Rainham is a neighbourhood located in Havering. The village is 12 miles east of the City of London beside the River Thames. Rainham was originally an ancient parish, dating back to the Iron Age. This area is great for London day-trippers who want to get away from the high speed nature of inner city life. Rainham’s location makes it ideal for nature lovers, due to its close proximity to the River Thames and other waterways such as the Common Watercourse, or its open green spaces such as Rainham Marshes Nature Reserve.

Rainham was once an industrial area, due to its accessibility to the River Thames, with industry reaching this once small village in 1869. Residential dwellings began to be built in this area to accommodate the growing population, most of which were industry workers. Rainham Marshes Nature Reserve is rooted in Rainham’s industrial history because it came about due to an aversion against plumage of local and international birds that brought benefits to the Rainham economy. By 1908 Rainham was described as an entirely working-class area. Rainham officially became a part of the Hornchurch urban district in 1934, which subsequently became a part of Havering London Borough in 1965.

Pressure from Rainham Marshes Nature Reserve led to the ‘Importation of Plumage (Prohibition) Act’, passed in 1921. Rom Skatepark has been an extreme sport location in Upper Rainham Road for the last 41 years.

Rainham is quite ethnically homogenous, meaning the area does not get the benefits of multiculturalism and diversity that inner city London areas would.

In 2018, Havering Council bid to be one of the Heathrow Logistics Hubs by highlighting Rainham’s unrivalled connectivity to Heathrow by rail, road, river and air. The proposed location was in the centre of the Riverside Opportunity area that stretches from Newham through to South Essex. Around 70 transport and logistics companies are already based in the area alongside a growing engineering sector presence and construction industry training resources. No new updates on the matter have been announced recently.

Havering Council and Wates Residential entered a £1 billion public-private partnership to regenerate 12 council estates. The scheme will see around 5,200 homes delivered in the borough over the next 12 to 15 years. Works have already begun, with a focus on Napier and New Plymouth House, in Rainham. All residents who have been moved off the site to enable the regeneration are guaranteed the right to return, with 126 affordable homes being ready to move in by winter 2022. So far the partnership has benefited 164 local people through employment and skills initiatives, while over 1,500 students have been supported via educational activities and programmes.