The River Rom, also known as the River Beam below its confluence with the Ravensbourne, is a tributary of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

in England that flows through east

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

suburbs surrounding the metropolitan centre of

Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romford ...

, part of it forming a section of the boundary between the London boroughs of

Barking and Dagenham The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham () is a London borough in East London. It lies around 9 miles (14.4 km) east of Central London. It is an Outer London borough and the south is within the London Riverside section of the Thames Ga ...

and

Havering The London Borough of Havering () in East London, England, forms part of Outer London. It has a population of 259,552 inhabitants; the principal town is Romford, while other communities are Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row and Rainham, London ...

. The Rom is

culvert A culvert is a structure that channels water past an obstacle or to a subterranean waterway. Typically embedded so as to be surrounded by soil, a culvert may be made from a pipe, reinforced concrete or other material. In the United Kingdom ...

ed for a brief midsection as it passes through the centre of Romford.

Description

Starting in

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, the Rom is the continuation of the Bourne Brook after Bournebridge,

Stapleford Abbotts Stapleford Abbotts is a village and civil parish in the Epping Forest district of Essex, approximately SW of Ongar, N of Romford and SSE of Epping. The whole parish is within the M25 motorway. The village covers and had a population of 959 i ...

in the

Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the London ...

district of Essex which rises northeast at Spring Farm by Stapleford Abbots Golf Course in the Essex

Borough of Brentwood The Borough of Brentwood is a local government district and borough in Essex in the East of England. History and geography The borough is named after its main town of Brentwood. There are still large areas of woodland including Shenfield C ...

. Taking an almost straight south-flowing course, the Rom passes under the

London Loop The London Outer Orbital Path — more usually the "London LOOP" — is a 150-mile (242 km) signed walk along public footpaths, and through parks, woods and fields around the edge of Outer London, England, described as "the M25 ...

and experiences a drop of in elevation before it enters the ringroad enclosed town centre of Romford where it becomes underground in a

, a man-made tunnel, at 16m AOD. To the south of the town centre it regains green banks and adjoins the retail park on Rom Valley Way, passes under Roneo Corner, divides two residential estates at 8m AOD and enters

Eastbrookend Country Park Eastbrookend Country Park is an 84-hectare park and Local Nature Reserve in Dagenham in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, in England. Together with the neighbouring Chase Nature Reserve it is also designated a Site of Metropolitan Impor ...

where it is joined by a tributary,

The Ravensbourne The River Rom, also known as the River Beam below its confluence with the Ravensbourne, is a tributary of the River Thames in England that flows through east London suburbs surrounding the metropolitan centre of Romford, part of it forming a sec ...

that has flowed through

Emerson Park Emerson Park is a suburban neighbourhood near Hornchurch in the London Borough of Havering, east London. Predominantly affluent and residential, it is located approximately north-east of Charing Cross. It is part of the Hornchurch post town an ...

(a second a residential area) and then a park,

Harrow Lodge Park Harrow Lodge Park is a large public park in Hornchurch in the London Borough of Havering. It was created by Hornchurch Urban District Council, partly on land donated by Richard Costain and Sons Ltd., the developers of Elm Park Garden City housing ...

from its source in

Ardleigh Green Ardleigh Green is an area in east London, England, within the London Borough of Havering. It is east-northeast of Charing Cross. This part of London is predominantly residential. Amenities and natural geography Ardleigh Green has a small s ...

. The Rom then continues under the name of the Beam and forms the boundary between the

London Borough of Havering The London Borough of Havering () in East London, England, forms part of Outer London. It has a population of 259,552 inhabitants; the principal town is Romford, while other communities are Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row and Rainham. The ...

and the

London Borough of Barking and Dagenham The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham () is a London borough in East London. It lies around 9 miles (14.4 km) east of Central London. It is an Outer London borough and the south is within the London Riverside section of the Thames G ...

before reaching the

in the Dagenham industrial estate which included the

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

works. The Beam Valley comprises of land running the entire stretch of the river. The valley also includes various historical features including tank traps, pillboxes and a section of the old

Romford Canal Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romfor ...

Etymology

Rom is a

back-formation In etymology, back-formation is the process or result of creating a new word via inflection, typically by removing or substituting actual or supposed affixes from a lexical item, in a way that expands the number of lexemes associated with the c ...

from the name of the town of

, which is located on a crossing of the river.Mills, D., ''Oxford Dictionary of London Place Names,'' (2000) The name 'Romford' is first recorded in 1177 as ''Romfort'', which is formed from 'rūm' and 'ford' and means "the wide or spacious ford". The name of the river is first recorded in the 13th century as ''le Markediche'', meaning 'boundary ditch' and referring to the ancient boundary between the parishes of Dagenham and

Hornchurch Hornchurch is a suburban town in East London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross. It comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential area. It historically formed ...

which later gained

borough status Borough status is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district. In Scotland, s ...

. A more recent name for part of the river of ''the Beam'' originated from an early bridge over the river, consisting of a beam of wood.

Wildlife and environment

Throughout the northern section, where the Rom starts, in the north western part of the London Borough of Havering its valley has been designated as a ''Site of Importance for Nature Conservation'' The river contains unbranched

bur-reed ''Sparganium'' (bur-reed) is a genus of flowering plants, described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753. It is widespread in wet areas in temperate regions of both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The plants are perennial marsh plants that ca ...

s (''

Sparganium erectum ''Sparganium erectum'', the simplestem bur-reed or branched bur-reed, is a perennial plant species in the genus ''Sparganium ''Sparganium'' (bur-reed) is a genus of flowering plants, described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753. It is widespread ...

'' and ''

Sparganium ''Sparganium'' (bur-reed) is a genus of flowering plants, described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753. It is widespread in wet areas in temperate regions of both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The plants are perennial marsh plants that c ...

emersum'') and fool's watercress (''

Apium nodiflorum ''Helosciadium nodiflorum'' (synonym: ''Apium nodiflorum''), fool's watercress, is a flowering plant found in ditches or streams, as well as fresh and brackish-water wetlands native to western Europe. It is not poisonous to humans but it could be ...

''), and supports water voles,

kingfishers Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

and

reed bunting The common reed bunting (''Emberiza schoeniclus'') is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae. The genus name ''Emberiza'' is from Old German ''Embritz'', a ...

s. Surrounding farmland has

lapwing Lapwings (subfamily Vanellinae) are any of various ground-nesting birds (family Charadriidae) akin to plovers and dotterels. They range from in length, and are noted for their slow, irregular wingbeats in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. A gro ...

and

Eurasian golden plover The European golden plover (''Pluvialis apricaria''), also known as the European golden-plover, Eurasian golden plover, or just the golden plover within Europe, is a largish plover. This species is similar to two other golden plovers: the America ...

in winter. Apart from the river environs, the ''Site of Importance for Nature Conservation'' also includes Foreberry Wood through which the river runs. This contains both

pedunculate oak ''Quercus robur'', commonly known as common oak, pedunculate oak, European oak or English oak, is a species of flowering plant in the beech and oak family, Fagaceae. It is a large tree, native to most of Europe west of the Caucasus. It is widel ...

and

hornbeam Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the flowering plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The 30–40 species occur across much of the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Origin of names The common English name ''hornbeam' ...

coppice Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management which exploits the capacity of many species of trees to put out new shoots from their stump or roots if cut down. In a coppiced wood, which is called a copse, young tree stems are repeated ...

s. Also in the upper parts of the river is another ''Site of Importance for Nature Conservation'' where the river flows through King George Playing Fields in

Beam Valley

Further downstream, the Beam Valley is a mixture of woodlands, acid grassland, ponds and marsh areas, a habitat for many types of wildlife. The London Boroughs of

and of

plan to develop the area to improve the conservation interest and to create new opportunities for recreation and education. The River Beam is home to the rare water vole, while the grassland in the valley includes certain rare and endangered plants.

Tributaries

The Ravensbourne

The Ravensbourne is a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

which rises to the

NNE The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

(part of the

post town) and flows through two green suburbs of

and

viz.

and

, before joining the Beam at

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website

Notes and references

;Notes ;References {{DEFAULTSORT:Rom Rivers of London Geography of the London Borough of Havering Geography of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Subterranean rivers of London 1Rom