Lewisham () is a

London borough The London boroughs are the 32 local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London; each is governed by a London borough council. The present London boroughs were all created at ...

in south-east

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

; it forms part of

Inner London Inner London is the name for the group of London boroughs which form the interior part of Greater London and are surrounded by Outer London. With its origins in the bills of mortality, it became fixed as an area for statistics in 1847 and was u ...

. The principal settlement of the borough is

Lewisham Lewisham () is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in the London Plan as one of ...

. The local authority is

Lewisham London Borough Council Lewisham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Lewisham in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. The council is unusual in that its executi ...

, based in

Catford Catford is a district in south east London, England, and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is southwest of Lewisham itself, mostly in the Rushey Green and Catford South wards. The population of Catford, includ ...

. The

Prime Meridian A prime meridian is an arbitrary meridian (a line of longitude) in a geographic coordinate system at which longitude is defined to be 0°. Together, a prime meridian and its anti-meridian (the 180th meridian in a 360°-system) form a great ...

passes through Lewisham. Blackheath,

Goldsmiths, University of London Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wo ...

and Millwall F.C. are located within the borough.

History

The borough was formed in 1965, by the

London Government Act 1963 The London Government Act 1963 (c. 33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which created Greater London and a new local government structure within it. The Act significantly reduced the number of local government districts in the ...

, as an amalgamation of the former area of the

Metropolitan Borough of Lewisham The Metropolitan Borough of Lewisham was a Metropolitan borough in the County of London between 1900 and 1965, when it became part of the London Borough of Lewisham along with the Metropolitan Borough of Deptford. History The borough was formed b ...

and the Metropolitan Borough of Deptford, which had been created in 1900 as divisions of the

County of London The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government A ...

. Minor boundary changes have occurred since its creation. The most significant amendments were made in 1996, when the former area of the Royal Docks in

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, within the London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century to the late 19th it was home ...

was transferred from the

London Borough of Greenwich The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metropolitan Borough ...

. The metropolitan borough of Lewisham corresponded to the ancient parishes of Lee and Lewisham and the borough of Deptford corresponded to the parish of Deptford St Paul, including Hatcham. Prior to becoming part of the County of London in 1889, Hatcham was part of Surrey and the rest was part of Kent.

Geography

The borough is surrounded by the

Royal Borough of Greenwich The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metropolitan Borough ...

to the east (where the border runs between

and

Horn Park Horn Park is an area of south east London south west of Eltham. It is located southeast of Charing Cross on the southwest edge of the Royal Borough of Greenwich and borders both the London Borough of Lewisham and the London Borough of Br ...

), the London Borough of Bromley to the south (where the border runs between Horn Park and

Crystal Palace Park Crystal Palace Park is a Victorian pleasure ground In English gardening history, the pleasure ground or pleasure garden was the parts of a large garden designed for the use of the owners, as opposed to the kitchen garden and the wider park ...

), and the

London Borough of Southwark The London Borough of Southwark ( ) in South London forms part of Inner London and is connected by bridges across the River Thames to the City of London and London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It was created in 1965 when three smaller council areas ...

to the west ( where the border runs between Crystal Palace Park and

Rotherhithe Rotherhithe () is a district of south-east London, England, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping, Shadwell and Limehouse on the north bank, as well as the Isle of D ...

). The

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

forms a short section of northern boundary with the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Deptford Creek, Pool River,

River Quaggy The River Quaggy (often the Quaggy River or simply Quaggy) is a river, in length, passing through the south-east London boroughs of Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham. In its lower reaches it is an urban river, in its upper reaches further from L ...

and River Ravensbourne pass through the borough. Major landmarks include All Saints Church in Blackheath, the Citibank Tower in

Dietrich Bonhoeffer Dietrich Bonhoeffer (; 4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and anti-Nazi dissident who was a key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have ...

Church (Sydenham's German Church, technically located in Forest Hill) and the

Horniman Museum The Horniman Museum and Gardens is a museum in Forest Hill, London, England. Commissioned in 1898, it opened in 1901 and was designed by Charles Harrison Townsend in the Modern Style. It has displays of anthropology, natural history and musical ...

in Forest Hill. Millwall F.C. are based in the borough, their stadium The Den being located in South Bermondsey.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, Lewisham has a population of 275,885, is 53% white and 47% , and 43% of households are owner-occupiers. A 2017 report b
Trust for London
and th
New Policy Institute
found that Lewisham has a poverty rate of 26%, close to the London-wide figure of 27%.

Ethnicity

Religion

The following table shows the religious identity of residents residing in Lewisham according to 2021 census results

Civic affairs

Motto

The motto of the borough is " Salus Populi Suprema Lex", which means (roughly translated) "The welfare of the people s/nowiki> the highest law."

Administration

The current

Chief Executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

is Kim Wright. The borough is administered by the four directorates of the council: Children and Young People, Community Services, Customer Services, and Resources & Regeneration.

Twinning

The borough is twinned with the following towns: *

Charlottenburg Charlottenburg () is a locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. Established as a town in 1705 and named after Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Queen consort of Prussia, it is best known for Charlottenburg Palace, the ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Antony, Hauts-de-Seine Antony () is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France, from the centre of Paris. Antony is a subprefecture of the Hauts-de-Seine department and the seat of the arrondissement of Antony. Watered by the Bièvre, a tributary of the ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Matagalpa Matagalpa () is a city in Nicaragua which is the capital of the department of Matagalpa. The city has a population of 111,258 (2021 estimate),Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...

The borough has also signed a "friendship link" with

Ekurhuleni The City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality is a metropolitan municipality that forms the local government of the East Rand region of Gauteng. The municipality itself is a large suburban region east of Johannesburg. The name ''Ekurhuleni'' m ...

, near

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

Freedom of the Borough

The honour of Freedom of the Borough has been awarded to: * Alan Milner Smith, OBE, Town Clerk (9 December 1971) * Frederick William Winslade,

Esq. Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman a ...

, JP, appointed OBE for services to local government in Lewisham and Camberwell New Year Honours 1967 and

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

for services to local government in Lewisham Birthday Honours 1978(28 November 1975) * Daisy Amelia Elizabeth Hurren (10 October 1985) * Alfred Anderson Hawkins (30 March 1990) * The Most Reverend Desmond Tutu (4 May 1990) *

Terry Waite Terence Hardy Waite (born 31 May 1939) is an English humanitarian and author. Waite was the Assistant for Anglican Communion Affairs for the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie, in the 1980s. As an envoy for the Church of England, he ...

(16 November 1992) * The Reverend Sybil Theodora Phoenix, MBE, MS edal of Service, Co-operative Republic of Guyana(8 March 1996) * Dame Cicely Saunders, OM, DBE (10 March 2000) * James Leslie Hicks ('Les') Eytle (8 June 2007) * Dame Erica Pienaar (2013) * Baroness (Doreen) Lawrence of Clarendon OBE, (2014) * Dame

Joan Ruddock Dame Joan Mary Ruddock, (née Anthony; born 28 December 1943) is a British Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Lewisham Deptford from 1987 to 2015. Ruddock was Minister of State for Energy at the Departmen ...

(2016) *

Bridget Prentice Bridget Theresa Prentice (' Corr; born 28 December 1952) is a British politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Lewisham East from 1992 to 2010. She was married to the Labour MP Gordon Prentice from 1975 until their divorce in 2000. ...

(2016)

Politics

Wards

The London Borough of Lewisham is divided into 18 wards, first used in the 2002 elections, they are: * Bellingham * Blackheath * Brockley *

* Crofton Park *

Downham Downham is a district of south-east London, England, within the London Borough of Lewisham. It borders the London Borough of Bromley, and is located north of Bromley and south of Catford. Downham was named in honour of Lord Downham, who was ...

* Evelyn * Forest Hill * Grove Park *

Ladywell Ladywell is a locale in Lewisham in South East London, England, and a ward in the London Borough of Lewisham between Brockley, Crofton Park and Lewisham proper. It has ample green space including Ladywell Fields and Hilly Fields which borders ...

Lee Green Lee, also known as Lee Green, is an area of South East London, England, straddling the border of the London Borough of Lewisham and the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is located northwest of Eltham and southeast of Lewisham. It is within the ...

Central *

New Cross New Cross is an area in south east London, England, south-east of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Lewisham and the SE14 postcode district. New Cross is near St Johns, Telegraph Hill, Nunhead, Peckham, Brockley, Deptford and Greenwic ...

* Perry Vale * Rushey Green * Sydenham * Telegraph Hill * Whitefoot New wards will be adopted at the 2022 election.

Previous wards

Previously the borough was divided into 26 wards and 6 areas, used for elections from 1978 to 1998. Some of these former wards had the same names as the present wards, but their borders were different. When the wards were revised for 2002, some became larger, absorbing parts of other previous wards, the number of wards changed from 26 to 18. The previous wards and areas used from 1978 to 1998 were:

London Borough Council

Lewisham's council, unlike most English councils, is led by a directly elected mayor. The first mayoral election was in 2002 and was won by the Labour Party candidate, Steve Bullock, who was re-elected in 2006, 2010 and 2014. Following the 2018 council elections, there are 54 Labour Party councillors and none for other parties. The current mayor is Damien Egan.

Westminster Parliament

The borough includes the constituencies of Lewisham Deptford, Lewisham West and Penge and

Lewisham East Lewisham East is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since the by-election on 14 June 2018 by Janet Daby of the Labour Party. History Lewisham East was created for the 1918 general election. ...

. These are the MPs who have represented constituencies covered by the borough since its formation in 1964. Note that constituencies change their boundaries over time, even where names remain the same.

Education

The London's Poverty Profile, a report by Trust for London and the New Policy Institute, found that 42% of 19-year-olds in Lewisham lack level 3 qualifications. This is the 3rd worst rate out of 32 boroughs. In 2018, Lewisham had the third highest rate of exclusions of pupils from secondary schools of any area in England.

Transport

Lewisham station Lewisham is a National Rail and Docklands Light Railway station in Lewisham, south-east London which first opened in 1849. On the National Rail network it is measured from and is operated by Southeastern.SoutheasternStation facilities: Lewish ...

, once known as Lewisham Junction, is located at the junction of the lines to Dartford and Hayes, and is also the terminus of the southern branch of the

Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated light metro system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London, England and provides a direct connection between London's two major financial districts, Canary Wharf and the City of Lo ...

. The East London Line (on the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The ...

network) terminated at

and New Cross Gate until December 2007. An extension to this line opened on 23 May 2010, serving Brockley, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill, and Sydenham. This forms part of the

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a large part of Greater London as w ...

network. The

South London Line The South London line is a railway line in inner south London, England. The initial passenger service on the route was established by the London, Brighton & South Coast Railway on 1 May 1867 when the central London terminal stations of Victoria ...

runs along the extreme North West of the borough, at present there are no stations that are within the borough. There is a proposal for a new station at providing a link to

Clapham Junction Clapham Junction is an urban locality around Clapham Junction railway station in London, England. Despite its name, it is not located in Clapham, but forms the commercial centre of Battersea. Clapham Junction was a scene of disturbances during ...

Railway stations

DLR stations

* Deptford Bridge – on the border between Lewisham and Greenwich. * Elverson Road – on the border between Lewisham and Greenwich. *

London Underground

There are no Tube stations currently in the borough, as the East London Line has been part of London Overground since 2006. However, an extension of the

Bakerloo line The Bakerloo line () is a London Underground line that goes from in suburban north-west London to in south London, via the West End. Printed in brown on the Tube map, it serves 25 stations, 15 of which are underground, over . It runs partly ...

beyond

Elephant & Castle The Elephant and Castle is an area around a major road junction in London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground stati ...

to Lewisham and Hayes has been approved.

Cycling

Quietway one links Lewisham to Greenwich and in toward central London One Cycle Superhighways will operate through Lewisham in the future. *CS4 – Will along Deptford's Evelyn Street ( A200). Will operate between Greenwich and Tower Bridge. Construction will start in Summer 2019

Main roads

* A2 from the border with Old Kent Road in the west to Kidbrooke in the east. * A20 from New Cross to the border with

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The three wards of E ...

in the east. * A21 from Lewisham to the border with

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, c ...

in the south. * A202 from New Cross Gate to the border with Peckham in the west. * A205 (South Circular Road) passes through the centre of the borough from the border with

Dulwich Dulwich (; ) is an area in south London, England. The settlement is mostly in the London Borough of Southwark, with parts in the London Borough of Lambeth, and consists of Dulwich Village, East Dulwich, West Dulwich, and the Southwark half ...

in the west to Eltham in the east. Except for a short section in Lee as it approaches Eltham, it is purely a one-lane-each-way road.

Travel to work

In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: train, 18.6% of all residents aged 16–74; driving a car or van, 11.2%; bus, minibus or coach, 11.2%; underground, metro, light rail, tram, 9.7%; on foot, 4.3%; work mainly at or from home, 2.8%; bicycle, 2.6%. 48% of households in the borough are car free, compared to 42% across Greater London.2011 Census, Car or Van Availability (QS416EW)

Culture

Lewisham wo
London Borough of Culture for 2020
The prestigious award, is
a major initiative launched by the Mayor of London
in June 2017, will see Lewisham receive £1.35 million to stage an ambitious, year-long programme of cultural events celebrating the wealth of creative talent in the borough and delivering lasting social change.

Sport and leisure

Millwall Football Club was originally formed in 1885, in

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, eas ...

on the Isle of Dogs, East London. They retained the name, even though they moved across the river to

, South London in 1910. In 1993 they moved to their current stadium, The Den which is in

Bermondsey Bermondsey () is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham ...

, but falls under the Borough of Lewisham. The Borough has a Non-League football club Lewisham Borough Football Club, who play at the Ladywell Arena,

References

External links

Lewisham London Borough Council
{{DEFAULTSORT:London Borough of Lewisham

1965 establishments in the United Kingdom