Wanstead and Woodford was a local government district from 1934 to 1965 in southwest

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, 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 Riv ...

, England. A merger of two former urban districts, it was suburban to London and part of the

Metropolitan Police District The Metropolitan Police District (MPD) is the police area which is policed by the Metropolitan Police Service in London. It currently consists of the Greater London region, excluding the City of London. The Metropolitan Police District was creat ...

Background

A local board of health was set up for the parish of

Wanstead Wanstead () is a town in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders South Woodford to the north, Redbridge to the east and Forest Gate to the south, with Leytonstone and Walthamstow to the west. It is located 8 mi ...

in 1854. The

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

reconstituted its area as

Wanstead Urban District Wanstead () is a town in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders South Woodford to the north, Redbridge to the east and Forest Gate to the south, with Leytonstone and Walthamstow to the west. It is located 8 miles ...

, governed by Wanstead Urban District Council. Woodford parish adopted the

Local Government Act 1858 Local boards or local boards of health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate environmenta ...

in 1873, setting up a local board. In 1894 it became

Woodford Urban District Woodford was a local government district in the county of Essex, England from 1873 to 1934, corresponding to the London suburb of Woodford. The parish of Woodford St Mary adopted the Local Government Act 1858 in 1873, setting up a local board of ...

, governed by Woodford Urban District Council. In 1934, as part of a county review order, a new

urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (his ...

was created as a merger of their areas.

District and borough

The urban district became a

municipal borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...

in 1937. In 1956 the municipal borough was enlarged by gaining from the

Municipal Borough of Ilford Ilford was a civil parish and local government district in south west Essex, England from 1888 to 1965, covering the town Ilford. The district saw a considerable rise in population throughout its life, caused by the expansion of the built-up ar ...

while were transferred the other way.

Abolition

In 1965, under 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 ...

, the municipal borough was abolished and its former area transferred to

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness Greatness is a concept of a state of superiority affecting a person or object in a particular place or area. Greatness can also be attributed to individuals who possess a natural ability to be better than al ...

and combined with that of other districts to form the

London Borough of Redbridge The London Borough of Redbridge is a London borough established in 1965. The borough shares boundaries with the Epping Forest District and the ceremonial county of Essex to the north, with the London Borough of Waltham Forest to the west, the ...

Meeting place

The old rectory at St Mary's Woodford was converted into a meeting place for the council in 1937 and became known as Wanstead and Woodford Town Hall. After being used as a magistrates court from 1968 to 1988, the building was demolished and the site redeveloped for residential use.

References

External links

A Vision of Britain - Wanstead and Woodford
Districts abolished by the London Government Act 1963 History of the London Borough of Redbridge History of local government in London (1889–1965) Municipal boroughs of England {{London-geo-stub