Bordering the City of London, Hackney has experienced the fastest growth in employment and businesses of all London boroughs, particularly in the creative and professional sectors. Employment in the borough is heavily concentrated in professional, scientific and technical services (twice the national average) and the ICT sector (three times the national average). Other large employment sectors include food services and public sector services including health, education and local administration. Hackney’s businesses are mostly clustered in Shoreditch and Hoxton.
Dalston is Hackney’s largest town centre, known for its cultural and social diversity and a thriving creative sector. Hackney Central is the civic and cultural heart of Hackney, a key hub transport hub and a growing town centre with a diverse retail sector. Shoreditch, which lies just north-east of Hackney’s border with the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End. It is an important cultural and entertainment centre that is home to a large concentration of creative industries as well as restaurants, bars, night clubs and licensed premises. The area has attracted an influx of new businesses and residents, and has recently seen major large scale commercial developments. The south part of Hoxton also boasts a vibrant art scene with a large number of bars, nightclubs, restaurants and art galleries. The area’s creative industry includes design firms, recording, production and publishing companies and a range of ICT businesses. For the past decade, Shoreditch and south Hoxton have one of London’s strongest business start-up rates and as a result the age profile of businesses is reported to be relatively young, with around 70% of businesses being less than five years old.
Waltham Forest is located on the edge of inner London, alongside the Lea Valley with excellent transport connections to central London. The borough has a network of town centres - Leyton and Leytonstone in the south, Walthamstow in the centre and Chingford in the north - and major strategic industrial sites at Blackhorse Lane and Argall Trading estates. Dominant employment sectors consist of retail, health and social care, education, administration and business services. The construction sector is also relatively large. The borough has significantly benefited from investment in Olympic legacy projects and the movement of the capital’s economic activity eastwards. Key growth sectors in the borough include the creative industry, construction and professional services.
Newham is located in the heart of east London; it is bounded by the River Lea to its west and the North Circular Road to its east. The borough contains most of the Olympic Park including the London Stadium and is also home to London City Airport, London City Hall, Excel Exhibition Centre and Westfield Stratford City shopping centre. Stratford is the largest and busiest town centre in Newham, and is a hub for shopping, leisure, transport and business.
Largest employment sectors in Newham are retail, public administration, education, health and social care, and administrative & support services. Major employers in the borough include Newham Council, City Hall (Mayor of London, Greater London Authority (GLA) and London Assembly), the University of East London, L&Q, Barts Health NHS Trust, and H&M Revenue and Customs. Royal Docks is London’s only enterprise zone. Newhall Council is working with the GLA to establish this riverside industrial district as a hub for enterprise, employment and culture, as well as a test-bed for technological innovation and green tech. Regeneration of the area is expected to deliver up to 35,000 jobs by 2037/38.
Redbridge has a low job density (ratio of jobs per residents) with employment concentrated in the public sector including healthcare, education and public administration. Other key employment sectors include retail and wholesale, and administration and business support services. Ilford is the main town centre and the major economic centre of the borough. New development and regeneration in Redbridge is primarily focused on Ilford town centre.
Largest employment sectors in Havering include retail & wholesale, healthcare, and administration & business support services. In addition, construction and logistics, transport and storage account for a notably higher share of employment than the national average. Romford is the principal retail and commercial hub in the borough with a major night-time economy and a small business district close to the railway station. Hornchurch and Upminster are the other main retail centres with extensive high street shopping areas. Industrial and warehousing units are mostly clustered in Rainham Riverside and to a lesser extend in Harold Wood/Hill. Some key local employers include Havering Council; Barking and Dagenham College; Sport and Leisure Management; Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust; Sodexo; Greater Anglia; Barchester; and Sytner Group.
Barking and Dagenham has a low job density with employment concentrated mostly within four sectors: retail and wholesale; administration and business services; health and social care and education. Retail and hospitality jobs are mostly found in the borough’s three main towns - Barking, Chadwell Heath and Dagenham. The borough has a strong manufacturing heritage but jobs are declining in the sector. NTT London 1 Data Centre in Dagenham is one of the largest data centres in Europe and is supporting a growing cluster of media and creative companies as well as the broader ICT sector. London’s largest film and television production centre, Eastbrook Studios London, is being built in Dagenham, East London. The investment includes an endowment to maximize local jobs, placements, apprenticeships, community outreach and supply chain opportunities. Eastbrook Studios London will be a major boost for the borough of Barking & Dagenham and the UK entertainment industry, creating an estimated 1,200 jobs and contributing £35 million per year to the local economy.
Tower Hamlets is one of the highest economic and employment growth areas in the country with one of the highest numbers of new business start-ups and an estimate of the 299,000 employee jobs. Of these jobs, a fifth (60,000) are in the finance and insurance. Other large employment sectors are professional, scientific and technical activities and administration and support services. The rise of Canary Wharf as a global financial district has had positive effects on local employment through the spread of associated service industries such as law, accountancy, business consultancy and administration services.
Last update: 8 November 2024