- The London Borough of Newham was created in 1965 out of the Essex county boroughs of East Ham and West Ham. These were rural villages until a century ago, and fortunately the medieval parish churches and a few other ancient buildings survive as a reminder of this rustic past.
- The area has always been a gateway between London and Essex, with farm animals and food produce being raised or passing through Newham for London markets and manufactured goods coming out of London to serve local needs. The availability of water power (the River Lea) and the absence of strict London guild controls saw Newham grow in the 17th and 18th centuries as an industrial area, with workshops - such as the famous Bow China factory - built along the Lea valley.
- In the 19th century, when the Royal Docks were built as the hub of imports and exports for the whole British Empire, and as other industries grew rapidly thanks to good railway connections, vast numbers of people from Essex and beyond moved into Newham in search of work. West Ham in particular was a major manufacturing centre with chemical, pharmaceutical, retail, railway and printing industries. East Ham was strongly residential, and has a distinctive Victorian and Edwardian architectural heritage, notably its magnificent Italianate Town Hall.
- Between the wars, the two boroughs had a joint population of over half a million; the area suffered the worst of the Blitz which left much of the area a wasteland, though there was considerable pride too in the traditional grit and humour which somehow got everyone through.
- After the war, massive reconstruction and new social conditions saw thousands of families moving out of the area, so that today the residents and former residents of Newham form a worldwide family
Socio-economic context of Newham - Overview: Newham has a young, energetic population which is increasing in size and diversity. House prices have increased significantly and there is a larger commuter population. Nevertheless, the borough is still the fifth most disadvantaged in England and Wales and unemployment rates are the highest nationally.
Population: Newham is a densely populated part of East London that has been steadily growing in size from 221,300 in 1991 to 239,500 today. It has the youngest population in London with 28% of the population under the age of 16. The fertility rate in Newham was the highest in the country for women aged 15-44. Consequently, Newham is projected to continue to have a high proportion of children and young people. Diversity: The notion of majority and minorities’ status in relation to ethnicity is problematic in the context of Newham where there is such a high level of ethnic diversity in the population. The data indicates that the population of ethnic minority communities has grown considerably in the last decade, in particular Black African, Pakistani and Bangladeshi groups (of which more than 30% are aged under 16). The Indian and Black Caribbean populations are relatively stable in size. The White UK population has decreased in size over the same period but other white groups have increased, particularly refugee/asylum seeker families from Eastern Europe.
Disadvantage: From the indices of Multiple Deprivation for the year 2000, Newham was the third most deprived borough in London and the fifth most deprived in England and Wales. The wide extent of the deprivation is shown by the fact that approximately 95% of the population were living in electoral wards of Newham which are among the 10% most deprived in England and Wales. Our Style of Worship: East London is different from other parts of the country. It is not a place like the leafy lanes of Surrey or Kent where those who have initially made their money from the East End now live. The East End is full of contrasting people – racially, occupationally and religiously. Many are newly arrived in this country and bring with them the scars of damaged lives but also huge optimism and energy to improve their condition. Some also, it has to be said, have given up the vision and hope with which they started life.
This is where our Gospel is to be found and preached. Each individual Christian in East Ham has had to find that Gospel in community. The living and creative tension between people’s actual lives and the message of hope and expectation delivered to those who are poor – the outsiders – to those who are oppressed, those who suffer or mourn, gives strength to those who work for justice in Christ’s name – what has traditionally been named the ‘Kingdom’. Each of the services which we hold in the Parish is offering a place of support and continuity to a Christian community which is constantly changing but to which many people have belonged for a long while. We do this through our liturgy and the pattern of our worship and we do it by extending our church community life into other activities such as the Coffee Bar at St Bart’s which offers a place of activity and friendship for individuals who value the companionship it offers. Through our seasonally varying liturgy we provide a pattern, context and stability to our urban way of life which has a resonance in the reminder of God as creator and provider of all things. Because our liturgy is individually adapted for our use and we use our own congregational music tools we are able to explore a wide variety of Christian musical traditions and we are able to adapt them to make the words more suitable for our local context e.g. using all inclusive language. St Bartholomew’s is a modern Church environment which can be adapted for different occasions - The East Ham Team Ministry was formed in 1968 consisting of St Alban’s, Upton Park, St Bartholomew’s and St Mary Magdalene, East Ham. Both St Bart’s and St Alban’s buildings were considered to be too large for their congregations at that time. St Alban’s was the first church in the area to decide to rebuild its Church and create a church and community centre based around its old hall. The Church itself was demolished and flats now occupy the site where it was.
St Bart’s was also extensively re-developed and work was completed in 1983. The development includes modern, purpose built facilities including a GP surgery & residential accommodation above the Church & Centre. This set a trend in the borough with a significant proportion of churches demolishing their old buildings and beginning afresh. The East Ham Team Ministry began its life with four church plants and four full time Team Vicars. At that time the community at St Mark’s in Beckton was part of the Team but it later decided to work independently. More recently the Team has been significantly reduced in size and the community from St Alban’s has worshiped with St Bart’s for several years. The Parish currently has only one permanent Team Vicar based at St Bart’s & Team Vicar at St Mary’s plus a non stipendiary minister in training. The Parish has now received a note of the intention of the Bishop of Barking to 'suspend presentation' by the Chelmsford Diocesan Pastoral Committee to the Team Ministry of the benefice in East Ham. The reason for this suspension is the possible reorganisation of the Team. This will not take place until the Diocese has completed a 'Parish Review', which has already been put in place. In the meantime, the Diocese approved the appointing of a Team Vicar @ St Bart’s, whilst determining whether the Team Ministry should continue or whether a Group Ministry should be established with potentially two neighbouring Parish Churches. If the review Team recommends moving to a Group Ministry, then s/he will become Incumbent of St Bart’s with St Alban’s. Should the Team Ministry be continue s/he will be invited with the present Team Vicar for St Mary’s Magdalene Church to be interviewed for the post of Team Rector.
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Parish of East Ham • St Bartholomew's Church Profile - [In Word .doc Format - Click on logo below]:
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Video: Living and working in Newham:
This video provides an introduction to living and working in the London Borough of Newham.
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Community Information Directory - [In Acrobat .pdf Format]:
Containing over 1,700 organisations offering help and support for people living and working in the Newham area:
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