One of the best living environments in London
North-east London’s borough of Redbridge is known for its high performing schools, excellent transport links, thriving shopping areas and award-winning parks. Around a quarter of the borough is covered by forest & green areas which is why it’s known as the leafy suburb. According to the borough council, Redbridge enjoys one of the best living environments in London.
In the 2011 census, the population of Redbridge was recorded at 278,970 and has seen a rise of 15.3% since the 2001 census. The population density was last recorded as being lower than the London average, hardly surprising with one-third of the borough being forested land.
Redbridge borough has the UK’s third highest proportion of children and a higher than average proportion of older adults, while the proportion of working-age adults is slightly lower than average. The borough has one of the most ethnically diverse populations of the London boroughs. Its employment levels are slightly above the average for London as a whole and three-quarters of all homes in the borough are owner-occupied.
Property prices in Redbridge borough are excellent value at just under 28.5% below the London average, having risen by a healthy 14.2% in the last year. Prices here are set to rise with infrastructure improvements to accommodate Crossrail in the borough.
Redbridge has excellent connections to London, lying just 7 miles from central London, Ilford can be reached in 18 minutes from Liverpool Street Station.
Several stations in Redbridge borough are due to be converted to Crossrail stations over the coming months, this is expected to bring associated investment and regeneration as well as upward movement on housing in the areas around the stations.
A family-orientated borough at heart, Redbridge has much to offer to its residents and visitors by way of parks, arts, sports and shopping. London City Airport is located just over 6 miles from Ilford and with its popular selling point of a 15 minute check-in time before departure, it is very popular with the business traveller. London City Airport has the best airline punctuality record in London and the south-east, averaging over 85% on-time flights.
That means Redbridge property investment is ideal if you're looking for a London a commuter belt property.
Economy & Employment
Retail and real estate are the major employers and scheduled regeneration will create more jobs in these fields.
Retail and real estate are the two largest employment sectors in the London borough of Redbridge.
The health sector has the third highest proportion of employment with 12.6%. The current Primary Care Trust Estates Strategy is the largest investment programme in healthcare facilities in a generation and represents a major employment opportunity for local people over the coming years.
Redbridge has a healthy economy with employment levels across the borough being 2.3% higher than the East London average. 24.5% of Redbridge residents in employment are employed in professional occupations and 55% of people who work in Redbridge live there.
A Business Improvement District has been established at Hainault Business Park. In its first term, it delivered over £3 million of investment, improving safety and promoting the area, creating a more welcoming environment.
Redbridge has an Economic Scale score of 110.5, ranking it 116 out of 408 in the UK. This means that, in terms of national employment and national GVA, Redbridge’s economy is greater than the UK average of 100.
Investment
South Ilford is undergoing a ten-year regeneration project, to include new retail and leisure facilities.
Business prospects are improving in the South Ilford. In conjunction with the Learning and Skills Council and London Development Agency, a shop-front improvement scheme and business-related training programme are in place.
Real estate and retail are the largest sectors of employment in Redbridge, therefore a ten-year project for the regeneration of Ilford Town is planned. The creation of up to 30,000 sq.m of new and replacement high street retail facilities (accommodating, cultural and leisure facilities, shops, restaurants and cafés) is scheduled, the aim is to increase further the percentage of employment in retail and leisure. The development will also ensure that employment opportunities are secured within town centres, as well as in business areas such as Hainault Business Park.
In a meeting taking place on 1st April 2015, discussions for infrastructure improvements are on the agenda. Just over £4m of the funding is available from the council itself alongside funding for projects from Transport for London which totals more than £3.1m. Projects under discussion are road improvements, lighting, traffic management and safety issue.
Transport
Air: London City Airport is the nearest to Redbridge, being situated in neighbouring Newham borough. It is just 6.5 miles from Ilford making excellent access for its business travellers
Rail: Abellio Greater Anglian run the Shenfield to London Liverpool Street service and operate 6 trains per hour.
Underground: The Central line’s Fairlop Loop, Epping Branch serves Snaresbrook, South Woodford and Woodford. Whilst the Hainault Branch operates the route from Wanstead to Newbury Park, serving Wanstead, Redbridge, Gants Hill, Newbury Park, Barkingside, Fairlop, Hainault and Grange Hill.
Road: Redbridge is served by the A406 to the west, the A13 to the south with the A12 cutting through the borough from east to west, with the M11 joining from the north to the A406.
Buses: Numerous bus services operate throughout the borough with daily services to other London boroughs and many shopping centres.
Education
Redbridge is renowned for its great education facilities. It is one of the things that draws residents to live in the borough. GCSE and A-Level results were consistently higher than the England average. They also have the accolade of sending more people to university in 2011 and 2012, than any other borough in the country.
The borough of Redbridge incorporates 55 primary schools, 18 secondary schools, 5 special schools and 18 independent schools, alongside 2 further education colleges. Redbridge also has 13 libraries across the borough. This includes the Redbridge Central Library in Ilford, which had a major refurbishment in 2012.
Further Education: Redbridge College is based over two sites, one in Ilford and one in Romford. It offers further education in a range of BTECs, Diplomas, ESOL programmes and Access courses.
The Redbridge Institute of Adult Education in Ilford offers over 800 courses per year of which the majority are part-time courses. The college is partly funded by the Skills Funding Agency. There are currently around 5,500 students attending the college.
Higher Education: In conjunction with the University of East London, Redbridge College also offers some higher education courses.
Shops & Leisure
Shopping & Dining: Gants Hill has re-opened after refurbishment and £7.5m of development to transform the area. New shops and facilities are already moving into the area, a Sainsbury’s Local has opened and Inner Beauty, a women-only gym and luxury spa is opening later this year. Gants Hill is also known for its nightlife and high-quality eateries.
Sport & Culture: Redbridge has a number of sports and leisure facilities including the Redbridge Cycling Centre which offers fantastic road and off-road cycling tracks. Fairlop Waters offers the water sports activities. Redbridge Sports and Leisure Centre, in Fairlop and Fullwell Cross Leisure Centre in Barkingside, offer the usual leisure centre activities. The area also benefits from a number of outdoor gyms.
Valentines Park in Ilford is home to Valentines Mansion. The 300-year-old building attracts thousands of visitors every year, it incorporates Gardener’s Cottage Café and holds regular art exhibitions.
Green Spaces: Redbridge is one of London’s greenest boroughs, with more than 35 parks, playgrounds and open spaces to enjoy. These include Hainault Forest Country Park with 300 acres of countryside including adventure play areas, café and petting zoo. Roding Valley Park, a wildlife sanctuary with a wide range of flora and fauna and woodland areas to explore. Six parks have attained the prestigious Green Flag award.