Living in Havering

Havering is London's easternmost borough, bordering Essex, and it feels more like the Essex suburbs than inner London. Its main town, Romford, is a large shopping and nightlife centre, and its suburbs include Hornchurch, Upminster, Harold Wood, Gidea Park, Collier Row and Rainham. Around half of the borough is green belt.

It is one of the greenest boroughs in London, with Havering Country Park, Bedfords Park, Hornchurch Country Park, Harrow Lodge Park, Upminster Park and the RSPB's Rainham Marshes nature reserve beside the Thames. Upminster has a restored windmill, and Rainham has a Georgian hall owned by the National Trust.

The Elizabeth line serves Romford, Gidea Park and Harold Wood, giving direct trains to Liverpool Street, the West End and beyond. The District line terminates at Upminster, which also has fast c2c trains to Fenchurch Street, and the Overground runs between Romford and Upminster. Journeys from the borough's suburbs to central London are relatively long, and car ownership is high, particularly outside Romford.

Havering's population is older and less diverse than much of London, though it has become more mixed in recent years. Housing is dominated by interwar semi-detached houses, bungalows and family homes with gardens, and rents are among the lowest in London. Its council tax is one of the higher bills in the capital, which narrows the gap with inner boroughs a little. Even so, a household moving here from inner east London usually gains a garden, a driveway and a quieter street for less money each month.