Brent
See the Borough highlighted in red above
Points of note
There are points of note about Brent in the following indicators:
- Pay inequalities within London
- Infant deaths by borough
- Low-paid residents by borough
- Households in temporary accommodation by borough
Borough profile
Borough Profile
Brent is an Outer London borough situated in the north-west of the city, bordering Harrow to the north-west, Barnet to the north-east, Camden to the east and Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea to the south and Westminster to the south-east. Most of the eastern border is formed by the Roman road Watling Street, the modern A5. Brent was formed out of a merger between the municipal borough of Willesden and the municipal borough of Wembley in Middlesex. Its name derives from the River Brent which runs through the borough. Major areas within the borough include Wembley, home to Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena, Dollis Valley, Harlesden, Willesden Green, Neasden, Alperton, Brondesbury, Kensal Green and Sudbury.
Brent’s population saw rapid growth throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, following the establishment of the railways. By the 1930s both Willesden and Wembley were highly populated areas, with a combined population of 238,000. Despite mass bombing during World War Two (with Willesden suffering more than 1,000 air raids), the population of the area continued to grow until it peaked in 1951 with 316,000 residents.
The next 50 years saw rapid decline due to migration out to new towns such as Hemel Hempstead. Hastening this, industrial decline hit Brent hard from the 1970s onwards, with many jobs lost and continuing population decline to a recorded low of 243,000 in 1990. However, the 2001 census recorded a population of 263,466, an 8.4% increase from 1991 and the first increase the borough had seen in 50 years. This growth has continued, with the most recent estimates putting the borough’s population at 270,600. This makes Brent one of the most densley populated outer London boroughs, although density varies from 150.1 persons per hectare in (parts of) Kilburn to 39.3 persons per hectare in Stonebridge.
An introduction to Brent would be incomplete without mentioning its ethnic diversity. By World War Two, Brent already had a significant Jewish population who had come to Britain to escape 19th century pogroms and 1930s Nazism, as well as Irish people who had been coming to Kilburn and Cricklewood as seasonal labourers since the early 19th century. The post-war period saw new residents arriving from the Caribbean and later, from the Indian subcontinent. Today, the estimated BME population is around 54.6%, which makes Brent the second most diverse borough in London, and one of only 2 boroughs with a BME majority population. Nevertheless, the largest single ethnic group remains White-British.
Brent local authority website
Comparisons
Compare Brent's overall performance against other boroughs
Indicators where Boroughs are compared:
- Attainment at Age 11 by borough
- Attainment at Age 16 by borough
- Adult ill-health by borough
- Infant deaths by borough
- Premature death by borough
- Overcrowding by borough
- Newly homeless households by borough
- Households in temporary accommodation by boroughh
- Low-paid jobs by borough
- Low-paid residents by borough
- Working-age adults lacking work by borough
- Working age out-of-work benefits by ward
- Pay inequalities within London
- Income inequalities within London boroughs
- Pensioners receiving the Pension Credit Guarantee
- Children in households receiving out-of-work benefits