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London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

Coordinates: 51°25′N 0°20′W / 51.417°N 0.333°W / 51.417; -0.333
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Template:Infobox London Borough

The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames (pronunciationⓘ) is a London borough in south west London, UK, which forms part of Outer London. It is unique in being the only London borough situated both north and south of the River Thames.

Settlement

It can been seen from a map that the borough is not entirely urbanised - there are some large areas of open space within the borough boundaries, including the largest urban park in Europe, Richmond Park. The borough is residential and home to some of the most affluent districts of London such as Barnes, Richmond and East Sheen. The main suburban developments are Hampton and Teddington in the south, Twickenham, St Margarets and Whitton in the central area west of the River Thames, with the more central districts of Richmond, Kew, Mortlake and Barnes following the loop of the river. It is the only London borough to straddle the Thames with districts on both sides of the river.

List of districts

Attractions, parks and open spaces

Main article: Richmond upon Thames parks and open spaces
Hampton Court Palace
A view from Richmond Hill over the Terraced Gardens.

Parks take up a great deal of the borough and include Richmond Park, Bushy Park, Kew Gardens, and Hampton Court Park. There are over 100 parks and open spaces within its boundary and 21 miles (34 km) of river frontage. 140 hectares within the borough are designated as part of the Metropolitan Green Belt.

The borough is also home to the National Physical Laboratory and the attractions of Hampton Court Palace, Twickenham Stadium and the WWT London Wetlands Centre draw both domestic and international tourism.

In December 2006, Sport England published a survey which revealed that residents of Richmond upon Thames were the 2nd most active in England in sports and other fitness activities. 29.8% of the population participate at least 3 times a week for 30 minutes.[1]

History

The borough was formed in 1965 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Twickenham from Middlesex with the Municipal Borough of Richmond and the Municipal Borough of Barnes from Surrey; council offices were centred at York House in Twickenham. The name 'Richmond upon Thames' was coined at that time; it is now commonly but inaccurately used to refer to Richmond only.

The borough is twinned with Konstanz in Germany, Fontainebleau in France and Richmond, Virginia in the United States.

Politics

Conservative Lib Dem Labour Others
2010 Conservative 30 24 - -
2006 Liberal Democrat 19 35 - -
2002 Conservative 39 15 - -
1998 Liberal Democrat 14 34 4 -
1994 Liberal Democrat 7 43 2 -
1990 Liberal Democrat 4 48 - -
1986 Liberal/SDP Alliance 3 49 - -
1982 Conservative (minority) 26 26 - -
1978 Conservative 34 18 - -
1974 Conservative 36 10 8 -
1971 Conservative 37 3 14 -
1968 Conservative 54 - - -
1964 Conservative 41 - 12 1

Transport

The borough is connected to central London by the National Rail services of South West Trains. The London Underground, District Line, serves Richmond and Kew Gardens stations: both are also served by London Overground trains on the North London Line.

List of stations

The other stations are:

Buses

London bus routes 33, 65, 72, 110, 111, 190, 209, 216, 265, 267, 281, 283, 285, 290, 337, 371, 391, 411, 419, 430, 465, 481, 485, 490, 493, H22, H37, R68, R70, X26 and night routes N9 and N22.

Education

Main article: List of schools in Richmond upon Thames

Richmond upon Thames is the local education authority for the borough, and has responsibility for 52 schools.

Sister cities

Richmond has three sister cities, as designated by the Sister Cities International, Inc.:[2]

References

  1. ^ http://www.sportengland.org/research/active_people_survey/active_people_survey_1.aspx sportengland.org
  2. ^ Sister Cities information obtained from the Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI)." Retrieved on June 28, 2007.

51°25′N 0°20′W / 51.417°N 0.333°W / 51.417; -0.333

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