To the naked eye, this locale may be difficult to differentiate from a quiet suburban commuter town a few hours out of London, featuring a range of nineties and early noughties housing blocks tucked away behind leafy parks and recreation grounds. Venture towards the high-street – Barking Road – and this ambiguity is resolved with modern high-rises, intertwined with impressive red-brick Victorian architecture – take for example the Community Links building at 105 Barking Road. While the high-street is currently the nucleus in terms of retail and some leisure, expect to see many more new kids on the block in the form of two new town centres on either side of the A13 flyover, bringing modern cafes and jam- packed shopping centres. The east side of this locale is more rugged – Project Park is an industrial area where storage, manufacturing, and distribution businesses are based. Though traditionally the area is largely of a working-class background, many professional newcomers are attracted by the proximity to Canary Wharf. A Jubilee line service runs from Canning Town to Canary Wharf in four minutes, while the Star Lane DLR stop is within the area and the journey takes twelve minutes. Gainsborough and Star Primary Schools are local and have been rated ‘good’ by Ofsted.

The history of this locale has been centred around the shipbuilding works which arrived in the area in the mid-1840s, only just after the first settlements arrived on the marshes by the River Thames. The trajectory from then on has been one underscored by the manufacturing scene, a social movement, football clubs and stadiums. Henry Tate’s factory was a notable employer taking on local workers and those from all around Europe. His sugar refinery was one that looked after its labourers and the Tate Institute was opened in 1887 to provide entertainment. Samuel Silver’s factory was not so socially mindful, however, and in 1889 3,000 of his workers staged a three-month strike in which Karl Marx’ daughter was present.

In 1895, a group of workers from the Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company gathered as “The Irons” to form a new football club that would, decades later, become West Ham United FC.

During the 1910s, the shipbuilding industry took its toll and following the closure of the Ironworks, unemployment would curse the area for the century ahead. But the working men and women of West Ham knew how to entertain themselves: West Ham Stadium stood close to the area from 1928 to 1972, hosting speedway and greyhound racing.

Reginald “Reg” Varney, the comic actor to star in the 76-episode series “On the Buses” was born in Canning Town in the south of the locale.

Star Primary School currently stands just north of Star Lane Park. Having been around since 1890, it has seen the locale through many of its developmental phases and seen a number of notable people pass through its doors, including the aforementioned comedian, Reg Varney. It was also a site of national significance in 1969 when Percy Dunlop, aged 83, became a record setter in the country of the oldest working teacher. Dunlop was awarded an MBE for his services to the education system.

As will be outlined in the next section, Canning Town and its fringe neighbourhoods can be described as in-transition from relatively run-down – a legacy of the previous century, to gaining the sort of slick and hip character currently trickling down from neighbouring Stratford. In the meantime, some prospective buyers are not encouraged by the rough image emanating from the predominantly post-war brutalist neighbourhoods. This is while property values are rising faster than the average due to the current and future public transport links, especially to Canary Wharf. One local shop owner says: “I’m excited to see what the area will bring in the next five to ten years. It’s only been getting better in the last couple of decades.”

Canning Town is currently at the forefront of a major regeneration scheme led by Newham Council. Custom House, directly south of the area is awaiting a Crossrail station, while a £3.7 billion injection into Canning Town will bring 10,000 new homes – to be sold under Help to Buy and Shared Ownership schemes – as well as refurbishment of the old. The two improved town centres will contain various amenities such as improved schools, leisure centres, workspaces and retail space. At the core of the new town centre, the glistening new Hallsville Quarter is spearheading the transformation to the area, exemplifying the kind of mixed-use, pedestrian-only, central hub which will be so typical of the neighbourhood by the time the scheme is completed in 2024.