| Leyton | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 High Road, Leyton | |
  Leyton Location withinGreater London | |
| Population | 14,184 (2011 Census. Ward)[1] |
| OS grid reference | TQ375865 |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LONDON |
| Postcode district | E10, E15, E20 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| UK Parliament | |
| London Assembly | |
| 51°34′12″N0°00′54″W / 51.570°N 0.015°W /51.570; -0.015 | |
Leyton (/ˈleɪtən/LAY-tən) is a town inEast London, England, within theLondon Borough of Waltham Forest. It bordersWalthamstow to the north,Leytonstone to the east, andStratford to the south, withClapton,Hackney Wick andHomerton, across theRiver Lea, to the west. The area includesNew Spitalfields Market,Leyton Orient Football Club, as well as part of theQueen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The town consists largely ofterraced houses built between 1870 and 1910, interspersed with some modern housing estates. It is 6.2 miles (10 km) north-east ofCharing Cross.
It was historically part of theancient parish ofLeyton St Mary in theBecontree hundred and part of theancient county ofEssex. The town expanded rapidly in the late 19th century, forming part of theconurbation ofLondon and becoming asuburb, similar to much of south-west Essex. It became part of theMetropolitan Police District in 1839 and has been part of theLondon postal district since its inception in 1856. The parish became anurban district in 1894 and gainedmunicipal borough status in 1926. In 1965, it merged with the neighbouring municipal boroughs ofWalthamstow andChingford to form theLondon Borough of Waltham Forest, alocal government district ofGreater London.[2]
The town has become one of the mostethnically diverse areas in England, with 69 per cent of residents belonging to a non-British ethnic background. Once a traditional, working class area, it is undergoing large-scale regeneration andgentrification, with large numbers of young professionals moving into the area.[citation needed]
Paleolithic implements and fossil bones show that early man hunted in Leyton. A Roman cemetery and the foundations of aRoman villa have been found here. FromAnglo-Saxon times, Leyton has been part of the County ofEssex. The name means "settlement (tun) on the River Lea" and was also known until 1921 as "Low Leyton".[2] In theDomesday Book, the name is rendered asLeintun. at which time the population was 43.
The ancient parish church ofSt Mary the Virgin was largely rebuilt in the 17th century.[3] The parish of Leyton also includedLeytonstone. The old civil parish was formed into an Urban District within Essex in 1894 and it gained the status of Municipal Borough in 1926. The parish and urban district were officially known as Low Leyton until 1921.[4] In 1965, theMunicipal Borough of Leyton was abolished and was combined with that ofWalthamstow andChingford to form the London Borough of Waltham Forest, within the new county ofGreater London.[5] Although Leyton did not become officially part of London until 1965, the borough formed part of London's built-up area and had been part of theLondon postal district since its inception in 1856 and theMetropolitan Police District since 1839.
The main route through the town is the High Road, which forms part of the ancient route toWaltham Abbey. At the top end of the High Road is a crossroads with Lea Bridge Road and Hoe Street. This junction and the surrounding district is known asBakers Arms, named after thepublic house which has now closed down. The pub was named in honour of the almshouses on Lea Bridge Road built in 1857 by the London Master Bakers' Benevolent Institution.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, Leyton was a "pretty retiring place from London" for wealthy merchants and bankers; in 1766 there were said to be 50 or 60 gentlemen with houses in the parish. Leyton's development from an agricultural community to an industrial and residentialsuburb was given impetus by the arrival of the railway.[2] First atLea Bridge Station in 1840, then at Low Leyton in 1856 (nowLeyton Underground).[6] FinallyLeyton Midland Road opened in 1894, after an elevated line had been built on brick arches across the already developed streets.[7] However, not all the green spaces were lost, 200 acres (81 ha) ofEpping Forest within Leyton's borders were preserved by theEpping Forest Act 1878. In 1897 Leyton Urban District Council purchased the land for a formal park close to thetown hall; it opened in 1903 as Coronation Gardens, named after thecoronation ofKing Edward VII.[8] In 1905, the "Lammas land",common pasture land onLeyton Marshes, was purchased by the council for use as a recreation ground.[6]
InWorld War I, about 1,300 houses were damaged byZeppelin raids.[2] By the 1920s, it had become a built-up and thriving urban industrial area known for manufacturing neckties and for its Thermos factory. During theBlitz ofWorld War II, Leyton suffered as a target because of its proximity to theLondon Docks andTemple Mills rail yard. The yard (named after an ancient mill owned by theKnights Templar[3]) is now reduced in size as part of it has become a retail park 'Leyton Mills', whilst the rest has been renovated to serve as a depot for high-speedEurostar trains.
After World War Two, Leyton suffered from large-scaleindustrial decline in the second half of the 20th century.[9] But, like much of east London, Leyton, which also borders theQueen Elizabeth Olympic Park, has benefited from significant regeneration projects over the past decade. Parks have been spruced up, some new small parks and gardens created and several tower blocks have been demolished. The millennium was marked with a clock tower in the Lea Bridge Rd area and a major piece of street art at Baker's Arms. And, most recently, in the build-up to the Olympics, Waltham Forest Borough Council spent £475,000[10] restoring 41 shopfronts on the part of Leyton High Road closest to the2012 London Olympic Games site. The Olympics authority also funded the smartening up of pavements and street furniture.
Leyton is in theLower Lea Valley, the river forming its western boundary. The area rises from low-lying marshland along theriver Lea to over 90 feet atWhipps Cross on the southern edge ofEpping Forest. Leyton is partially bisected by theA12 (M11 link road, built in the 1990s), with most of the district lying on the north-west side of this busy traffic artery through east London.
The High Road Leyton bridge crossing the A12 offers some of the best views in London of the Olympic Park, which also borders the district, as well as of skyscrapers further west. It borders Walthamstow along Lea Bridge Road and areas of the London Borough of Hackney via the River Lea.
Leyton, which comprises three electoral wards with a total population of 42,061, is a diverse district. Between 61 and 69 per cent of its residents are either Black, Asian, or from an ethnic minority, according to theLondon Borough of Waltham Forest profile reports for theLeyton (ward),[11] Grove Green[12] andLea Bridge (ward)[13] wards. This compares to 55.1% in the Borough as a whole, according to the2011 United Kingdom census. Within these groups, there are many people whose origins are fromRussia,North Africa,Ghana,Nigeria,Jamaica,Ireland,Portugal,Cyprus, andItaly as well as newer arrivals fromSouth Africa,Bosnia,Serbia, andPoland. Moreover, more than half the population is under the age of 30, according to the most recent census. It is also highly multi-cultural, with just 34% of the population recorded as White British, the lowest White British proportion in Waltham Forest.
Once a more traditional, working class district, it has become much more gentrified and expensive in recent years. A number of articles have referenced the large numbers of young professionals and other university-educated people moving into Leyton, and its subsequentgentrification and location as a current 'hot spot' to buy in. The area was referenced in the July 2015 edition ofVogue (magazine), which said: "All eyes are on Leyton and Stratford [right now]." More widely in Waltham Forest, the borough has seen an influx of those who cannot afford higher house prices or rent in neighbouring Hackney as well as areas such asBethnal Green andBow in the nearbyLondon Borough of Tower Hamlets. Related to this,Waltham Forest has been one of the fastest rising boroughs in terms of house prices since 2013.
TheNew Spitalfields Market, relocated in 1991 from theOld Spitalfields market, is the UK's leading horticultural market specialising in exotic fruit and vegetables.
There are two main shopping areas in the district, located at opposite ends of the High Road. There is a large retail park at Leyton Mills, next to the station. This has a large, 24-hourAsda store, aB&Q store and a selection of furniture and electrical stores.[14] At the north end of the town, Baker's Arms has a more traditional selection of shops lining Lea Bridge Road and the High Road, including a branch ofTesco.
The newly built local police station is at Boreham Close near Leyton Midland Road station. It moved from Francis Road in December 2012.
Restaurants reflect the diversity of Leyton's population, with cuisines on offer including Turkish, Portuguese, Polish, Indian, Mauritian, Somali and Cypriot. There are also several fast-food takeaway shops, cafes and bakeries.
Leyton lies on the eastern side of theHackney Marshes, one of the largest areas of open land in London. A bridge to the marshes crosses the Orient Way road and railway tracks from Leyton Jubilee Park, which was created as a merger of two previously separate playing fields to mark the 60th anniversary of the reign ofQueen Elizabeth II.
A major focal point in the centre of Leyton is Coronation Gardens, a park built in 1902 to commemorate the coronation that year ofKing Edward VII. It includes a fountain, landscaped gardens, a bandstand and a children's maze.
On the High Road, near the site of the Bakers Arms, there is also a municipal gym and Leyton Leisure Centre swimming pool, which was formerly called the Leyton Leisure Lagoon and was reopened in October 2013 following a period of renovation.
There are two public libraries in Leyton. One on the High Road next door to the former Town Hall, and the other on Lea Bridge Road which has been recently modernised to offer extensive computer facilities.
The London Borough of Waltham Forest also operates Brooks Farm, acity farm in Skelton Lane Park, near Leyton Midland Road station. It is free to visitors and the livestock include pigs, sheep, cows, horses andllamas.
A recent regeneration of Ive Farm Fields in 2018 has brought a host of new facilities to the area, with floodlit sports pitches, a running track, volleyball courts and a series of walking routes.[15] In memory of those who lost their lives in Waltham Forest during the Covid pandemic, a memorial plaque and tree has been placed in Jubilee Park as a tribute.
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The majority of homes in the area consists of Victorian and Edwardian terraces built between 1870 and 1910 during Leyton's phase of rapid development from what had been a small village at the beginning of the 1800s. These properties range in size from two- to seven-bedroom houses. As a result, the area is popular with families.
Large-scale redevelopment and inner city regeneration has been underway in Leyton for many years, as is also the case in the neighbouring areas ofHackney,Bow, Clapton andStratford. Leyton's skyline is comparatively low-rise compared to other districts of east London. High-rise estates once dominated the horizon, but the towers were unpopular with many residents and considered to be poorly constructed. TheOliver Close andCathall Road estates were the first to be completely redeveloped by demolition and rebuilding with the help of the multimillion-poundWaltham Forest Housing Action Trust scheme during the early 2000s. The redevelopment of the problematic Avenue Road Estate followed.
Demolition of the last large high-rise estate in the area, theBeaumont Road Estate, began in 2006. It has since been almost completely redeveloped. The only remaining 20-storey tower block left in Waltham Forest – from a 1970s peak of 20 across the borough – is the Northwood Tower in Walthamstow. However, smaller 1960s-built blocks, such the 10-storey Slade Tower in the Leyton Grange estate, still dot the area. A host of modern apartment buildings have also been built since the late 1990s, including the flats built at each end of Leyton Orient Football Club's Brisbane Road stadium. There is now further development taking place opposite Coronation Gardens and the Stadium with 750 new homes set to be built by 2027, known as The Score Centre.[16]
The town is the home to thefootball club,Leyton Orient F.C., viewed by many residents as one of the most important parts of Leyton's identity. Orient came to Brisbane Road, Leyton in 1936 fromClapton.[2] The stadium has over time been re-constructed and changed its name from Leyton Stadium to theMatchroom Stadium and is now the Gaughan Group Stadium. Although they reached the top flight of English football when promoted to theFootball League First Division in 1962, Orient currently play in League One.[17]
Leyton Orient's future in the heart of Leyton is uncertain. In October 2011, Orient submitted a request to the Football League to move into and become tenants of the London 2012 Olympic Stadium, following complaints over West Ham United being given a 99-year lease of the stadium. Orient said that the stadium was too close to their stadium, which they said would breach FA rules. There has also been talk[by whom?] of the club moving into the 15,000 seater Riverbank Arena.[citation needed]
Leyton F.C. (between 1975 and 1992 called "Leyton Wingate") was founded in 1868, and until January 2011 played in theIsthmian League Division One North at theLeyton Stadium in Lea Bridge Road.[18] Leyton FC amalgamated with Walthamstow Pennant FC, in 1995 and renamed as Leyton Pennant FC. In 1994, they changed their name again to Waltham Forest FC.
Leyton also has a cricket pitch and pavilion, which was the former home ofEssex County Cricket Club. In 1886, the club purchasedLeyton Cricket Ground in the High Road, which became their headquarters until 1933;[2] however, they continued to play at Leyton until 1977. The pavilion (a Grade II listed building[19]) still stands today as part of Leyton Youth Centre.
Wapping Hockey Club and East London Hockey Club arefield hockey clubs that both play at theLee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, and compete in theWomen's England Hockey League and theLondon Hockey League.[20][21][22][23]
TheLee Valley Ice Centre is home to the Lea Valley Lions Ice Hockey Club who play in theEnglish National Ice Hockey League.[24]
Leyton borders the Olympic Park for the2012 Olympic Games.[25] The training facilities at the Waltham Forest Pool & Track were used by Olympians to prepare for the Games.
Also in Leyton is theLee Valley VeloPark, which has a 6,000-seat indoor velodrome for track cycling and a 6,000-seat outdoor BMX racing track. The Lee Valley Tennis and Hockey centres at Eton Manor are also due to open to the public in late 2013. The London Legacy Development Corporation said this North Park area, the first section of the Olympic Park to reopen to the public after the 2012 Games, will "be a valuable area of open green space for the neighbouring communities" and "a place for jogging, kickabouts, children’s play and family picnics".[citation needed]
Leyton has a number of secondary schools, includingGeorge Mitchell School,Lammas School andNorlington School. There is also a college,Leyton Sixth Form College, which is the secondsixth form college inSouthern England to get a licence,[26] and the best college in London for sport.[27]
Leyton is on theCentral line ofLondon Underground, with thestation located at the southern end of the High Road. There is aLondon Overground station atMidland Road on theGospel Oak to Barking line.
Leyton is served by a number of London bus routes day and night.[28][29]
Central London may be reached by bicycle from Lea Bridge Road following the London Cycle Network Route 9 through Hackney and Shoreditch.[30]
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