Editing London Borough of Tower Hamlets

{{Short description|Borough in east London, England}}
{{Redirect|Tower Hamlets|the historic liberty|Tower division|other uses}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2015}} 
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Tower Hamlets
| other_name              = 
| settlement_type         = [[London boroughs|London borough]]
| image_skyline           = {{multiple images|align=center|perrow=2|total_width=250|image1=Royal London Hospital - 6784689521.jpg|image2=Tower Bridge from Shad Thames.jpg|image3 =Canary Wharf from Limehouse London June 2016 HDR.jpg|image4 = Thames barges at St Katherine Docks.jpg
|image5= Tower of London from the Shard (8515883950).jpg|image6=Barclays Tower.jpg}}
| image_caption = {{ubl|From the top left;|Top: [[Royal London Hospital]] and [[Tower Bridge]]|Middle: [[Canary Wharf]] and [[St Katharine Docks]] |Bottom: [[Tower of London]] and [[Barclays|Barclays' world Headquarter]]}}
| image_alt                = 
| image_shield             = Coat of arms of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.svg
| shield_size              = 100px
| shield_alt               = 
| shield_link              = 
| image_blank_emblem       = Lb tower hamlets.svg
| blank_emblem_type        = Council logo
| blank_emblem_size        = 100px
| blank_emblem_alt         = 
| blank_emblem_link        = 
| motto                    = From Great Things to Greater
<!-- maps and coordinates ------>
| image_map                = Tower Hamlets in Greater London.svg
| map_alt                  = 
| map_caption              = Tower Hamlets shown within [[Greater London]]
| coor_pinpoint            = <!-- to specify exact location of coordinates (was coor_type) -->
| coordinates              = {{Coord|51|31|N|0|03|W|region:GB-TWH_type:adm1st|display=title,inline}}
| coordinates_footnotes    = <!-- for references: use <ref> tags -->
<!-- location ------------------>
| subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Sovereign state]]
| subdivision_name         = [[United Kingdom]]
| subdivision_type2        = [[Country of the United Kingdom|Constituent country]]
| subdivision_name2        = [[England]]
| subdivision_type3        = [[Regions of England|Region]]
| subdivision_name3        = [[Greater London|London]]
| subdivision_type4        = [[Ceremonial counties of England|Ceremonial county]]
| subdivision_name4        = [[Greater London]]
| established_title        = Created
| established_date         = 1 April 1965
| established_title1       = 
| established_date1        = 
| named_for                = 
<!-- seat, smaller parts -->
| seat_type                = Admin HQ
| seat                     = 160 Whitechapel Rd, London E1 1BJ
<!-- government type, leaders -->
| government_footnotes     = <!-- for references: use <ref> tags -->
| government_type          = [[London borough council]]
| governing_body           = [[Tower Hamlets London Borough Council]]
| leader_title1            = Mayor
| leader_name1             = [[Lutfur Rahman (British politician)|Lutfur Rahman]]
| leader_title2            = London&nbsp;Assembly
| leader_name2             = [[Unmesh Desai]] ([[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]]) AM for [[City and East (London Assembly constituency)|City and East]]
| leader_title3            = [[List of MPs elected in the 2024 United Kingdom general election|MPs]]
| leader_name3             = [[Rushanara Ali]] (Labour) <br />[[Apsana Begum]] (Labour) <br />[[Uma Kumaran]] (Labour, partly in Newham)
| leader_title4            = 
| leader_name4             = 
| total_type               = <!-- to set a non-standard label for total area and population rows -->
| unit_pref                = <!-- enter: Imperial, to display imperial before metric -->
| area_total_km2           = 19.77
| area_total_sq_mi         = <!-- see table @ Template:Infobox settlement for details -->
| area_metro_km2           = 
| area_metro_sq_mi         = 
| area_rank                = {{English district area rank|ONS=00BG|GSS=E09000030}} [[List of English districts by area|(of {{English district total}})]]
| area_blank1_title        = 
| area_blank1_km2          = 
| area_blank1_sq_mi        = 
| area_blank2_title        = 
| area_blank2_km2          = 
| area_blank2_sq_mi        = 
<!-- population ---------------->
| population_footnotes     = <!-- for references: use <ref> tags -->
| population_total         = {{English district population|ONS=00BG|GSS=E09000030}}
| population_as_of         = {{United Kingdom statistics year}}
| population_rank          = {{English district rank|ONS=00BG|GSS=E09000030}} [[List of English districts by population|(of {{English district total}})]]
| population_density_km2   = auto
| population_density_sq_mi = 
| population_blank2_title  = 
| population_blank2        = 
| timezone                 = [[Greenwich Mean Time|GMT]]
| utc_offset               = ±00:00{{!}}UTC
| timezone_DST             = [[British Summer Time|BST]]
| utc_offset_DST           = +1
<!-- postal codes, area code --->
| postal_code_type         = [[Postcodes in the United Kingdom|Postcodes]]
| postal_code              = {{postcode|E}}, {{postcode|EC}}
| geocode                  = 
| iso_code                 = GB-TWH
| blank1_name              = [[ONS coding system|ONS code]]
| blank1_info              = 00BG
| blank2_name              = [[GSS coding system|GSS code]]
| blank2_info              = E09000030
<!-- blank fields (section 2) -->
| blank_name_sec2          = [[List of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom|Police]]
| blank_info_sec2          = [[Metropolitan Police]]
| website                  = {{Official URL}}
}}

The '''London Borough of Tower Hamlets''' is a [[London boroughs|borough]] in [[London]], England. Situated on the north bank of the [[River Thames]] and immediately east of the [[City of London]], the borough spans much of the traditional [[East End of London]] and includes much of the regenerated [[London Docklands]] area. The 2019 mid-year population for the borough is estimated at 324,745.

The borough was formed in 1965 by merger of the former [[Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London|metropolitan boroughs]] of [[Metropolitan Borough of Stepney|Stepney]], [[Metropolitan Borough of Poplar|Poplar]], and [[Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green|Bethnal Green]]. 'Tower Hamlets' was originally an alternative name for the historic [[Tower division|Tower Division]]; the area of south-east [[Middlesex]], focused on (but not limited to) the area of the modern borough, which owed military service to the [[Tower of London]].  The Tower of London itself is located in the borough, adjacent to its western boundary with the City of London.

The [[Local government in England|local authority]] is [[Tower Hamlets London Borough Council]]. In 2017, a joint study by [[Trust for London]] and [[New Policy Institute]] found Tower Hamlets to be the 2nd most deprived London borough (after [[Barking and Dagenham]]) based on an average calculated across a range of indicators; with high rates of [[child poverty]], unemployment and pay inequality compared to other London boroughs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.trustforlondon.org.uk/publications/londons-poverty-profile-2017 |title=London's Poverty Profile 2017 report (page 18) |website=Trust for London |access-date=21 December 2021}}</ref> However, it has the lowest gap for educational outcomes at secondary level.<ref>{{cite web |title=London's Poverty Profile |url=https://www.trustforlondon.org.uk/data/boroughs/tower-hamlets-poverty-and-inequality-indicators/ |website=Trust for London |access-date=19 June 2018}}</ref>

Some of the world's major headquarters and [[tallest buildings in London]] occupy [[Canary Wharf]], the country's second largest financial district, in the southeast of the borough.  Between 2014 and 2024, Tower Hamlets saw the completion of 71 skyscrapers, more than any other London borough.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1969098/uk-city-dubbed-manhattan-600-skyscrapers/amp|title=The UK city dubbed 'another Manhattan' as 600 skyscrapers poised to go up|work=[[Daily Express]]|first=Jon|last=Austin|date=30 October 2024|access-date=11 January 2025}}</ref>  Also, part of the [[Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park]] is in the borough.

Demographically, Tower Hamlets has a large population of [[British Bangladeshis]], forming the largest single ethnic group in the borough at 32%.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Borough Profile 2020|url=https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/community_and_living/borough_statistics/Borough_profile.aspx|url-status=live|access-date=21 December 2021|website=towerhamlets.gov.uk|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211221223614/https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/community_and_living/borough_statistics/Borough_profile.aspx|archive-date=21 December 2021}}</ref> The [[2011 United Kingdom census|2011 census]] showed Tower Hamlets to have the highest proportion of [[Muslims]] of any English local authority and was the only location where [[Islam in the United Kingdom|Muslims]] outnumbered [[Christianity in the United Kingdom|Christians]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=February 2015|title=Religion in Tower Hamlets, 2011 Census Update|url=https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/Documents/Borough_statistics/Ward_profiles/Census-2011/2015-04-21-Faith-key-facts-Revised-data.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180826041641/https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/Documents/Borough_statistics/Ward_profiles/Census-2011/2015-04-21-Faith-key-facts-Revised-data.pdf |archive-date=26 August 2018|url-status=live|access-date=21 December 2021|website=towerhamlets.gov.uk}}</ref> The borough has 50 mosques and many [[madrasah]]s,<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=http://www.banglastories.org/about-the-project/the-locations/tower-hamlets.html|title=Bangla Stories|work=banglastories.org}}</ref> including the [[East London Mosque]], Britain's largest.<ref name="auto1">{{cite book|last1=Eade|first1=John|editor1-last=Metcalf|editor1-first=Barbara Daly|title=Making Muslim Space in North America and Europe|date=1996|publisher=[[University of California Press]]|location=Berkeley|isbn=0520204042|url=https://archive.org/details/makingmuslimspac0000unse|access-date=19 April 2015|chapter=Nationalism, Community, and the Islamisation of Space in London|quote=As one of the few mosques in Britain permitted to broadcast calls to prayer (azan), the mosque soon found itself at the centre of a public debate about "noise pollution" when local non-Muslim residents began to protest.|url-access=registration}}</ref> [[Whitechapel]] restaurants, neighbouring street market and shops provide the largest range of [[Bangladeshi cuisine]], woodwork, [[Bangladesh textile industry|carpets and clothes]] in Europe.<ref>Garbin, David. [http://www.surrey.ac.uk/cronem/files/BE04B01Ed01.pdf "Bangladeshi diaspora in the UK: some observations on socio-cultural dynamics, religious trends and transnational politics"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170104015141/https://www.surrey.ac.uk/cronem/files/BE04B01Ed01.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111172532/http://www.surrey.ac.uk/cronem/files/BE04B01Ed01.pdf |archive-date=11 January 2012|url-status=live |date=4 January 2017 }}, Conference Human Rights and Bangladesh, [[SOAS, University of London|School of African and Oriental Studies]], June 2005, p. 1. Retrieved 16 August 2011.</ref><ref name="censuskeyfacts">Tower Hamlets Council Corporate Research Unit, [http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/idoc.ashx?docid=a1d93377-5375-4aab-9eb4-14e6a56accb5&version=1 Religion in Tower Hamlets 2011 Census: Key Facts (Briefing 2013-03)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140805153211/http://towerhamlets.gov.uk/idoc.ashx?docid=a1d93377-5375-4aab-9eb4-14e6a56accb5&version=1 |date=5 August 2014 }}</ref> [[Brick Lane]] is also a major centre of [[Hipster (contemporary subculture)|hipster]] subculture.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.socresonline.org.uk/21/3/1.html|title = Hipsters on Our High Streets: Consuming the Gentrification Frontier|journal = Sociological Research Online|year = 2016|volume = 21|issue = 3|page = 1|last1 = Hubbard|first1 = Phil|doi = 10.5153/sro.3962|s2cid = 53381825}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.towerhamletsarts.org.uk/?cid=73084&guide=events|title = Framing Banglatown - Arts & Entertainment}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/tourist-favour-hipster-east-end-over-central-london-airbnb-reveals-a3916766.html|title = Tourist favour hipster East End over central London, Airbnb reveals|work=[[Evening Standard]]|first=Mark|last=Blunden|date = 21 August 2018|access-date=11 January 2025}}</ref>

==History==
{{see also-text|[[East End of London]], of which Tower Hamlets is a main part.}}
{{More citations needed|section|date=June 2023}}
<!-- [[WP:NFCC]] violation: [[File:Altab Ali protest.jpg|thumb|Protest march by Bangladeshis to [[Downing Street]] with murdered Altab Ali's coffin, 1978]] -->

The earliest reference to the name "Tower Hamlets" was in 1554, when the Council of the [[Tower of London]] ordered a muster of "men of the hamlets which owe their service to the tower". This covered a wider area than the present-day borough, and its military relationship with the Tower is thought to have been several centuries earlier than the 1554 record.<ref>Power, M. J. (1965). "The origin and early use of the name 'Tower Hamlets'". East London Papers. 8: 67–80.</ref>

[[File:Tower of London viewed from the River Thames.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Tower of London]] is in the borough, and the borough's name references the hamlets which owed military service to the castle authorities.]]

In 1605, the [[Lieutenant of the Tower]] was given the right to muster the militia and the area east of the tower came to be a distinct military unit, officially called [[Tower division|Tower Hamlets (or the Tower Division)]].{{sfn|Weinreb|Hibbert|Keay|Keay|2008|p=923}} The Hamlets of the Tower paid taxes for the militia in 1646.<ref name=BHO>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/no-series/acts-ordinances-interregnum/pp1057-1058 1648 Ordinance for Militia within the Hamblets of the Tower of London] British History Online</ref>

The London Borough of Tower Hamlets forms the core of the East End. The population of the area grew enormously in the 19th century, leading to extreme overcrowding and a concentration of poor people and immigrants throughout the area.{{NoteTag|From 1801 to 1821, the population of Bethnal Green more than doubled, and by 1831 had trebled (see table in population section). These incomers were principally weavers. For further details, see Andrew August, ''Poor Women's Lives: Gender, Work, and Poverty in Late-Victorian London'', pp.&nbsp;35–6 (Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1999), {{ISBN|0-8386-3807-4}}.}} These problems were exacerbated by the construction of [[St Katharine Docks]] (1827){{NoteTag|By the early 19th century, over 11,000 people were crammed into insanitary slums in an area, which took its name from the former Hospital of St Katherine that had stood on the site since the 12th century.}} and the [[central London]] railway termini (1840–1875) with many displaced people moving into the area following the [[Slum clearance in the United Kingdom|clearance of former slums]] and [[rookery (slum)|rookeries]]. Over the course of a century, the East End became synonymous with poverty, overcrowding, disease and criminality.<ref name=palmer>''The East End'' Alan Palmer, (John Murray, London 1989) {{ISBN|0-7195-5666-X}}</ref>

The area was once characterised by rural settlements clustered around the City walls or along the main roads, surrounded by farmland, with marshes and small communities by the River, serving the needs of shipping and the [[Royal Navy]]. Until the arrival of formal docks, shipping was required to land goods in the [[Pool of London]], but industries related to construction, repair, and victualling of ships flourished in the area from [[Tudor era|Tudor times]]. The area attracted large numbers of rural people looking for employment. Successive waves of foreign immigration began with [[Huguenot]] refugees creating a new extramural suburb in [[Spitalfields]] in the 17th century.<ref name=Huguenot>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=22743 ''Bethnal Green: Settlement and Building to 1836'', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 11: Stepney, Bethnal Green (1998), pp. 91–5] Date accessed: 17 April 2007</ref> They were followed by [[Irish people|Irish]] weavers,<ref name=Irish>''Irish in Britain'' John A. Jackson, pp. 137–139, 150 (Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1964)</ref> [[Ashkenazi Jews]]<ref name=Jews>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=22113 ''The Jews'', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 1: Physique, Archaeology, Domesday, Ecclesiastical Organization, The Jews, Religious Houses, Education of Working Classes to 1870, Private Education from Sixteenth Century (1969), pp. 149–51] Date accessed: 17 April 2007</ref> and, in the 20th century, [[British Bangladeshi|Bangladeshis]].<ref name=Bangla>[http://www.spacesyntax.tudelft.nl/media/prcdngsabstracts/izaaftab.pdf ''The Spatial Form of Bangladeshi Community in London's East End'' Iza Aftab] (UCL) (particularly background of Bangladeshi immigration to the East End). Date accessed: 17 April 2007</ref>

[[File:Brick Lane in Spitalfields - geograph.org.uk - 3322741.jpg|thumb|[[Brick Lane]] is known for being a significant centre of the [[British Bangladeshi]] community]]
Many of these immigrants worked in the clothing industry. The abundance of semi- and unskilled labour led to low wages and poor conditions throughout the East End. This brought the attentions of social reformers during the mid-18th century and led to the formation of [[Trade union|unions]] and workers associations at the end of the century. The radicalism of the East End contributed to the formation of the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] and demands for the [[Suffragette|enfranchisement of women]].

Official attempts to address the overcrowded housing began at the beginning of the 20th century under the [[London County Council]]. Aerial bombing in [[World War II]] devastated much of the East End, with its docks, railways and industry forming a continual target. In the separate boroughs making up today's Tower Hamlets a total of 2,221 civilians were killed and 7,472 were injured, with 46,482 houses destroyed and 47,574 damaged.<ref>''The East End at War'' Rosemary Taylor and Christopher Lloyd (Sutton Publishing, 2007) {{ISBN|0-7509-4913-9}}</ref> This led to some dispersal of the population to outlying suburbs. New housing was built in the 1950s for those that remained.<ref name="palmer" />

The closure of the last of the East End docks in the [[Port of London]] in 1980 created further challenges and led to attempts at regeneration and the formation of the [[London Docklands Development Corporation]]. The [[Canary Wharf]] development, improved infrastructure, and the [[Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park]]<ref name=Olympics>[http://www.london2012.com/plans/olympic-park/legacy/index.php ''Olympic Park: Legacy''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091120034846/http://www.london2012.com/plans/olympic-park/legacy/index.php |date=20 November 2009 }} (London 2012) accessed 20 September 2007</ref> mean that the East End is undergoing further change, but some of its districts continue to see some of the worst poverty in Britain.<ref name=Hammett>Chris Hammett ''Unequal City: London in the Global Arena'' (2003) Routledge; {{ISBN|0-415-31730-4}}</ref>

===Administrative history===
The area of the modern borough had historically been part of the [[Hundred (county division)|hundred]] of [[Ossulstone]] in county of [[Middlesex]]. Ossulstone was subsequently divided into four divisions, one of which was the [[Tower Division]], also known as the Tower Hamlets, which covered a larger area than the modern borough, also including parts of [[London Borough of Hackney|Hackney]]. From at least the 17th century the Tower Division was a [[Liberty (division)|liberty]] with judicial and administrative independence from the rest of the county. The liberty appears to have arisen from much older obligations on inhabitants of the area to provide military service to the [[Constable of the Tower of London]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Middlesex and Hertfordshire Notes and Queries: Volume 4 |date=1898 |pages=35–36 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zAwOAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA35 |access-date=28 April 2024 |last1=Hardy |first1=William John }}</ref>

From 1856 the area was governed by the [[Metropolitan Board of Works]], which was established to provide services across the [[metropolis]] of London.<ref>[[Metropolis Management Act 1855]] (18 & 19 Vict. c. 120)</ref> In 1889 the Metropolitan Board of Works' area was made the [[County of London]]. From 1856 until 1900 the lower tier of local government within the metropolis comprised various [[List of London vestries and district boards|parish vestries and district boards]]. In 1900 the lower tier was reorganised into [[Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London|metropolitan boroughs]], including the [[Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green]], the [[Metropolitan Borough of Poplar]] and the [[Metropolitan Borough of Stepney]].<ref name=Youngs>{{cite book | first=Frederic |last=Youngs | title=Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England | volume=I: Southern England | year=1979 | publisher=[[Royal Historical Society]] | location=London | isbn=0-901050-67-9}}</ref><ref>[[London Government Act 1899]] (62 & 63 Vict. c. 14)</ref>

The modern borough was created in 1965 under the [[London Government Act 1963]]. It was a merger of the old boroughs of Bethnal Green, Poplar and Stepney, and was named Tower Hamlets after the historic liberty.<ref name=Youngs/>

==Geography==
{{More citations needed|section|date=June 2023}}
[[File:Canary Wharf Skyline 2, London UK - Oct 2012.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|left|[[Canary Wharf]], world headquarters of numerous major banks and professional services firms]]

Tower Hamlets is in East London, north of the [[River Thames]]. The [[City of London]] lies to the west, the [[London Borough of Hackney]] to the north, while the [[River Lea]] forms the boundary with the [[London Borough of Newham]] to the east. The River Lea also forms the boundary between the [[Historic counties of England|historic counties]] of [[Middlesex]] and [[Essex]]. The borough's Thames frontage extends from the [[Tower Dock]] inlet,{{NoteTag|The Tower Dock was the western boundary of the Tower Liberties—see [https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/significant-places/tower-of-london-1597/ map] and more recent OS maps. The Liberties indirectly merged into the London Borough of Tower Hamlets via the Borough of Stepney.}} immediately west of the [[Tower of London]], through several miles of former docklands, including the [[Isle of Dogs]] peninsula, to the confluence of the Thames and Lea at [[Blackwall, London|Blackwall]]. Areas along the Thames and Lea flood plains were historically frequently flooded, but the [[Thames Barrier]], further east, has reduced that risk.

[[Regent's Canal]] enters the borough from Hackney to meet the River Thames at [[Limehouse Basin]]. A stretch of the [[Hertford Union Canal]] leads from the Regent's canal, at a basin in the north of [[Mile End]], to join the River Lea at [[Old Ford]]. A further canal, [[Limehouse Cut]], London's oldest, leads from locks at [[Bromley-by-Bow]] to Limehouse Basin. Most of the canal tow-paths are open to both pedestrians and cyclists.

The borough includes open spaces such as [[Victoria Park, Tower Hamlets|Victoria Park]], [[King Edward Memorial Park]], [[Mile End Park]], [[Island Gardens]] and part of the [[Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park]].

[[File:Tower Hamlets London UK location map.svg|thumb|310px|{{center|Areas, transport, & landmarks<br />in the Borough of Tower Hamlets}}]]

===Districts within the borough===
Areas within the borough include:
{{colbegin|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Bethnal Green]] 
* [[Blackwall, London|Blackwall]] 
* [[Bow, London|Bow]] 
* [[Bromley-by-Bow]]
* [[East Smithfield]]
* [[Fish Island, London|Fish Island]]
* [[Isle of Dogs]], including [[Canary Wharf]]
* [[Limehouse]]
* [[Mile End]]
* [[Poplar, London|Poplar]]
* [[Ratcliff]]
* [[Shadwell]]
* [[Spitalfields]]
* [[St George in the East (parish)|St George in the East]]
* [[St Katharine Docks|St Katharine's]]
* [[Stepney]]
* The [[Liberties of the Tower of London|Tower Liberty]], taking in [[Tower Hill]]
* [[Wapping]]
* [[Whitechapel]]
{{colend}}

===Landmarks===
[[File:Canary.wharf.from.thames.arp.jpg|thumb|[[Canary Wharf]], seen from a high-level walkway on [[Tower Bridge]]]]

* [[Brick Lane]]
* [[Cable Street]] - site of the [[Battle of Cable Street]]
* [[Hawksmoor]]'s [[Christ Church, Spitalfields]]
* Site of two historic [[Royal Mint]]s
* [[Tower of London]]
* [[Tower Bridge]]
* [[Victoria Park, East London|Victoria Park]]
* [[Roman Road, London|Roman Road]]
* [[Columbia Road Flower Market|Columbia Road]]
* [[Poplar Baths]]

{{update|the proposed Chinese embassy move|date=December 2022}}
The [[Canary Wharf]] district on the [[Isle of Dogs]] in the [[London Docklands|Docklands]] forms a group of some of the tallest buildings in [[Europe]]. [[One Canada Square]] was the first to be constructed and is the third tallest in London. Nearby are the [[HSBC Tower, London|HSBC Tower]], [[Citigroup Centre, London|Citigroup Centre]]s and [[One Churchill Place]], headquarters of [[Barclays Bank]]. Within the same complex are the [[Heron Quays]] offices.

Part of the [[Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park]], developed for the [[London 2012 Olympics]], lies within the borders of Tower Hamlets.

The [[Embassy of China in London]] will move into the former [[Royal Mint Court|Royal Mint building]] in [[East Smithfield]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/19/uyghur-court-hong-kong-road-tower-hamlets-plans-name-changes-in-solidarity|title=Tiananmen Square, Uyghur Court: Tower Hamlets plans name changes in solidarity|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=2021-03-19|accessdate=2021-03-21}}</ref>

==Governance==
{{main|Tower Hamlets London Borough Council}}
[[File:Tower Hamlets Town Hall 2023 (1).jpg|thumb|[[Tower Hamlets Town Hall]], 160 Whitechapel Road]]
The local authority is Tower Hamlets Council, based at [[Tower Hamlets Town Hall]] on [[Whitechapel Road]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.eastlondonlines.co.uk/2023/03/historic-whitechapel-building-reopens-as-tower-hamlets-new-town-hall/|title=Historic Whitechapel building reopens as Tower Hamlets' new town hall|newspaper=East London Lines|date=1 March 2023|access-date=17 March 2023}}</ref> Since 2010 the council has been led by the directly elected [[Mayor of Tower Hamlets]].<ref name=SunTel>{{cite web|last=Gilligan |first=Andrew |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/8068839/PICS-AND-PUBLISH-Tower-Hamlets-extremist-vote-poses-Eds-first-big-election-test.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101018183949/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/8068839/PICS-AND-PUBLISH-Tower-Hamlets-extremist-vote-poses-Eds-first-big-election-test.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 October 2010 |title=Tower Hamlets extremist vote poses Ed Miliband's first big election test |publisher=Sunday Telegraph |date=17 October 2010 |access-date=2010-10-18}}</ref>

===Greater London representation===
Since 2000, the borough lies within the [[City and East (London Assembly constituency)|City and East]] constituency, [[List of London Assembly constituencies|one of fourteen constituencies]] which make up the [[London Assembly]], and is represented by [[Unmesh Desai]] of the Labour Party.

=== UK Parliament ===
For the [[2019 United Kingdom general election|2019 general election]], the borough was split into two [[List of United Kingdom Parliament constituencies|constituencies]]:

* [[Bethnal Green and Bow (UK Parliament constituency)|Bethnal Green & Bow]], represented by [[Rushanara Ali]] (Labour).
* [[Poplar and Limehouse (UK Parliament constituency)|Poplar & Limehouse]], represented by [[Apsana Begum]] (Labour).

Due to the [[2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies]], the subsequent [[2024 United Kingdom general election|general election]] saw Tower Hamlets elect MPs in three constituencies. These are:
* [[Stratford and Bow (UK Parliament constituency)|Stratford and Bow]] (partly in Newham as well as Tower Hamlets), represented by [[Uma Kumaran]] (Labour).
* [[Bethnal Green and Stepney (UK Parliament constituency)|Bethnal Green and Stepney]], represented by Rushanara Ali.
* [[Poplar and Limehouse (UK Parliament constituency)|Poplar and Limehouse]] (under amended boundaries), represented by Apsana Begum.

==Climate==
The data below were taken between 1971 and 2000 at the weather station in [[Greenwich]], around {{convert|1|mi|km|1}} south of the borough's former town hall, at [[Mulberry Place]]:

{{Greenwich weatherbox}}

==Demographics==
[[File:Tower Hamlets population pyramid.svg|thumb|Population pyramid of the Borough of Tower Hamlets in 2021]]
{{Historical populations
| title= Population census
| percentages = 
| 1801 |130871
| 1811 |160718
| 1821 |195941
| 1831 |231534
| 1841 |275250
| 1851 |330548
| 1861 |410101
| 1871 |489653
| 1881 |569205
| 1891 |584936
| 1901 |578143
| 1911 |571438
| 1921 |529114
| 1931 |489956
| 1941 |337774
| 1951 |232860
| 1961 |195883
| 1971 |164699
| 1981 |139989
| 1991 |167985
| 2001 |196121
| 2011 |254096
| 2021 |310300
|footnote=Note:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/data_cube_table_page.jsp?data_theme=T_POP&data_cube=N_TPop&u_id=10057346&c_id=10001043&add=N|title=Tower Hamlets: Total Population |access-date=6 September 2011 |work=A Vision of Britain Through Time |publisher=Great Britain Historical GIS Project }}</ref>
}}

By 1891, Tower Hamlets – roughly the ancient [[Stepney (parish)|civil parish of Stepney]] – was already one of the most populated areas in London. Throughout the nineteenth century, the local population increased by an average of 20% every ten years. The building of the docks intensified land use and caused the last marshy areas in the south of the parish to be drained for housing and industry. In the north of the borough, employment was principally in weaving, small household industries like boot and furniture making and new industrial enterprises like [[Bryant and May]]. The availability of cheap labour drew in many employers. To the south, employment was in the docks and related industries – such as [[Ship chandler|chandler]]y and rope making.

By the middle of the nineteenth century, the district now recognised as Tower Hamlets was characterised by overcrowding and poverty. The construction of the railways caused many more displaced people to settle in the area, and a massive influx of Eastern European [[Jewish people|Jews]] at the latter part of the nineteenth century added to the population growth. This migration peaked at the end of that century and [[population growth]] entered a long decline through to the 1960s, as people moved away eastwards to newer suburbs of London and [[Essex]]. The area's population had neared 600,000 around the end of the nineteenth century, but fell to a low of less than 140,000 by the early 1980s.

The metropolitan boroughs suffered very badly during [[World War II]], during which considerable numbers of houses were destroyed or damaged beyond use due to [[The Blitz|heavy aerial bombing]]. This coincided with a decline in work in the docks, and the closure of many traditional industries. The [[Patrick Abercrombie|Abercrombie Plan for London]] (1944) began an exodus from London towards the [[New towns in the United Kingdom|new towns]].<ref>[http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/data_cube_table_page.jsp?data_theme=T_POP&data_cube=N_TPop&u_id=10056858&c_id=10001043&add=N ''A Vision of Britain through time'']. Retrieved 20 February 2009.</ref>

This decline began to reverse with the establishment of the [[London Docklands Development Corporation]] bringing new industries and housing to the brownfield sites along the river. Also contributing was new immigration from Asia beginning in the 1970s. According to the [[United Kingdom Census 2001|2001 UK Census]] the population of the borough is approximately 196,106. According to the [[Office for National Statistics|ONS]] estimate, the population is 237,900, as of 2010.<ref name=10est>[http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?adminCompAndTimeId=28071%3A345&a=7&b=276772&c=Tower+Hamlets&d=13&r=1&e=13&f=27230&o=131&g=346969&i=1001x1003x1004x1005&l=1813&m=0&s=1315324732592&enc=1 Resident Population Estimates, All Persons - Tower Hamlets] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112033324/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?adminCompAndTimeId=28071%3A345&a=7&b=276772&c=Tower%20Hamlets&d=13&r=1&e=13&f=27230&o=131&g=346969&i=1001x1003x1004x1005&l=1813&m=0&s=1315324732592&enc=1 |date=12 January 2012 }} ONS.</ref>

Crime in the borough increased by 3.5% from 2009 to 2010, according to figures from the [[Metropolitan Police]],<ref>Kleebauer, Alistair. [http://www.eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk/news/crime_went_up_by_3_5_in_tower_hamlets_last_year_according_to_met_figures_1_781216 "Crime went up by 3.5% in Tower Hamlets last year, according to Met figures"]. ''[[East London Advertiser]]''. 23 January 2011. Retrieved 21 July 2011. [https://web.archive.org/web/20120303030254/http://www.eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk/news/crime_went_up_by_3_5_in_tower_hamlets_last_year_according_to_met_figures_1_781216 Archived] 21 July 2011.</ref> having decreased by 24% between 2003/04 and 2007/08.<ref>[http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/idoc.ashx?docid=a4d09192-a9e9-431a-a828-dd44eb892e63&version=-1 "Tower Hamlets Crime and Drugs Reduction Strategy – Year 1 2008/09"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320003149/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/idoc.ashx?docid=a4d09192-a9e9-431a-a828-dd44eb892e63&version=-1 |date=20 March 2012 }}. Tower Hamlets Partnership. Retrieved 21 July 2011.</ref>

Tower Hamlets has one of the smallest [[White British]] populations of any local authority in the United Kingdom. No ethnic group forms a majority of the population; a plurality of residents are white (45%), a little over two thirds of whom are White British. 32% of residents are [[British Bangladeshi|Bangladeshi]], which is the largest ethnic minority group in the borough, with Asians as a whole forming 41% of the population.<ref name=census11>[http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/Documents/Borough_statistics/Ward_profiles/Census-2011/RB-Census2011-Ethnicity-2013-01.pdf Ethnicity in Tower Hamlets] TowerHamlets.gov.uk.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/351-400/367_census_information/2011_census.aspx |title=census_information/2011 |access-date=2 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121208050100/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/351-400/367_census_information/2011_census.aspx |archive-date=8 December 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> A smaller proportion are of Black African and Caribbean descent (7%),<ref name=census11/> with [[Somalis in the United Kingdom|Somalis]] representing the second-largest minority ethnic group.<ref name="LBTH">{{cite web|url=http://www.audit-commission.gov.uk/Products/BVIR/ECC85820-A585-11d7-B311-0060085F8572/TowerHamletsMajorWorks.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080808185020/http://www.audit-commission.gov.uk/Products/BVIR/ECC85820-A585-11d7-B311-0060085F8572/TowerHamletsMajorWorks.pdf |archive-date=2008-08-08 |url-status=live|title=Audit Commission|work=audit-commission.gov.uk}}</ref> Those of mixed ethnic backgrounds form 4%, while other ethnic groups form 2%.<ref name=census11/><ref name="LBTH"/><ref>{{cite web |author=Neighbourhood Statistics |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=276772&c=Tower+Hamlets&d=13&e=15&g=346968&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1222206347798&enc=1&dsFamilyId=47 |title=Tower Hamlets - Ethnic groups - 2001 Census - ONS |website=Neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |access-date=22 October 2010 |archive-date=2 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160502074557/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=276772&c=Tower+Hamlets&d=13&e=15&g=346968&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1222206347798&enc=1&dsFamilyId=47 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The White British proportion was recorded as 31.2% in the 2011 UK Census, a decrease from 42.9% in 2001.{{update inline|date=April 2025}}

In 2018, Tower Hamlets had the lowest life expectancy and the highest rate of [[Cardiovascular disease|heart disease]] of all London boroughs, along with [[London Borough of Newham|Newham]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.genesandhealth.org/bn/node/91|title=Diabetes and heart disease in Bangladeshis and Pakistanis {{!}} East London Genes & Health|website=Genesandhealth.org|language=bn|access-date=2018-07-14}}</ref>

The [[2021 United Kingdom census|2021 census]] found that the borough has one of the lowest proportions of population over the age of 65 or older in England and Wales, at 5.6%.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Age - Census Maps, ONS |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/maps/choropleth/population/age/resident-age-3a/aged-65-years-and-over |access-date=2023-01-06 |website=www.ons.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref>

===Ethnicity===
[[File:Ethnic makeup of Tower Hamlets by single year ages in 2021.svg|thumb|Ethnic makeup of Tower Hamlets by single year ages in 2021]]
[[File:Ethnic demography of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets over time.gif|thumb|Ethnic demography of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets over time]]

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:right"
! rowspan="3" |Ethnic Group
! colspan="14" |Year
|-
! colspan="2" |1966 estimations<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ethnic minorities in Britain |url=https://search.worldcat.org/title/659921 |access-date=2024-06-15 |website=search.worldcat.org |page=42 |language=en}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1971 estimations<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tim Butler |first=Chris Hamnett |title=Ethnicity, class and aspiration |url=https://policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/ethnicity-class-and-aspiration |access-date=2024-06-08 |website=Policy Press |page=66}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1981 estimations<ref name=":02">{{Cite book |title=Ethnicity in the 1991 Census |url=http://archive.org/details/ethnicityin1991c0000unse |volume=3: ''Social Geography and Ethnicity in Britain, Geographical Spread, Spatial Concentration and Internal Migration'' |location=London |publisher=His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) |date=1996 |isbn=978-0-11-691655-6 |oclc=54325016 |via=the [[Internet Archive]]}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1991 census<ref name=":02"/>
! colspan="2" |2001 census<ref>{{cite web |title=2001 Census Key Statistics |url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20160105160709/http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/census-2001-key-statistics/local-authorities-in-england-and-wales/local-authorities-ks06--ethnic-group.xls |publisher=Office of National Statistics |website=webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk |access-date=2021-09-07}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |2011 census<ref name=":36">{{Cite web |title=2011 Census: Ethnic Group, local authorities in England and Wales |url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20160105160709/http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/key-statistics-for-local-authorities-in-england-and-wales/rft-table-ks201ew.xls |publisher=Office of National Statistics |website=webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk |access-date=2021-12-15}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |2021 census<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ethnic group |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS021/editions/2021/versions/1/filter-outputs/d2f0a39a-75b6-4995-b4bd-a5b68ff79027#get-data |publisher=Office of National Statistics |access-date=2022-11-29}}</ref>
|-
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! style="text-align:left" | [[White people in the United Kingdom|White]]: Total 
!–
!95.7%
!–
!91.4%
!108,776
!76.2%
!107,481
!63.9%!! 100,799 !! 51% !! 114,819 !! 45%
!122,266
!39.3%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | White: [[White British|British]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–|| 84,151 || 43% || 79,231 || 31%
|71,177
|22.9%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | White: [[White Irish|Irish]]
|–
|1.4%
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–|| 3,823 || 2% || 3,863 || 2%
|3,567
|1.1%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | White: [[White Gypsy or Irish Traveller|Gypsy or Irish Traveller]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–||  –||  –|| 175 || 0%
|110
|0.0%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | White: [[Romani people|Roma]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|2,225
|0.7%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | White: [[Other White|Other]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–|| 12,825 || 7% || 31,550 || 12%
|45,187
|14.6%
|-
! style="text-align:left" | [[British Asian|Asian or Asian British]]: Total  
!–
!2.3%
!–
!–
!23,234
!16.3%
!46,084
!27.4%!! 75,380 !! 38% !! 104,501 !! 41%
!137,856
!44.5%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Asian or Asian British: [[British Indians|Indian]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|1,378
|
|1,730
| || 3,001 || 2% || 6,787 || 3%
|10,135
|3.3%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Asian or Asian British: [[British Pakistanis|Pakistani]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|990
|
|1,239
| || 1,486 || 1% || 2,442 || 1%
|3,341
|1.1%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Asian or Asian British: [[British Bangladeshis|Bangladeshi]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|18,888
|13.2%
|39,429
|23.5%|| 65,553 || 33% || 81,377 || 32%
|107,333
|34.6%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Asian or Asian British: [[British Chinese|Chinese]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|1,056
|
|1,825
| || 3,573 || 2% || 8,109 || 3%
|10,279
|3.3%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Asian or Asian British: Other Asian 
|–
|–
|–
|–
|922
|
|1,861
| || 1,767 || 1% || 5,786 || 2%
|6,768
|2.2%
|-
! style="text-align:left" | [[Black British people|Black or Black British]]: Total 
!–
!2%
!–
!–
!9,011
!6.3%
!11,940
!7.1%!! 12,742 !! 6% !! 18,629 !! 7%
!22,693
!7.4%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Black or Black British: [[British African-Caribbean people|African]]
|–
|0.2%
|–
|–
|2,363
|
|3,969
| || 6,596 || 3% || 9,495 || 4%
|15,373
|5.0%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Black or Black British: [[British African-Caribbean people|Caribbean]]
|–
|1.8%
|–
|–
|5,270
|
|6,055
| || 5,225 || 3% || 5,341 || 2%
|4,930
|1.6%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Black or Black British: [[Classification of ethnicity in the United Kingdom|Other Black]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|1,378
|
|1,916
| || 921 || 0% || 3,793 || 1%
|2,390
|0.8%
|-
! style="text-align:left" | [[Mixed (United Kingdom ethnicity category)|Mixed or British Mixed]]: Total 
!–
!–
!–
!–
!–
!–
!–
!–!! 4,873 !! 2% !! 10,360 !! 4%
!15,409
!5%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Mixed: White and Black Caribbean 
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–|| 1,568 || 1% || 2,837 || 1%
|3,593
|1.2%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Mixed: White and Black African 
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–|| 789 || 0% || 1,509 || 1%
|2,236
|0.7%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Mixed: White and Asian 
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–|| 1,348 || 1% || 2,961 || 1%
|4,374
|1.4%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Mixed: Other Mixed 
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–|| 1,168 || 1% || 3,053 || 1%
|5,206
|1.7%
|- 5
! style="text-align:left" | Other: Total 
!–
!–
!–
!–
!1,702
!
!2,584
! !! 2,312 !! 1% !! 5,787 !! 3%
!12,082,
!3.9%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Other: Arab 
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–||  –||  –|| 2,573 || 1%
|3,588
|1.2%
|-
| style="text-align:left" | Other: Any other ethnic group 
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
| –|| 2,312 || 1% || 3,214 || 1%
|8,494
|2.7%
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Ethnic minority: Total 
!–
!4.3%
!–
!8.6%
!33,947
!23.8%
!60,608
!36%!! 95,307 !! 49% !! 139,277 !! 55%
!188,040
!60.8%
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Total 
!–
!100%
!–
!100%
!142,723 
!100%
!168,089
!100%!! 196,106 !! 100.00% !! 254,096 !! 100.00%
!310,306
!100%
|}

==Religion and religious sites==
[[File:Religious makeup of Tower Hamlets by single year age groups in 2021.svg|thumb|Religious makeup of Tower Hamlets by single year age groups in 2021]]
[[File:Christ Church exterior, Spitalfields, London, UK - Diliff.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Christ Church, Spitalfields|Christ Church of Spitalfields]]]]
[[File:East London Mosque - panoramio.jpg|thumb|[[East London Mosque]], Whitechapel]]
[[File:LondonBuddhistCentre.jpg|thumb|[[London Buddhist Centre]], Bethnal Green]]

Tower Hamlets is a religious diverse borough with various [[place of worship|places of worship]]. 
According to the 2021 census, 39.9% of the population was [[Islam|Muslim]], 22.3% [[Christianity|Christian]], 2.0% [[Hinduism|Hindu]], 1.0% [[Buddhism|Buddhist]], 0.4% [[Judaism|Jewish]], 0.3% [[Sikhism|Sikh]], 0.5% followed some other religion, 26.6% were not affiliated to a religion and 6.9% did not state their religious views.<ref name=" Home - Office for National Statistics ">{{cite web | title=Religion - Census Maps, ONS | website= Home - Office for National Statistics | url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/maps/choropleth/identity/religion/religion-tb/no-religion | ref={{sfnref | Home - Office for National Statistics }} | access-date=2022-12-11}}</ref>

The following table shows the religious identity of residents residing in Tower Hamlets according to the 2001, 2011 and the 2021 censuses.

{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
! rowspan="2" |Religion
! colspan="2" |1995 estimates<ref>{{Cite web |title=A PROFILE OF BRITISH JEWRY - 1995 |url=https://www.bjpa.org/content/upload/bjpa/a_pr/A%20PROFILE%20OF%20BRITISH%20JEWRY.pdf |page=12}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |2001 census<ref>{{Cite web |title=KS007 - Religion - Nomis - 2001 |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/datasets/ks007 |access-date=2022-10-18 |website=www.nomisweb.co.uk}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |2011 census<ref>{{Cite web |title=KS209EW (Religion) - Nomis - 2011 |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks209ew |access-date=2022-10-18 |website=www.nomisweb.co.uk}}</ref>
! colspan="2" | 2021 census<ref>{{cite web |date=29 Nov 2022 |title=Religion - 2021 census |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS030/editions/2021/versions/1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129115419/https://www.ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS030/editions/2021/versions/1 |archive-date=29 Nov 2022 |access-date=16 Dec 2022 |publisher=Office of National Statistics}}</ref>
|-
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!Holds religious beliefs
!–
!–
!153,692
!78.4
!166,359
!65.5
!206,347
!66.5
|-
|[[Muslim]]
|–
|–
| align="right" |71,389
| align="right" |36.4
| align="right" |87,696
| align="right" |34.5
| align="right" |123,912
| align="right" |39.9
|-
|[[Christians|Christian]]
|–
|–
| align="right" |75,783
| align="right" |38.6
| align="right" |68,808
| align="right" |27.1
| align="right" |69,223
| align="right" |22.3
|-
|[[Hinduism|Hindu]]
|–
|–
| align="right" |1,544
| align="right" |0.8
| align="right" |4,200
| align="right" |1.7
| align="right" |6,298
| align="right" |2.0
|-
|[[Buddhism|Buddhist]]
|–
|–
| align="right" |1,938
| align="right" |1.0
| align="right" |2,726
| align="right" |1.1
| align="right" |2,961
| align="right" |1.0
|-
|[[Jews|Jewish]]
|6,000
|3.7%
| align="right" |1,831
| align="right" |0.9
| align="right" |1,283
| align="right" |0.5
| align="right" |1,341
| align="right" |0.4
|-
|[[Sikhism|Sikh]]
|–
|–
| align="right" |682
| align="right" |0.3
| align="right" |821
| align="right" |0.3
| align="right" |966
| align="right" |0.3
|-
|Other religion
|–
|–
| align="right" |525
| align="right" |0.3
| align="right" |825
| align="right" |0.3
| align="right" |1,652
| align="right" |0.5
|-
!No religion
!–
!–
! align="right" |27,823
! align="right" |14.2
! align="right" |48,648
! align="right" |19.1
! align="right" |82,635
! align="right" |26.6
|-
!Religion not stated
!–
!–
! align="right" |14,591
! align="right" |7.4
! align="right" |39,089
! align="right" |15.4
! align="right" |21,318
! align="right" |6.9
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!Total population
!–
!100%
! align="right" |196,106
! align="right" |100.0
! align="right" |254,096
! align="right" |100.0
! align="right" |310,300
! align="right" |100.0
|}

===Places of worship===

There are 21 active churches, affiliated with the [[Church of England]], which include [[Christ Church, Spitalfields|Christ Church of Spitalfields]], [[St Paul's Church, Shadwell|St Paul's Church of Shadwell]] and [[St Dunstan's, Stepney|St Dunstan's of Stepney]];<ref>[http://www.london.anglican.org/ChurchList_07 Church List: Tower Hamlets] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090419145551/http://www.london.anglican.org/ChurchList_07 |date=19 April 2009 }} The Diocese of London. Retrieved on 27 March 2009.</ref> and there are also churches of many other Christian denominations.

There are more than 40 mosques and Islamic centres in Tower Hamlets.<ref name="auto"/> The most famous is the [[East London Mosque]], one of the first mosques in Britain allowed to broadcast the [[adhan]],<ref name="auto1"/><ref>{{cite book|last1=Eade|first1=John|editor1-last=Metcalf|editor1-first=Barbara Daly|title=Making Muslim Space in North America and Europe|date=1996|publisher=[[University of California Press]]|location=Berkeley|isbn=0520204042|url=https://archive.org/details/makingmuslimspac0000unse|access-date=19 April 2015|chapter=Nationalism, Community, and the Islamization of Space in London|quote=The mosque committee was determined from the outset, moreover, to remind local people of the building's religious function as loudly as possible. As one of the few mosques in Europe permitted to broadcast calls to prayer (azan), the mosque soon found itself at the center of a public debate about "noise pollution" when local non-Muslim residents began to protest.|url-access=registration}}</ref> and one of the biggest Islamic centres in [[Europe]]. The Maryam Centre, a part of the mosque, is the biggest Islamic centre for women in Europe. Opened in 2013, it features a main prayer hall, ameliorated funeral services, education facilities, a fitness centre and support services.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mcrlive.net/about.php |title=mcrlive.net about |access-date=15 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090826162049/http://www.mcrlive.net/about.php |archive-date=26 August 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.islamicforumeurope.com/live/ife.php|title=Islamic Forum of Europe|work=islamicforumeurope.com|access-date=15 August 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080815211600/http://www.islamicforumeurope.com/live/ife.php|archive-date=15 August 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mcrlive.net/images/prog2lrg.jpg |title=mcrlive.net images |access-date=15 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327120938/http://www.mcrlive.net/images/prog2lrg.jpg |archive-date=27 March 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
The East London Mosque has been visited by several notable people, including [[Prince Charles]], [[Boris Johnson]], many foreign government officials and world-renowned imams and Muslim scholars.<ref name="charles">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1671797.stm Prince joins Ramadan ceremony] BBC website</ref> Other notable mosques are [[Brick Lane Mosque]], Darul Ummah Masjid, Esha Atul Islam Mosque, Markazi Masjid, Stepney Shahjalal Mosque and Poplar Central Mosque.<ref>
[http://mosques.muslimsinbritain.org/show-browse.php?borough=Tower+Hamlets Mosques in Tower Hamlets], Muslimsinbritain.org. Retrieved 27 June 2011.</ref>

Other notable religious buildings include the [[Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue]], the Congregation of Jacob Synagogue, the [[London Buddhist Centre]], the Hindu Pragati Sangha Temple, and the Gurdwara Sikh Sangat. The [[Great Synagogue of London]], which was destroyed during the Second World War, is located just outside the borough's boundaries, in the [[City of London|City]].

==Economy==
[[File:London MMB S6 Canary Wharf.jpg|thumb|upright|[[One Canada Square]], the [[List of tallest buildings in Europe|16th-tallest building in Europe]] and currently the [[List of tallest buildings in the United Kingdom|third tallest completed building in the United Kingdom]], the tallest being [[The Shard]]]]
[[File:Whitechapel market.JPG|thumb|left|The market area in [[Whitechapel]]]]
The borough hosts the world headquarters of many global financial businesses, employing some of the highest paid workers in London, but also has high rates of long-term illness and premature death and the 2nd highest unemployment rate in London.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.londonspovertyprofile.org.uk/indicators/boroughs/tower-hamlets/|title=Poverty Indicator - Tower Hamlets|work=Londons Poverty Profile}}</ref>

[[Canary Wharf]] is home to many of the world and European headquarters of numerous major banks and professional services firms including <!-- Please do not add any further examples to this list without discussing on the Talk page, this is supposed to be a selection of notable names not a comprehensive list.-->[[Barclays]], [[Citigroup]], [[Clifford Chance]], [[Credit Suisse]], [[Infosys]], [[Fitch Ratings]], [[HSBC]], [[J.P. Morgan & Co|J.P. Morgan]], [[KPMG]], [[MetLife]], [[Morgan Stanley]], [[Royal Bank of Canada|RBC]], [[Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom|Skadden]], [[State Street Corporation|State Street]] and [[Thomson Reuters]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chinaeconomicreview.com/china-eye/2009_08_31/China_to_invest_in_Canary_Wharf.html|title=China to invest in Canary Wharf|access-date=11 November 2010|publisher=China Economic Review|date=31 August 2009}}{{Dead link|date=July 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> [[Savills]], a top-end estate agency recommends that 'extreme luxury' and ultra-modern residential properties are to be found at Canary Riverside, West India Quay, Pan Peninsula and Neo Bankside. Tower Hamlets is the earliest borough where the first skyscrapers were built and since 2014 it saw the completion of over seventy skyscrapers, more than any other place in the UK <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1969098/uk-city-dubbed-manhattan-600-skyscrapers/amp | title=UK city dubbed 'another Manhattan' as 600 skyscrapers poised to go up &#124; UK &#124; News &#124; Express.co.uk }}</ref>

The [[End Child Poverty coalition]] published that Tower Hamlets has the highest proportion of children in poverty of any local authority in the UK at 49% (and as high as 54.5% in the Bethnal Green South ward).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/why-end-child-poverty/poverty-in-your-area|title=Poverty in your area|publisher=End Child Poverty|date=October 2014|access-date=4 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141031001323/http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/why-end-child-poverty/poverty-in-your-area|archive-date=31 October 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Surveys and interviews conducted by the Child Poverty Action group for the council found that the [[Universal Credit]] system was deeply unpopular with low-income families in the borough and that most claimants who have used the system found it difficult to understand and experienced frequent payment errors.<ref>{{cite news|last=Butler|first=Patrick|date=2019-10-16|title=Universal credit 'leaving families depressed' in poorest London borough|language=en-GB|work=[[The Guardian]]|url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/oct/16/universal-credit-leaving-families-depressed--poorest-london-borough-tower-hamlets|access-date=2020-05-05|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

==Media==
The ''[[East London Advertiser]]'' and ''[[Social Streets]]'' provide local news in print and online. There are also several [[Bengali language|Bengali]] print and online newspapers published in the borough.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Janomot |url=https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/leisure_and_culture/Bangladesh-at-50/Janomot.aspx#:~:text=Janomot%20was%20launched%20on%2021,Mass%20Upsurge%20in%20February%201969. |access-date=2024-02-16 |website=www.towerhamlets.gov.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fergusson |first=Rachel |date=2024-02-14 |title=Janomot: The UK's oldest Bengali newspaper |url=https://whitechapellondon.co.uk/janomot-bengali-newspaper-syed-nahas-pasha-history/ |access-date=2024-02-16 |website=Whitechapel LDN |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Naylor Marlow |first=Felix |date=2024-04-25 |title=Bengali press fighting to keep Bangla alive and relevant |url=https://whitechapellondon.co.uk/bengali-press-fight-to-keep-bangla-alive-relevant-younger-generation/ |access-date=2024-05-08 |website=Whitechapel LDN |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==Education==
{{See also|List of schools in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets}}
[[File:QMUL-Blizard-building.jpg|thumb|The [[Blizard Building]] of [[Queen Mary University of London]], housing the Institute of Cell and Molecular Sciences]]
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is the [[local education authority]] for state schools within the borough.<ref>See [http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/1-50/17_schools/schools_in_tower_hamlets.aspx list of education authority schools] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127085620/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/1-50/17_schools/schools_in_tower_hamlets.aspx |date=27 January 2012 }}.</ref> In January 2008, there were 19,890 primary-school pupils and 15,262 secondary-school pupils attending state schools there.<ref>[http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/901-950/916_borough_statistics/pupil_projections.aspx "Pupil projections"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929103657/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/901-950/916_borough_statistics/pupil_projections.aspx |date=29 September 2011 }}, [[Tower Hamlets Council]]. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
*See also: [http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s001012/index.shtml "DfE: Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics, January 2011"], [[Department for Education]], data released on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2011.</ref> [[Private schools in the United Kingdom|Private-school]] pupils account for 2.4 per cent of schoolchildren in the borough.<ref>[https://www.economist.com/blogs/blighty/2011/06/private-schools "Private schools: capital spending"], ''[[The Economist]]'', 22 June 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2011. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110708020050/http://www.economist.com/blogs/blighty/2011/06/private-schools Archived] 11 July 2011.</ref> In 2010, 51.8 per cent of pupils achieved 5 A*–C [[GCSE]]s including Mathematics and English – the highest results in the borough's history – compared to the national average of 53.4 per cent.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/education/school_tables/secondary/10/html/gcse_211.stm "Secondary schools and colleges in Tower Hamlets"], [[BBC News]], 12 January 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2011. See also:
*[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-12150147 "Guide: Secondary league tables"], [[BBC News]], 12 January 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
*[https://www.theguardian.com/education/table/2011/jan/11/tower-hamlets-gcse-alevel-tables "Tower Hamlets: GCSE and A-level results for 2009-2010"], ''[[The Guardian]]'', 12 January 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
*For highest results, see: [http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/news/council_news/august/tower_hamlets_scores_record_gc.aspx "Tower Hamlets scores record GCSE results"], [[Tower Hamlets London Borough Council]], 25 August 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2010. [https://archive.today/20110711171813/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/news/council_news/august/tower_hamlets_scores_record_gc.aspx Archived] 11 July 2011.</ref> Seventy-four per cent achieved 5 A*–C GCSEs for all subjects (the same as the English average);<ref>[http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000963/sfr30-2010t317.xls GCSE information] ([[XLS (file format)|XLS]]) (364 KB). [[Department for Education]]. Table 16. 21 October 2010. Retrieved 21 July 2011. See [http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000963/index.shtml publication page].</ref> the figure in 1997 was 26 per cent.<ref>Cavendish, Camilla. [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/article1115572.ece "You don't need the middle class"]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}. ''[[The Times]]''. 4 March 2003. Retrieved 21 July 2011.</ref> The percentage of pupils on [[free school meal]]s in the borough is the highest in [[England and Wales]].<ref>[http://www.londonspovertyprofile.org.uk/indicators/topics/low-educational-outcomes/attainment-at-age-11/ "Attainment at age 11 by borough"], londonspovertyprofile.org.uk, 13 July 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2011.</ref> In 2007, the council rejected proposals to build a [[Goldman Sachs]]-sponsored [[Academy (English school)|academy]].<ref>Garner, Richard. [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/tower-hamlets-rejects-goldman-sachs-offer-to-sponsor-academy-454007.html "Tower Hamlets rejects Goldman Sachs' offer to sponsor academy"]{{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}, ''[[The Independent]]'', 21 June 2007. Retrieved 11 July 2011.</ref>

Schools in the borough have high levels of [[racial segregation]]. ''[[The Times]]'' reported in 2006 that 47 per cent of secondary schools were exclusively non-white, and that 33 per cent had a white majority.<ref>Frean, Alexandra. [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article598947.ece "Race quotas 'needed to end divide in schools'"]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}. ''[[The Times]]''. 12 October 2006. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
*See also: [https://archive.today/20130505065244/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23398417-schools-in-the-east-end-dividing-by-race.do "Schools in the East End dividing by race"]. ''[[Evening Standard]]''. 29 May 2007. Retrieved 21 July 2011.</ref> About 60 per cent of pupils entering primary and secondary school are Bangladeshi.<ref>Johnston, Ron; Burgess, Simon; Harris, Richard; Wilson, Deborah. [http://www.bristol.ac.uk/cmpo/publications/papers/2006/wp155.pdf "'Sleep-Walking Towards Segregation?' The Changing Ethnic Composition of English Schools, 1997-2003: An Entry Cohort Analysis"]. Centre for Market and Public Organisation. [[University of Bristol]]. September 2006. p. 6.</ref> 78% of primary-school pupils speak [[English as a foreign or second language|English as a second language]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/8194464.stm "More pupils can claim free meals"], [[BBC News]], 11 August 2009. Retrieved 11 July 2011.</ref>

[[File:Idea store 4.jpg|thumb|upright|Whitechapel Idea Store (library)]]
The council runs several [[Idea Store]]s in the borough, which combine traditional library and computer services with other resources, and are designed to attract more diverse members.<ref name="SchnappBattles2014">{{cite book|author1=[[Jeffrey Schnapp]]|author2=Matthew Battles|title=[[Library Beyond the Book]] |year= 2014|publisher=[[Harvard University Press]]|isbn=978-0-674-72503-4}}</ref> The flagship [[Whitechapel Idea Store|Whitechapel store]] was designed by [[David Adjaye]],<ref>Sudjic, Deyan. [https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2005/nov/06/architecture.communities "Just give him some space"]. ''[[The Guardian]]''. 6 November 2005. Retrieved 21 July 2011.</ref> and cost £16 million to build.<ref>[http://www.ideastore.co.uk/en/articles/about_us_faqs_admin_maintenance "Administration and Maintenance"]. [[Idea Store]]. Retrieved 21 July 2011. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110930061232/http://www.ideastore.co.uk/en/articles/about_us_faqs_admin_maintenance Archived] 21 July 2011.</ref>

===Universities===
* [[Queen Mary University of London]], a constituent college of the [[University of London]], which includes [[Barts and The London, Queen Mary's School of Medicine and Dentistry]]
* [[London Metropolitan University]]
* [[UCL School of Management]], located in [[One Canada Square]], [[Canary Wharf]]
* [[London Interdisciplinary School|The London Interdisciplinary School]], located on [[Whitechapel Road]]
* [[Northeastern University – London|Northeastern University - London]], located in [[St Katharine Docks|St, Katherines docks]]

===Further education colleges===
* [[Tower Hamlets College]], which in 2017 merged with [[Hackney College|Hackney Community College]] and [[Redbridge College]] to form New City College, the second largest college in London with over 20,000 students.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ncclondon.ac.uk/|title=New City College|access-date=30 August 2017}}</ref>

===Schools and sixth form colleges===
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Bishop Challoner Catholic School]]
* [[Bow School]]
* [[Central Foundation Girls' School]]
* [[George Green's School]]
* [[Ibrahim College]]
* [[Jamiatul Ummah School and Sixth Form]]
* [[Langdon Park School]]
* [[Lansbury Lawrence School]]
* [[London East Academy]] ([[East London Mosque]])
* [[London Enterprise Academy]]
* Mazahirul uloom London
* [[Morpeth School]]
* [[Mulberry Academy Shoreditch]]
* [[Mulberry School for Girls]]
* [[Oaklands School]]
* [[St Paul's Way Trust School]]
* [[Stepney All Saints School]]
* [[Stepney Green Maths, Computing & Science College]]
* [[Swanlea School, Business and Enterprise College]]
* [[Wapping High School]]
{{Div col end}}

===Volunteering===
* Volunteer Centre Tower Hamlets helps residents find volunteering work and provides support to organisations involving students volunteers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vcth.org.uk |title=Volunteer Centre Tower Hamlets |website=Vcth.org.uk |access-date=22 October 2010}}</ref>

==Sports==
{{See also|Tower Hamlets parks and open spaces}}
[[File:Mile End Stadium, Rhodeswell Road, E14 - geograph.org.uk - 787201.jpg|thumb|[[Mile End Stadium]]]]
[[Mile End Stadium]] within [[Mile End Park]] hosts an [[Athletics (sport)|athletics]] [[stadium]] and facilities for [[association football|football]] and [[basketball]]. Two football clubs, [[Tower Hamlets F.C.]] (formerly Bethnal Green United) and [[Sporting Bengal United F.C.]], are based there, playing in the [[Essex Senior Football League]].

John Orwell Sports Centre in [[Wapping]] is the base of [[Wapping Hockey Club]]. In 2014, the club secured over £300,000 of investment to designate the centre a hockey priority facility.<ref>Gilmour, Rod (3 March 2014) [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/hockey/10673497/Wappings-hockey-revolution-bears-fruits-as-London-club-goes-business-savvy.html "Wapping's Hockey Revolution Bears Fruits as London Club Goes Business Savvy"]. ''The Daily Telegraph''. Retrieved on 24 August 2014.</ref>

A leisure centre including a swimming pool at [[Mile End Stadium]] was completed in 2006. Other pools are located at [[St George in the East (parish)|St Georges]], [[Limehouse]] and [[York Hall]], in [[Bethnal Green]]. York Hall is also a regular venue for boxing tournaments, and in May 2007 a public [[spa]] was opened in the building's renovated [[Victorian Turkish baths|Victorian-style Turkish baths]].<ref>[http://www.goodspaguide.co.uk/spas/reviews/203-Spa-London.cfm "Spa London, Bethnal Green - 3 bubbles"], The Good Spa Guide. Retrieved 27 June 2011.</ref>

KO Muay Thai Gym<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.komuaythai.com|title=KO Gym - Combat Academy - Muay Thai - Kick Boxing - London|website=Komuaythai.com|access-date=23 February 2021|archive-date=25 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125071040/http://www.komuaythai.com/|url-status=dead}}</ref> and Apolaki Krav Maga & Dirty Boxing Academy.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.apolakikravmagalondon.com/ |title=Apolaki Krav Maga London |access-date=16 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905100952/http://www.apolakikravmagalondon.com/ |archive-date=5 September 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> in Bethnal Green are the main sources for martial arts and combat sports training in the area.

The unusual Green Bridge, opened in 2000, links sections of Mile End Park that would otherwise be divided by Mile End Road. The bridge contains gardens, water features and trees around the path.<ref>[http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/451-500/461_parks/mile_end_park/history_and_background.aspx "History and Background"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120323062041/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgsl/451-500/461_parks/mile_end_park/history_and_background.aspx |date=23 March 2012 }}. [[Tower Hamlets London Borough Council]]. Retrieved 21 July 2011. See PDF files.</ref>

===Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park===
{{Main|Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park}}
{{Update section|date=December 2021|reason=Requires a rewrite in past tense}}
Tower Hamlets was one of five host boroughs for the [[2012 Summer Olympics]];<ref>[http://www.economist.com/node/16647677 "The 2012 Olympics: The greatest sideshow on Earth"], ''[[The Economist]]'', 22 July 2010. Retrieved 13 July 2011.</ref> the [[Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park]] was constructed in the [[Lea Valley]]. As such, the borough's involvement in the Olympics includes:

* A small part of the Olympic Park is in [[Bow, London|Bow]], a district of the borough, which makes the borough a host borough. 
* The energy centre (King's Yard Energy Centre) of the Olympic Park is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, and gives energy to all the venues, none of which are located in Tower Hamlets. 
* The world square and the London 2012 mega-store is also in the borough. The world square is for spectators, who can buy food or drink; the world's biggest McDonald's is in the world square in Tower Hamlets. 
* The London 2012 mega-store provides official gifts and souvenirs. High Street, which is the main road to the Olympic park from west and central London, combines [[Whitechapel Road]], [[Mile End Road]] and [[Bow Road]]. 
* [[Victoria Park, Tower Hamlets|Victoria Park]], in Tower Hamlets, is an important part of the Olympics because spectators without tickets can watch the games on big screens (London live 2012); that park is less than a mile away from the Olympic park. The main spectator cycle park is located in Victoria park. One of the entrances to the Olympic park is in Tower Hamlets, and is called the Victoria gate.
* A few schools in Tower Hamlets have taken part in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic and Paralympic games as well as all the other host boroughs. The section of the Olympic Park in Tower Hamlets will be named "Sweetwater", one of the 5 new neighbourhoods after the games. Sweetwater will cover Tower Hamlets' part of the Olympic Park near [[Old Ford]]. 
* The Olympic marathon was planned to run through the borough but later ran through the City and [[Westminster]]. However, the [[U-turn]] was located in the borough near [[The Tower of London]].
* [[Danny Boyle]], the artistic director of the [[London 2012 opening ceremony]], lives in [[Mile End]].
* A large number of Tower Hamlets' residents became Olympic volunteers; Tower Hamlets ranks second, after neighbouring borough [[Newham]], for the number of volunteers from the borough.

==Leisure==

===Parks in Tower Hamlets===
{{Main|Tower Hamlets parks and open spaces}}
[[File:MileEnd Park.JPG|thumb|right|[[Mile End Park]]]]
There are over one hundred parks and open spaces in Tower Hamlets ranging from the large [[Victoria Park, Tower Hamlets|Victoria Park]], to numerous small gardens and squares. The second largest, [[Mile End Park]], separated from Victoria Park by a canal, includes ''The Green Bridge'' that carries the park across the busy Mile End Road. One of the smallest at 1.19 ha is the decorative [[Grove Hall Park]] off Fairfield Road, Bow, which was once the site of a lunatic asylum.<ref>Tower Hamlets Council. AZ of Parks. [http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/leisure_and_culture/parks_and_open_spaces/a_-_z_of_parks.aspx Retrieved 4 July 2014.]</ref> Other parks include [[Altab Ali Park]], [[Mudchute|Mudchute Park]] and [[Grove Hall Park]].

===Museums===
[[File:Standbeeld Robert Milligan Museum of London Docklands.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Museum of London Docklands]]]]
* [[Island History Trust]]
* [[Museum of London Docklands]]
* [[Ragged School Museum]]
* [[V&A Museum of Childhood]]
* [[Whitechapel Art Gallery]]
* [[Vagina Museum]]

==Transport==

=== Road ===
As with most of the transport network in Tower Hamlets, several roads radiate across the Borough from the City of London.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.openstreetmap.org/relation/51805|title=London Borough of Tower Hamlets|website=[[OpenStreetMap]]|date=25 October 2023 }}</ref> East–west routes include:

* the [[A11 road (England)|A11]], which runs from [[Aldgate]] to the A12 near [[Stratford, London|Stratford]], passing through [[Whitechapel]], [[Mile End]], and [[Bow, London|Bow]].
* the [[A13 road (England)|A13]] (''[[Commercial Road]]/[[East India Dock Road]]''), which runs from Aldgate to [[Poplar, London|Poplar]]. East of Poplar, the route continues towards [[Barking, London|Barking]], [[Tilbury]], and [[Southend-on-Sea|Southend]].
* the A1203 (''[[The Highway (London)|The Highway]]''), which runs from [[Tower Hill]], through [[Wapping]], to [[Limehouse]] and [[Canary Wharf]].

There are several north–south routes in the Borough,<ref name=":0" /> including:

* the [[A12 road (England)|A12]], which begins at the A13 in Poplar and runs along the eastern edge of the Borough. The route carries traffic towards the [[M11 motorway|M11]] (for [[London Stansted Airport|Stansted Airport]] {{Rint|air}}), [[Romford]], and destinations in [[Essex]], including [[Chelmsford]] and [[Harwich International Port]]. The route ultimately runs to [[Lowestoft]] in [[Suffolk]].
* the London Inner Ring Road from Old Street to Tower Bridge.

There are three [[River Thames]] road crossings in the Borough.<ref name=":0" /> From west-east, these are:

* [[Tower Bridge]] (Tower Hill to [[Southwark]] and [[Bermondsey]])
* [[Rotherhithe Tunnel]] (the A13 at Limehouse to [[Canada Water]])
* [[Blackwall Tunnel]] (the A12 and A13 at Poplar to [[Greenwich]])

=== Rail ===
[[File:TfL Route 309 on Ettrick Street, Tower Hamlets.jpg|alt=Optare Solo bus on route 309 passing Aberfeldy Estate.|thumb|Bus on route 309 in Poplar.]]
The principal rail services commence in the City at [[Fenchurch Street station|Fenchurch Street]], with one stop at [[Limehouse railway station|Limehouse]]; and [[Liverpool Street station|Liverpool Street]], with stops at [[Bethnal Green railway station|Bethnal Green]] and [[Cambridge Heath railway station|Cambridge Heath]]. The [[East London Line]] passes from north to south through Tower Hamlets with stations at Whitechapel, Shadwell and Wapping. One entrance to [[Shoreditch High Street railway station|Shoreditch High Street]] station is inside the Borough. And the [[North London Line]] passes the very north in Tower Hamlets with one entrance to [[Hackney Wick railway station|Hackney Wick]] inside the Borough. Since 2022, the [[Elizabeth line]] has two stops at [[Whitechapel station|Whitechapel]] and [[Canary Wharf railway station|Canary Wharf]].
=== Metro ===
The [[Docklands Light Railway]] was built to serve the docklands areas of the borough, with a principal terminus at [[Bank–Monument station|Bank]] and [[Tower Gateway DLR station|Tower Gateway]]. An interchange at [[Poplar DLR station|Poplar]] allows trains to proceed north to [[Stratford DLR station|Stratford]], south via [[Canary Wharf DLR station|Canary Wharf]] towards [[Lewisham DLR station|Lewisham]], and east either via the [[London City Airport]] to [[Woolwich Arsenal station|Woolwich Arsenal]] or via [[ExCeL London]] to [[Beckton]].

Three [[London Underground]] services cross the district, serving a total of 8 stations: the [[District line|District]] and [[Hammersmith and City]] lines share track between [[Aldgate East tube station|Aldgate East]] and [[Barking tube station|Barking]]. The [[Central line (London Underground)|Central line]] has stations at [[Bethnal Green tube station|Bethnal Green]] and [[Mile End tube station|Mile End]] - where there is an interchange to the District line. The [[Jubilee line]] has one stop at [[Canary Wharf tube station|Canary Wharf]].

===List of stations===
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Aldgate East station]]
* [[All Saints DLR station]]
* [[Bethnal Green railway station]]
* [[Bethnal Green tube station]]
* [[Blackwall DLR station]]
* [[Bow Church station]]
* [[Bow Road station]]
* [[Bromley-by-Bow station]]
* [[Cambridge Heath railway station]]
* [[Canary Wharf DLR station]]
* [[Canary Wharf railway station]]
* [[Canary Wharf tube station]]
* [[Crossharbour DLR station]]
* [[Devons Road DLR station]]
* [[East India DLR station]]
* [[Hackney Wick railway station]]
* [[Heron Quays DLR station]]
* [[Island Gardens DLR station]]
* [[Langdon Park DLR station]]
* [[Limehouse station]] (Rail and DLR)
* [[Mile End tube station|Mile End station]]
* [[Mudchute DLR station]]
* [[Poplar DLR station]]
* [[Shadwell railway station]]
* [[Shadwell DLR station]]
* [[Shoreditch High Street railway station]]
* [[South Quay DLR station]]
* [[Stepney Green tube station]]
* [[Tower Gateway DLR station]]
* [[Tower Hill tube station]]
* [[Wapping railway station]]
* [[West India Quay DLR station]]
* [[Westferry DLR station]]
* [[Whitechapel station]]
{{Div col end}}

In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: underground, light rail, 24.0% of all residents aged 16–74; on foot, 7.5%; bus, minibus or coach, 7.5%; driving a car or van, 6.9%; bicycle, 4.1%; train, 3.8%; work mainly at or from home, 2.3%.<ref>{{cite web|title=2011 Census: QS701EW Method of travel to work, local authorities in England and Wales|url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/key-statistics-and-quick-statistics-for-wards-and-output-areas-in-england-and-wales/rft-qs701ew.xls|publisher=Office for National Statistics|access-date=23 November 2013}} Percentages are of all residents aged 16-74 including those not in employment. Respondents could only pick one mode, specified as the journey's longest part by distance.</ref>

Tower Hamlets Borough Council operates a [[walking bus]] service for school pupils on agreed routes with some running every school day while and others once or twice a week depending on the number of adult volunteers involved.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/leisure_and_culture/walking/cycling_and_walking_to_school/cycling_and_walking_to_school.aspx|title=Cycling and walking to school|website=Towerhamlets.gov.uk|access-date=8 February 2019}}</ref>

==Coat of arms==
The coat of arms of the Borough of Tower Hamlets was granted by the [[College of Arms]] in 1965<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.heraldry-wiki.com/wiki/Tower_Hamlets|title=Tower Hamlets|website=Heraldry of the World|access-date=2023-12-28}}</ref> and is composed of elements representing the maritime trades and heritage of the area. The strong links to the former [[Stepney#Manor and Ancient Parish|manor and ancient parish of Stepney]] and to [[St Dunstan's, Stepney|St Dunstan's church]] in Stepney known as the ''Church of the High Seas'' are represented. The manor and parish did not have a coat of arms but the (smaller) subsequent [[Metropolitan Borough of Stepney]] did, and elements from that have been incorporated into the current design.

The shield features:
* A ship, representing the maritime trades.
* A sprig of [[morus nigra|mulberry]] and a weaver's shuttle, representing the silk and other weaving activities once so important to the borough. The use of mulberry also honours the [[Huguenots|Huguenot]] refugees who first brought silk weaving to Tower Hamlets, and to England generally.<ref>{{Cite news |last=White |first=Anna |date=2018-03-19 |title=How London's newest developments are harnessing the history they were built on |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/uk/londons-newest-developments-harnessing-history-built/ |access-date=2023-06-29 |issn=0307-1235}}</ref> Many council staff wear mulberry coloured (claret\maroon) uniforms.
* Blacksmith's fire tongs, the emblem of [[St Dunstan]], the patron saint of Stepney, who had close ties to the area. Dunstan famously grabbed the devil by the nose with his tongs when he tried to tempt Dunstan.
The crest features:
* A silver representation of the (originally whitewashed) [[White Tower (Tower of London)|White Tower]] of the [[Tower of London]], to which the original [[Tower division|Tower Hamlets (or Tower division)]] was intimately linked.
* Crossed gold anchors, again representing the area's position in the Port of London.
Supporters:
* A [[Hippocampus (mythology)|seahorse]], representing the maritime trades.
* A [[Talbot (dog)|talbot dog]], representing the [[Isle of Dogs]].
Motto: ''From great things to greater'', an anglicised version of the Latin motto on the arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Stepney.

The council's logo is used as an alternative to the coat of arms. It features a simplified White Tower, above a stylised representation of the Thames. This was a development of the previous logo of the White Tower, in mulberry and presented in a three-tower form, as if seen from certain quarters which obscured the furthest corner tower—and a geographically accurate representation of the local part of the Thames. This older version is still seen on many street signs.

==Freedom of the Borough==
The following people and military units have received the [[Freedom of the City|Freedom of the Borough]] of Tower Hamlets.

{{Incomplete list|date=July 2020}}

===Individuals===
* [[Commander (Royal Navy)|Commander]] John Ludgate: 25 May 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk/news/queen-s-deputy-lieutenant-john-ludgate-receives-first-freedom-of-3594328|title=Queen's deputy lieutenant John Ludgate receives first 'Freedom of Tower Hamlets' of the 21st century|first=Mike|last=Brooke|date=25 May 2018|website=East London Advertiser}}</ref>

===Military units===
* [[HMS Crane|HMS ''Crane'']], [[Royal Navy|RN]]: 1942.
* [[Tower Hamlets Engineers|114 (1st London) Army Engineer Regiment]] ([[Army Reserve (United Kingdom)|TA]]): 27 April 1961.<ref>[https://www.steppingforwardlondon.org/civic-honours-granted-by-the-london-boroughs.html Civic Honours granted by the London Boroughs] ''www.steppingforwardlondon.org''</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|London}}
* [[List of public art in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets]]
* [[Mayor of Tower Hamlets]]
* [[Tower Hamlets London Borough Council]]

== Notes ==
{{NoteFoot}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Sources ===
{{refbegin}}
* Cornwell, Jocelyn (1984). [https://books.google.com/books?id=UtQ9AAAAIAAJ ''Hard-Earned Lives: Accounts of Health and Illness from East London''], Tavistock Publications.
* Dancygier, Rafaela M. (2010). [https://books.google.com/books?id=vTRzzVMzhScC ''Immigration and Conflict in Europe''], [[Cambridge University Press]].
* Hill, Dave. [https://www.theguardian.com/uk/davehillblog/2010/sep/17/tower-hamlets-lutfur-rahman-politics-poverty-faith  "Tower Hamlets: politics, poverty and faith"], ''[[The Guardian]]'', 19 September 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
{{london encyclopedia}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{commons category|London Borough of Tower Hamlets}}
* [http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk Tower Hamlets Council]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080725012922/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/data/in-your-ward/ LBTH ''find your councillor'']
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080409101559/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/data/thp/channels/thp/resources/ward+data+report+2005+-+final1.pdf LBTH Ward data report (2005)]—Information on Tower Hamlets at the ward level

{{LB Tower Hamlets}}
{{London}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:London Borough Of Tower Hamlets}}
[[Category:London Borough of Tower Hamlets| ]]
[[Category:1965 establishments in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Local authorities adjoining the River Thames|Tower Hamlets]]
[[Category:London boroughs|Tower Hamlets]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1965]]