Local elections profile: Waltham Forest

Ahead of the local elections on Thursday 7 May, we have produced short guides to London's 32 boroughs.

Where is it? The London Borough of Waltham Forest is in north-east London and is bordered by Enfield to the north-west, Haringey to the west, Hackney to the south-west, Newham to the south-east, and Redbridge to the east.

The borough also shares a northern border with the county of Essex.

What's it like? Waltham Forest is an outer London borough with a mix of older homes and newer blocks of flats and is well connected to central London. It has extensive green spaces including Epping Forest and Walthamstow Wetlands.

Neighbourhoods: The borough's neighbourhoods include Chingford, Walthamstow and Leyton.

Places of interest: The borough is home to Walthamstow Wetlands, Walthamstow Market, parts of Epping Forest, Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge and the William Morris Gallery in Lloyd Park.

Pub quiz fact: The first British four-wheeled motor car with an internal combustion engine was built and driven in the borough in 1892.

Population: An estimated 279,737 people were living in Waltham Forest in 2024, according to ONS data.

Demographics: According to the 2021 census, 52.8% identify as white, 19.9% as Asian, 15% as black, 6.5% as mixed race and 2.2% as another ethnic group.

Average property price: According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the average house price in Waltham Forest in December 2025 was £525,738.

Average monthly rent: The ONS reported that the average monthly rent in January 2026 in Waltham Forest was £1,748.

Council tax: Band D council tax in the borough for 2026/27 is £2,386.96.

Transport: Waltham Forest has four Tube stations, eight Overground stations and about 500 bus stops, according to Transport for London.

More information about Waltham Forest borough can be found here.

Local history: Waltham Forest was dominated by its countryside woodland and waterways until the railway was built in the mid-19th Century.

As its population began to grow, so did the industrial areas in the borough, with large factory sites used for manufacturing.

It is home to Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge, built in 1543 for Henry VIII and renovated by order of Elizabeth I, and what is said to be London's oldest house, which is in Walthamstow.

Remnants from the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, and Roman Britain have been found in Walthamstow.

It is the birthplace of two recent England men's football captains, David Beckham and Harry Kane, who attended the same local school, although not at the same time.

Waltham Forest was one of six London boroughs to host the 2012 Summer Olympics.

And in 2019, it became the first London Borough of Culture.

What is the electoral history of the borough? The borough was established in 1965 when Chingford, Leyton, and Walthamstow were brought together.

Control of Waltham Forest has switched eight times since its formation between Labour, the Conservatives and no overall control.

What was a typical marginal borough has been in Labour hands for the last 16 years with the party increasing the size of its majority at each election.

What happened in 2022? The turnout was 33.1% and there was a 0.3% swing from the Conservatives to Labour.

Labour: 47 seats (+1)

Conservative: 13 seats (-1)

Since the election, three Tory councillors have defected to Reform UK and three Labour councillors have been suspended and sit as independents.

Professor Tony Travers of the London School of Economics said: "Waltham Forest is strongly Labour-controlled at the moment but has Conservative elements, it's been a Conservative/Labour borough ever since its creation.

"The Conservatives are not doing as well in the polls as they'd want to, Labour are not doing at all well, so it looks there as if we might see some Green successes.

"Waltham Forest is right on the edge between Labour holding control and possibly going no overall control with Labour as the biggest party."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk