Chingford: Difference between revisions

This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Chingford" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (November 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Chingford
Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge
OS grid reference	TQ395945
• Charing Cross	10 mi (16 km) SW
London borough	Waltham Forest
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LONDON
Postcode district	E4
Dialling code	020
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
UK Parliament	Chingford and Woodford Green
London Assembly	North East
List of places UK England London

Chingford is a town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is a suburban town situated 10 miles (16.1 km) northeast of Charing Cross. To the north and east of Chingford is Epping Forest and the boundary with Essex. To the west are the William Girling and King George V reservoirs, known collectively as the Chingford reservoirs, and the River Lea.

One notable local landmark is Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge.^[1] Originally called the Great Standing, it was built for King Henry VIII of England in 1543, and was used as a grandstand to watch the hunting of deer, although it has been heavily altered over time. The building is located on Chingford Plain within Epping Forest and is open to the public.

All Saints' Church in Chingford Mount (known locally as The Old Church) dates back to the 12th Century. Directly opposite from the church is Chingford Mount Cemetery, best known today as the burial place of the Kray family.^[2]

A granite obelisk at Pole Hill was erected in 1824 under the direction of the Astronomer Royal, the Rev. John Pond M.A., to mark true north for the telescopes of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, south of the Thames. It was placed on high ground along the line of the Greenwich Meridian, but when this was recalibrated later in the 19th century the obelisk was deemed to have been erected 19 feet (5.8 m) west of the revised meridian line. Today an adjoining triangulation pillar marks the modern line.

Friday Hill House Simmons Lane. The present building dating from 1839 was a manor house built and owned by Robert Boothby Heathcote, who was both the lord of the manor and rector of the local church. It was he who paid for the building of the church of St Peter and St Paul in Chingford. He is buried in the Boothby family vault in All Saints churchyard (Chingford Old Church), Old Church Road. The vault was purchased by Robert Boothby (died 1733), who lived in the previous manor house. The present building is now used as a further education centre.

Pimp Hall Dovecote, situated in a green area at the bottom of Friday Hill and can be viewed by entering the Pimps Hill Nature Reserve. The dovecote, which had nesting space for 250 birds, belonged to Pimp Hall (originally Pympe's Hall), one of three manor houses around Chingford. In 1838 the estate was taken over and became part of the Chingford Earls estate. The farmhouse associated with it survived until just before World War II. This dovecote is depicted in the Mosaic.^[which?] It is the fourth down on the left hand side.^[where?] There is a local legend telling how on one occasion Charles II was out hunting in Epping Forest and was caught in a snowstorm. He took shelter in Pimp Hall and was so delighted with the food offered him that he jocularly drew his sword and knighted the joint of beef declaring that it was now Sir Loin. Either this story caused the nearby pub on Friday Hill to be called "The Sirloin" or vice versa.

Chingford is within the Chingford and Woodford Green UK Parliament constituency which consists of the six Chingford wards in the Borough of Waltham Forest and two wards in the Borough of Redbridge. Iain Duncan Smith has been the sitting MP since 1992.

Famous^{[citation needed]} former MPs include Norman Tebbit, Leah Manning, Stan Newens and Sir Winston Churchill (when Chingford was in the Epping constituency).

Chingford Athletic Football Club was formed as recently as the summer of 2007 and currently play in the Ilford & District Premier Division, the feeder for the Essex Olympian League. They currently have two men's teams playing in the Ilford & District league. Home ground is at Chigwell met police sports ground.

Chingford's oldest football club is Egbertian FC, formerly Old Egbertian FC which was started by former pupils of the St Egberts College, Chingford. The club was formed in 1928 and is one of the oldest clubs to be affiliated to the Amateur Football Alliance (AFA). The club plays in Amateur Football Combination, which is purported to be the biggest league in the world comprising 103 clubs and some 355 teams. The league places great emphasis on the attitude and spirit that the game is played in while insisting its member clubs maintain these same principles. In season 2006/07 the club won their first cup competition in their club's history when they won the LOB Intermediate Cup.

Chingford Rugby Club was founded in 1928, with their ground at Waltham Way, Chingford.^[3] When the leagues commenced in 1987 they were placed in London 3 North East. In 1989-90 the club not only won the Essex Cup but gained promotion to London 2 North where they stayed until 1997. The club remained in London 3 North East until 2004-05, when they won not only the Essex Cup but also the league title, remaining unbeaten all season. 2008/9 saw them secure the Essex Senior Cup beating both semi-finalists Southend and finalists Barking (both are national league sides) in dramatic fashion away from home. A league restructure sees them playing in London 1 North this season, one step below national level.

King George Sailing Club [1] was founded in the 1970s to provide dinghy sailing and windsurfing on the largest and best sailing water in the north and east of London. The Club enjoys facilities both on and off the water and has an active membership engaged in racing, learning to sail, casual sailing, and windsurfing. In recognition of our good facilities and encouragement of youth sailing, the Royal Yachting Association has awarded the club Volvo Champion Club status.

There is very easy access from London, Essex, Hertfordshire, and Middlesex, via the M25, M11, A10, and the North Circular Road, all of which run within easy reach from the club.

The Club sails on 180 acres (0.73 km²) of open water raised 20 metres above the surrounding countryside, so clear and consistent winds are available. The sailing programme is all year round, and members from coastal clubs, who want to enjoy the nearest thing to the sea in North London, are welcome to join the club for the winter months

The Club has a large car park, and large dinghy park. There are modern changing rooms with hot showers, and facilities for sailors with disabilities. Plus there is a canteen for food and drinks, and a Clubhouse with licensed bar for regular social events.

On the water, you can enjoy easy launching and can step into your boat from the pontoons with dry feet. Windsurfers have their own grass area for rigging and launching is safe. Well-equipped safety boats provide safety cover on club days, which together with a Committee boat, provide high quality racing. For those not going afloat, there is an indoor viewing area to watch the action, with good views over the whole water.

Chingford is part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, which also includes the areas of Walthamstow, Leyton and Leytonstone. Chingford consists of six council wards, namely:

• Chingford Green
• Endlebury
• Valley
• Larkswood
• Hatch Lane
• Hale End and Highams Park

Each ward is represented by three councillors; at present all of the councillors in Chingford represent the Conservative Party. The London Borough of Waltham Forest is presently controlled by the Labour party.

Chingford falls within the North East constituency of the London Assembly, which is currently represented by Jennette Arnold of the Labour party.

When Chingford was a municipal borough, before 1965, its politics were dominated by the Chingford Ratepayers' Association, which was nominally independent, but against whom the Conservative Party did not field candidates.

• Highams Park
• Friday Hill
• Hale End
• Chingford Hatch
• Chingford Mount
• Station Road (Chingford)

• Walthamstow
• Ponders End
• Buckhurst Hill
• Sewardstone
• Woodford

Chingford is served by a railway station which is the terminus of a branch line from Liverpool Street station in the City of London. There is also a station at Highams Park.

The town is served by many bus routes, linking it to Walthamstow, Loughton, Leyton and Woodford (Waltham Abbey). The town is also served by the N26 night bus from Trafalgar Square. The North Circular Road skirts the southern part of the town, and gives motorists good access to the north and east of London. The London LOOP walk passes through Chingford on its way from Enfield to Chigwell. Travelling from Enfield to Chingford has difficulties as the closest link is through the reservoirs, a route which usually has much traffic.

Waltham Abbey also runs into Chingford following into Sewardstone Road.

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (August 2008)

Route Number	Route	Operation	Operator
97	Chingford Station to Leyton Downsell Road via Chingford Mount, Walthamstow	Daily	East London
158	Chingford Mount to Stratford Bus Station via Blackhorse Road	Daily	East London
179	Chingford Station to Ilford Hainault Street via South Woodford	Daily	First London
212	Chingford Station to Walthamstow Central via Highams Park	Daily	CT Plus
215	Yardley Lane Estate to Walthamstow Central via Chingford Mount (Extended from Yardley Lane Estate to Lee Valley Campsite during the Summer)	Daily	East London
313	Chingford Station to Potters Bar Station via Enfield	Daily	Arriva London
357	Chingford Hatch to Whipps Cross Roundabout via Walthamstow (Extended to Whipps Cross Hospital on Sundays)	Daily	First London
379	Chingford Station to Yardley Lane Estate via Kings Head Hill	Daily	Arriva London
385	Chingford Station to Crooked Billet Sainsburys via Valley Side	Mon-Sat	CT Plus
397	Crooked Billet Sainsburys to Debden Broadway via Loughton	Daily (except evenings)	Arriva London
444	Chingford Station to Turnpike Lane Station via Edmonton	Daily	Arriva London
505	Chingford Station to Harlow Mark Hall North via Sewardstone, Waltham Abbey	Mon-Sat (except evenings)	Arriva Shires & Essex
W11	Chingford Hall Estate to Walthamstow Central via Billet Road	Daily	Arriva London
N26	Chingford Station to Trafalgar Square via Walthamstow, Hackney	Daily (evenings only)	East London

Also see List of bus routes in London and List of bus routes in Essex.

• Blackhorse Road station
• Chingford railway station
• Highams Park railway station
• Walthamstow Central station
• Walthamstow Queens Road railway station

The London Underground stations nearest to Chingford include:

• Blackhorse Road (Bus route 158)
• Buckhurst Hill (Bus route 397)
• South Woodford (Bus route 179)
• Loughton (Bus route 397)
• Walthamstow Central (Bus routes 97, 212, 215, 357, N26)

Chingford secondary schools include:

• Chingford Foundation School
• Heathcote School
• Normanhurst School
• Rush Croft Sports College

• The Kray twins are buried in Chingford Mount cemetery.^[2]
• The author and games designer Joe Dever was born in Chingford in 1956.^{[citation needed]}
• The footballer David Beckham OBE^[4] grew up in Chingford having been born at Whipps Cross Hospital in Leytonstone on 2 May 1975.^[5] As a child he attended Chingford School^[6] and played football for Ridgeway Rovers F.C.,^[7] a local side.
• The Apple Mac Designer Jonathan Ive was raised in Chingford.^[8]
• Chingford is home to former England, Tottenham Hotspur, and Manchester United player Teddy Sheringham.^[9]
• Chingford is home to singer and ex-glamour model Samantha Fox.
• Radio DJ Grant Nelson went to school in Chingford^{[citation needed]}.
• Some members of #1 chart group Blazin' Squad live in Chingford. The group grew up in Chingford and attended Highams Park School.^[10]
• Leslie Phillips, comedy star of the Carry On Films, lived in Chingford.^[11]
• Alan Davies, stand-up comedian and regular guest on quiz show QI, grew up in Chingford.^[12]
• Russell Lissack from Bloc Party grew up in Chingford.^[13][14]
• Winston Churchill was MP for Epping from October 1924 to July 1945, a defunct constituency that included Chingford.^[15]
• Jeanette Kwakye National record holder, World Indoor silver medallist and 100m Olympic finalist^{[citation needed]}.
• Charles Alcock, founding father of the Football Association and Creator of the FA Cup, moved to Chingford with his family when he was young and continued to live there throughout his life.

• Chingford Athletic FC
• London's Railways
• Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge
• The Chingford War Memorial Project

Chingford rugby club

• http://www.chingfordrugby.co.uk/home