Metropolitan Borough of Battersea

Battersea was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in the County of London, England. In 1965, the borough was abolished and its area combined with parts of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth to form the London Borough of Wandsworth. The borough was administered from Battersea Town Hall on Lavender Hill and the building is now Battersea Arts Centre.

Ancient parish

As an ancient parish, Battersea was part of the Hundred of Brixton and County of Surrey. It included the exclave of Penge.

Parish in the Metropolis

In 1855, under the Metropolis Management Act 1855, the civil responsibilities of the parish were passed to the Metropolitan Board of Works. The two parts of the parish were assigned to different districts by the act establishing the MBW: Battersea was included in the area of the Wandsworth District Board of Works and the hamlet of Penge in that of Lewisham District Board of Works. Penge became a civil parish in its own right in 1866.

On 25 March 1888, a separate vestry was formed as a local authority for The parish of Saint Mary Battersea excluding Penge. In 1889, the Local Government Act 1888 reconstituted the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works as the County of London, and Battersea was transferred from Surrey to the new county.

Metropolitan borough

A metropolitan borough is a type of local government district in England, and is a subdivision of a metropolitan county. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan districts. However, all of them have been granted or regranted royal charters to give them borough status (as well as, in some cases, city status). Metropolitan boroughs have been effectively unitary authority areas since the abolition of the metropolitan county councils by the Local Government Act 1985. However, metropolitan boroughs pool much of their authority in joint boards and other arrangements that cover whole metropolitan counties, such as combined authorities.

History

The term "metropolitan borough" was first used for administrative subdivisions of the County of London between 1900 and 1965. However, the present boroughs of Greater London, which have different boundaries and functions, and are much larger in area, are known as London Boroughs rather than metropolitan boroughs.

Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London

The term metropolitan borough was used from 1900 to 1965, for the subdivisions of the County of London and were created by the London Government Act 1899.

History

Parliamentary boroughs covering the metropolitan area were created in 1832. They were Finsbury, Greenwich, Lambeth, Marylebone, Southwark, Tower Hamlets and Westminster. Soon after their creation it was proposed that they should be incorporated for local government purposes and this was also a finding of the Royal Commission on the City of London, but this did not happen.

The metropolitan boroughs were created in 1900 by the London Government Act 1899 which created 28 metropolitan boroughs as sub-divisions of the County of London. Their borough councils replaced vestries and district boards as the second tier of local government.

Some boroughs were formed as amalgamations of parishes, but most were continuations of existing units of local government with the parish vestry or district board elevated to a borough council. With the creation of the boroughs, the opportunity was taken to correct a number of boundary anomalies. All civil parishes in the County of London, continued to exist, although their role was reduced to administration of the New Poor Law and they were amalgamated over time to become aligned with the boroughs.

Metropolitan borough (disambiguation)

Metropolitan borough, also known as metropolitan district, is a subdivision of a metropolitan county in England

Metropolitan borough could also refer to:

Battersea

Coordinates: 51°27′50″N 0°10′04″W / 51.46377°N 0.16771°W / 51.46377; -0.16771

Battersea is a largely residential inner-city district of south London in the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It has Battersea Park, one of southwest London's main parks and is on the south side of the River Thames, 2.9 miles (4.8 km) south-west of Charing Cross.

Noted for the long-awaited bringing of the London Underground in the 21st century, two main railway lines cross here at what was the country's busiest station. In all directions along these lines are several of the borough's council estates which replaced some of the severely overcrowded housing serving its former Power Station, its locomotive, carriage and heavy industrial works, with interpretations and variants ranging from brutalist to spacious garden courtyards. Elsewhere in Battersea are a growing proportion of private architecturally-acclaimed riverside, parkside and typical London homes. In 2001, Battersea had a population of 75,651 people. Landmarks include New Covent Garden Market and the Royal Academy of Dance. Wandsworth Common and Clapham Common border parts of this large district, which traditionally also includes Nine Elms. Railway stations in Battersea are in fare zone 2.

Battersea (UK Parliament constituency)

Battersea is a constituency in the London Borough of Wandsworth represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Jane Ellison of the Conservative Party.

Boundaries

1885-1918: No. 2 and No. 3 Wards of Battersea Parish, and that part of No. 4 Ward of Battersea Parish which is bounded on the south by Battersea Rise, and on the east by St John's Road.

1983-2010: The London Borough of Wandsworth wards of Balham, Fairfield, Latchmere, Northcote, Queenstown, St John, St Mary's Park, and Shaftesbury.

2010-present: The London Borough of Wandsworth wards of Balham, Fairfield, Latchmere, Northcote, Queenstown, St Mary’s Park, and Shaftesbury.

Less densely populated than late Victorian times and covering the north-eastern third of the London Borough of Wandsworth, Battersea in this context includes central Wandsworth and in the same way as Chelsea on the opposite bank, adjoins the Thames before flowing through central London.

It takes in all of the district of Battersea including its large Battersea Park which has played host in recent years to international circus productions, riverside and London Heliport and stretches eastwards to include Nine Elms and surrounding the Park: Queenstown; generally widely known large neighbourhoods of Battersea Town; and westwards to include most of Wandsworth town, including the riverside, Town Hall and East Hill. Battersea also stretches south between Wandsworth Common and Clapham Common to include Balham Ward, the eastern end of Balham (the west for General Elections is in Tooting).

Battersea (disambiguation)

Battersea is a district of the city of London. It may also refer to: