About Tower Hamlets

Tower Hamlets is not an authority that simply ambles along, content with keeping the status quo. People here are ambitious, and want to do the best job they can for the communities around them.

This commitment continues to pay off. Big steps forward are taken on a weekly basis. Accolades are achieved. And Beacons awarded. Most importantly of all, some 250,000 residents benefit from services that are constantly improving. As examples, Adult Social Care and the Children, Schools and Families Directorate, are both areas in which staff are performing to a standard that makes Tower Hamlets a safer place for its most vulnerable inhabitants.

Located at the heart of London's East End, Tower Hamlets has long been a refuge for poor people and immigrants, and others on the margins of society. The sharp rise in the capital's population in the late 19th century, led to severe overcrowding across the brough and it soon became synonymous with poverty, disease and criminality.

Fast-forward to 2009 and you will still find districts containing some of the worst poverty in Britain. Indeed, Tower Hamlets is the third most deprived borough in the country. There are some deep inequalities to be tackled, with 23 per cent of families living on less than £15,000 a year. There is also a lack of public housing and a need to lessen overcrowding.

But take a step back, and you'll see that the borough's future is incredibly bright. Major projects linked to Canary Wharf, the Thames Gateway and the 2012 Olympic Games form a dramatic backdrop to the council's 'One Tower Hamlets' plan, which focuses on key issues such as reducing crime (down 24 per cent in four years) and creating new jobs (up 41 per cent since 1998).

As a result of all this activity, Tower Hamlets has been ranked among the most improved performers in recent years. Indeed, we are one of only 10 councils thought to be 'improving strongly' over the past two years by the public service watchdog, the Audit Commission.