Harold Hill
| Harold Hill | |
| Essex | |
|---|---|
 View from St George's Church, Harold Hill | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ545925 |
| Location: | 51°36’36"N, -0°13’56"E |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Romford |
| Postcode: | RM3 |
| Dialling code: | 01708 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Havering |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Hornchurch and Upminster |
Harold Hill is a village in Essex. The name refers to Harold Godwinson, King Harold II, who held the manor of Havering-atte-Bower, and who was killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The suburb forms an eastern edge of the urban sprawl.
The extensive Council housing development of Harold Hill was conceived in the Greater London Plan of 1944 in order to alleviate housing shortages in London. The estate, which was completed in 1958: before construction this was the location of Dagnam Park house and grounds.
Urban development
Harold Hill was a planned community, conceived in 1944 as a satellite town on the edge of the built up area.
Land for the estate, which consisted of the remaining 850 acres of Dagnams, was purchased in 1947 by the London County Council.[1] The rest of Dagnams had been sold off in 1919, with the land used for the estate consisting of parkland, woodland, and farmland. The area was within the designated Metropolitan Green Belt, but an exception was made for the development because of the exceptional housing need in London following the Second World War.
Reflecting the urgency of the problem, housing was initially prefabricated. Construction of 7,631 permanent homes, housing 25,000 people, began in 1948 and was complete by 1958. The development is fairly low density with large sections of parkland retained in the centre and edges of the estate. The estate was constructed primarily in brick, with mostly terraces of houses and some flats. Provision was made for community facilities and three shopping areas were planned to break up the size of the development. Some industrial development already existed to the south and adjacent to the A12 road and this was retained.
Culture and community
Every year in Harold Hill there is a community festival held in Central Park normally in early July called the Harold Hill Festival.[2]
Sport
- Football: Harold Hill F.C.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Harold Hill) |
References
- ↑ Nikolaus Pevsner (2005). London 5: East.
- ↑ "Harold Hill Festival". http://www.haroldhillfestival.moonfruit.com.