Upminster

Hornchurch and Upminster constituency in Greater London

The town forms part of the Hornchurch and Upminster UK Parliament constituency, and is covered by the Havering wards of Upminster and Cranham. The current MP is Julia Lopez. Each ward elects three councillors to Havering London Borough Council. All six councillors elected in 2010 for the two wards were the Upminster and Cranham Residents' Association candidates[14][15] and the area is unusual in that the residents' association is strongly active.[16] From 1945 to 1974 Upminster formed part of the Hornchurch constituency and from 1974 to 2010 it formed part of the Upminster constituency. Upminster is within the Havering and Redbridge London Assembly constituency.[16]

Map of Upminster and environs

Upminster rises to about 200 feet (61 m) above sea level to the north and is about 50 feet (15 m) above sea level to the south.[5] It rests on a layer of loam, above sand and gravel in the south and London Clay to the north. It is bounded in the west by the River Ingrebourne and there is a stream running east–west, just north of Corbets Tey that has been dammed to form a lake.[5] It has formed part of the continuously built-up area of London since the 1930s[17] and is contiguous with Cranham to the east and Hornchurch to the west. To the north and south there is open land that forms part of the Metropolitan Green Belt and there are open spaces formed by Upminster Golf Club and Upminster Hall Playing Field to the north, Upminster Park and Clock House Gardens to the south, and the Ingrebourne Valley linear park to the south west. The town is effectively divided into north and south parts by the railway line. The north is predominantly residential, with the southern part containing the main shopping area. Further south it becomes predominantly residential again. Upminster is a post town in the RM postcode area; it forms a long protrusion over the M25 motorway and additionally includes North Ockendon, also in Havering, and Bulphan in Thurrock.[18]

The Havering committee area for Upminster is defined as the wards of Upminster and Cranham.[21] Demographic data is produced by the Office for National Statistics for these wards. All of Upminster is contained within these wards, however they also cover the connected settlement of Cranham and the rural outlier of North Ockendon. In 2001 the population of Upminster ward was 12,674[19] and Cranham ward was 12,242,[20] giving a total population of 25,098. 80.95% in Upminster and 81.73% in Cranham report their religion as Christian, compared to 76.13% for Havering, 58.23% in London and 71.74% in England. 10.08% in Upminster and 10.46% in Cranham report having no religion, compared to 13.18% in Havering, 15.76% in London and 14.59% in England.[19][20] With a black and minority ethnic population of 3% in 2001, Cranham and Upminster wards have the lowest Simpson index for ethnic diversity in London.[22] The level of home ownership is atypically high compared to the rest of London and England, with over 90% of housing tenure under owner-occupation in both wards.[23][24] The Upminster ward has one of the lowest levels of deprivation in London.[25]

The 2011 census showed that the population was 96% white (92% British, 2% Other, 2% Irish). Indian, Chinese and Black African were 1% each. 75% of the population is Christian, the highest in London.[26]

Upminster is identified in the London Plan as a local district centre with 37,000 square metres (400,000 sq ft) of commercial floorspace.[27] It is not considered a significant commercial office location.[27] Within Havering, it is identified as one of seven town centres in the borough,[28] with a retail area extending along Station Road, St Mary's Lane and Corbets Tey Road.[29] The unit sizes are mostly small with the largest outlets the Roomes Fashion and Home department store, the Roomes Furniture and Interiors furniture store, and the Aldi, M&S Simply Food and Waitrose supermarkets.

Upminster station southern entrance. There is another to the west.

The town is served by Upminster station on the London, Tilbury and Southend line and the London Underground, in London fare zone 6.[30] The western part of the town is also served by Upminster Bridge tube station. Upminster and Upminster Bridge are on the District line of the London Underground, with services to Richmond, Ealing Broadway and Wimbledon via central London. The station at Upminster is served by National Rail operator c2c who provide services to Fenchurch Street via West Ham; Shoeburyness via Basildon; and Southend via Chafford Hundred.[31] London Overground operate services to Romford via Emerson Park.[32] There are Transport for London bus services to Hornchurch, Romford, North Ockendon, Lakeside Shopping Centre and Cranham.[33] To the south of Upminster is Damyns Hall Aerodrome. The A127 road to the north is the main radial artery to central London, with the A124 road terminating in the town. The M25 motorway is located about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to the east of the town centre.

Upminster Windmill is located in a small open space called Windmill Field.

Havering Council's urban strategy recognises that nearby Hornchurch is the main cultural hub of the borough with a large theatre and arts spaces, and Romford offers the largest regional concentration of entertainment facilities.[34] Within Upminster is New Windmill Hall, a flexible entertainment space, built in 1968, which holds up to 300 people.[35] Upminster forms part of the tourism strategy for the borough.[36] It is the location of Upminster Windmill, one of the few remaining mills in Greater London and is Grade II* listed.[37] There is also the Tithe Barn Museum, containing artifacts of domestic and agricultural use. In the west of Upminster is Hornchurch Stadium, which is the home ground of A.F.C. Hornchurch. Upminster is often associated with Ian Dury and his 1981 album Lord Upminster is named after the town.[38]

• List of people from Havering
• List of schools in Havering

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Upminster.

• Havering London Borough Council: A history of Upminster Archived 23 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine
• Essex walks - Upminster