Former home of William Morris, David Beckham and boyband E17, and current home to Britain's largest street market stretching for over a mile, Waltham Forest is a largely residential borough with a very mixed population in the outer part of east London. It is designated as one of the five host boroughs of the 2012 Olympic Games and is therefore benefitting from significant inward investment in its sporting facilities and transport infrastructure.
The borough of Waltham Forest is densely populated and very diverse, with high numbers of residents of minority ethnic origin, including the third largest Muslim community in London. Many Waltham Forest residents live in areas of high deprivation and almost a third of children live in households in poverty. The regeneration projects associated with the Olympic games covering Waltham Forest and several neighbouring boroughs are therefore welcome news for residents.