomford,.[8]
The area has 3 allotments: one adjacent to St Chad's Park on Alexandra Road, the other on Chadwell Heath Lane, and the third in Little Heath next to the Eastern Avenue/A12.
The local school is Chadwell Heath Academy, but there are many other large schools nearby, such asMayfield School and Chadwell Heath Primary School.
Chadwell Heath is served byLondon Buses and theElizabeth Line atChadwell Heath Railway Station. London Buses routes that serve Chadwell Heath are the 62 from Marks Gate 'Billet Road' to Barking 'Gascoigne Estate'; 86 from Romford Station to Stratford Station; 173 from King George Hospital 'Goodmayes' to Beckton Station; 362 from King George Hospital 'Goodmayes' to Grange Hill Station; 368 from Chadwell Heath 'Police Station' to Barking 'Harts Lane' and night busN86 from Stratford Station to Harold Hill 'Dagnam Park Square'.[9]
Eva Hart (died 1996) lived in Chadwell Heath for a large part of her life. She was one of the few people who survived thesinking of the Titanic.
The former police station at 1128 High Road Chadwell Heath ("Police" can still be seen on thefrieze of the building) was renovated and converted into a pub, and named after her.
The local park is St Chad's Park, a 1/4km2 sized field lined with trees. It is the oldest park in Barking and Dagenham, being laid in 1830. It contains an outdoor gym for public use.[citation needed]
There is anArt Deco former cinema on Chadwell Heath High Road, built in May 1934. It was originally called theEmbassy Cinema; later it became part of theGaumont British Circuit. During the late 1960s, it was converted into a Bingo Hall - known to many locals as theMecca Bingo Hall. In August 2017, the building was listed as anAsset of Community Value by the 'Chadwell Heath South Residents' Association'.[10] The premises currently [when?] house Mayfair Venue, an events centre.
The Roman Catholic Church of St Bede is on Bishops Avenue.[citation needed]St Chad's Church (Church of England) stands on St Chad's Road. Chadwell Heath has 2baptist churches.[citation needed] Other churches include theUnited Reformed Church (URC), and the Brethren Assembly in Wangey Road.[citation needed]
West Ham United'straining ground was located in the area until late 2015. On 10 December 2015,Slaven Bilic, the then manager of West Ham, announced that from the 14 December the club would be moving from the old training ground (at Saville Road) to the new training ground at nearbyRush Green, London.[citation needed]Chadwell Heath is also home to St.Chad's Bowling Club. In 2023 it became the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham's sole surviving outdoor bowling club. Situated in St. Chad's Park the bowling club was founded well over 60 years ago.
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