Southend On Sea

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{| border=1 cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" align="right" width=300 style=margin-left:10px|-!colspan=2 align=center bgcolor="#ff9999"|Borough of Southend-on-Sea|-|colspan=2 align=center||-!colspan=2 bgcolor="#ff9999"|Geography|-|width="45%"|Status:||Unitary, Borough|-|Regions of England:||East of England|-|[Surface area:
- Total||List of English districts by area
1 E7 m² square kilometre|-|Admin. HQ:||Southend-on-Sea|-| Grid reference: || |-|ONS coding system:||00KF|-!colspan=2 bgcolor="#ff9999"|Demographics|-|Population:
- Total ()
- Density

/ km²|-|Ethnicity:||95.8% White
1.7% S.Asian|-!colspan=2 bgcolor="#ff9999"|Politics|-|colspan=2 align=center|
Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
http://www.southend.gov.uk/|-|[Local government in England#Councils and councillors:||Leader & Cabinet|-|Executive:|||-|MPs elected in the UK general election, 2005:||David Amess Conservative Party (UK)
James Duddridge Conservative Party (UK)|}Southend-on-Sea is a seaside resort and unitary authority in the East of England England. The borough of Southend-on-Sea is part of the ceremonial counties of England of Essex and is located on the north side of the Thames estuary roughly 40 miles (65 km) east of central London. It is bordered to the north by Rochford (district) and to the west by Castle Point. Southend is twinned with the Polish seaside resort of Sopot.

History Originally the south end of the village of Prittlewell, Southend became a popular seaside resort for people during the Georgian era. Owing to its proximity to London and easy access by train, the town's economy has largely been based on tourism ever since. Southend Pier is the world's longest pleasure pier at 1.34 miles (2158 metres). Over the years the pier has suffered fires and ship collisions, most recently in October 2005, but it has been repaired each time.

With the decline of traditional British sea-side resorts, from the 1960s onwards much of the centre of Southend was developed as a centre of commerce, and many of the original features of this once-attractive Victorian seaside town were destroyed through redevelopment or neglect. Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, (formerly H.M. Customs and Excise), are major employers in the town, and the central offices for the collection of VAT are located there. Southend recently opened the new University of Essex, aimed at boosting the town's flagging economy.

There are nine railway stations within the Borough boundary serving the many Southend residents who commute to work in London.

Local and National Government Local government district Southend-on-Sea was formed as a municipal borough in 1892 with the functions of local government shared with Essex. In 1913 the borough was enlarged by gaining the former area of Leigh on Sea Urban District. In 1914 the enlarged Southend-on-Sea gained the status of county borough, exempt from county council control and a single-tier of local government. The county borough was enlarged in 1933 by gaining the former area of Shoeburyness Urban District and part of Rochford Rural District.

In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, Southend on Sea became a district of Essex with borough status, however in 1998 it again became the single tier of local government when it became a unitary authority.

Council There are currently 17 wards each returning three councillors, making a total of 51. Councillors serve a four year term and are elected by thirds (i.e. one third of the council is elected each year, followed by one year without election). Following the UK local elections, 2007, the composition is:

{| class="wikitable"|-| colspan="2" rowspan="1" align="center" valign="top" | Affiliation| valign="top" | Councillors
|-|| | Conservative Party (UK)| 30|-|| | Liberal Democrats (UK)| 10|-|| | Labour Party (UK)| 7|-| bgcolor="#999999" | | Independent (politics)| 4|}

The council is thus controlled by the Conservative Party. Most day to day decisions of the council are made up of a 10 member executive cabinet headed by the council leader.

Alliance Southend was formed when two independent councillors from Westborough Ward were joined by two councillors who left the Conservative Party. The latter two are no longer members of the Council and two new Independents have been elected. The total of 4 Independents now have formed a group called Independents Alliance 4 Southend.

The town's coat-of-arms bears the motto 'Per Mare Per Ecclesiam' which translates into 'By the Sea and By the Church', reflecting Southend's historic position between the Church at Prittlewell and the sea as in the Thames estuary.

The town is twinned with the resort town of Sopot in Poland. Sopot is the location of the longest wooden pier in Europe, while Southend is the location of the longest iron pleasure pier in the world.

Members of Parliament Southend is represented by two Member of Parliament at Westminster.

The MP for Southend West has been, since 1997, David Amess (Conservative Party (UK)) who replaced Paul Channon.

Since the United Kingdom general election, 2005 the MP for Rochford and Southend East (UK Parliament constituency) has been James Duddridge (Conservative Party (UK)), who replaced the long serving MP Sir Teddy Taylor. Despite its name the majority of the constituency is in Southend, Rochford makes up only a small part and the majority of Rochford District Council is actually represented by the MP for Rayleigh (UK Parliament constituency).

Both seats are considered to be "safe seats" for the Conservative Party.

Economy This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Southend-on-Sea at current basic prices published (pp.240-253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.{| class="wikitable"|-! Year || Regional Gross Value AddedComponents may not sum to totals due to rounding || Agricultureincludes hunting and forestry || Industryincludes energy and construction || Servicesincludes financial intermediation services indirectly measured|-| 1995 || 1,373 || 2 || 305 || 1,066|-| 2000 || 1,821 || 1 || 375 || 1,445|-| 2003 || 2,083 || - || 418 || 1,665|}

Transport Railways Southend is served by two railway lines. Running from Southend Victoria railway station northwards out of the town is the Liverpool Street line, a branch of the Great Eastern Railway currently operated by 'one'. The service operates to Liverpool Street station via Prittlewell, Rochford, Hockley, Rayleigh, Essex, Wickford, Billericay, Shenfield and Stratford%2C_London.

The second service, London, Tilbury and Southend Railway, known as the Fenchurch Street line, currently operated by c2c runs from Shoeburyness in the east of the borough, west through Thorpe Bay, Southend East railway station, Southend Central railway station to Fenchurch Street railway station in London via Benfleet, Basildon or Tilbury and Barking. Additionally, two services from Southend Central each weekday evening terminate at Liverpool Street station.

Road There are two main A-Roads connecting Southend with London and the rest of the country, the A127 road (The Southend Arterial Road), via Basildon and Romford, and the A13 road, via Tilbury and London Docklands. Both are major routes. However, within the borough of Southend, the A13 is primarily a single carriageway local route, whereas the A127 is almost entirely a dual carriageway. Both roads lead to the M25.

Buses Local public transport is served by two main bus companies, Arriva Southend (formerly the council owned Southend Corporation Transport) and FirstGroup plc (formerly known as Eastern National). Other minor bus companies serving the town include Stephensons of Essex, Stansted Transit and Regal Busways.

Southend Transport (more recently Arriva) operated a coach service to Victoria Coach Station under the Greenline brand; this is now run by Stephensons of Essex. There is also a National Express coach service (route 305) to Liverpool, which operates daily.

Southend Airport London Southend Airport supports scheduled flights to Jersey on summer Saturdays. The new terminal and rail station planned for 2008 operation will almost certainly lead to a greater range of destinations becoming available from the airport, as well as being able to handle 1-2 million passengers a year. Discussions are already being held with interested airlines. Developed from the former military airfield at Rochford it also supports an important mix of engineering activities related to aviation and pilot training, corporate and recreational flights, as well as being home to Avro Vulcan bomber XL426. Southend airport has a maintenance area and offers maintenance. Flybe use a De Havilland DHC-8-Q400 Dash 8 aircraft manufactured in Canada.

Education Secondary schools In 2004 Southend remained one of the areas of the UK that retain the Grammar schools in the United Kingdom and has four schools of this type: Southend High School for Boys, Southend High School for Girls, Westcliff High School for Boys and Westcliff High School for Girls. Additionally there are two single sex schools assisted by the Roman Catholic church: St Bernard's High School for Girls and St Thomas More High School for Boys. Both of these, while not technically grammar schools, contain a grammar stream; entrance to these streams is gained by passing the same entrance exam as the grammar schools. The other 6 main-stream secondary schools in the area are all mixed sex comprehensive schools, including Cecil Jones College, Chase High School (formerly Prittlewell High School), Futures Community College (formerly Thorpe Bay High School), Shoeburyness High School and The Eastwood School.

Further and higher education A number of secondary schools in the area offer further education, but the largest provider of further education is South East Essex College , located in a new building in the centre of town.

Currently the College offers over thirty degree courses matriculated by the University of Essex. The university's centre in the town is currently a single building on the High Street . The University, however, has built its own centre in Southend, located next to the new College building on the site of the old Odeon cinema. These buildings form the first two phases of the Southend Campus. The University notes that 'South Essex is probably the largest conurbation in the country without a significant higher education presence'. This development will change this.

Entertainment and culture Seafront attractions The town is well known for its seafront attractions. Since 1986, a diesel-hydraulic railway has been running the length of the famous Southend Pier, replacing the original electric service which opened in 1890.A fire in October 2005 seriously damaged the far end of the pier. The pier has been beset by a history of fires, the previous occasion, in 1995 destroyed the bowling alley at the start of the pier. The pier was also run through by a boat in 1984.

The Kursaal was one of the earliest theme parks, built at the start of the 20th century. It closed in the 1970s and much of the land was developed as housing. The entrance hall, a listed building, is now a bowling alley arcade (operated by Megabowl) and casino.

Another newer theme park, Adventure island (amusement park), developed on land formerly occupied by Peter Pan's Playground, straddles the pier entrance. It is a popular attraction for both adults and children, and despite a restriction on available land has continued to grow into a large amusement park with over 50 rides. The sea-front also houses a "Sea-Life Centre" aquarium.

To the east of the pier was the location of a replica of the Golden Hind housing a waxworks collection.

The cliff gardens, which included Never Never Land, and Victorian bandstand were a popular attraction until slippage in 2003 made parts of the cliffs unstable, and the bandstand has been removed for safe keeping. The council has expressed its desire to re-erect the bandstand but a suitable location has yet to be found.

A modern cliff lift links the base of the High Street with the new pier entrance. The older cliff lift, a short funicular railway, is located a few hundred metres away, now closed because structural and mechanical work needs to be done in order to meet European Union Legislation which classes it as a cablecar.

In August the Southend Carnival is opened along the Golden Mile with the lighting of the Southend Illuminations which continue until November. (The Council authorities decided that due to the need for repair to meet Health & Safety requirements, and funding issues, the Illuminations would not be held in 2007 and 2008).

On the second and fourth Saturdays of the month, Southend hosts one of the busiest farmers markets in the county. Essex Farmers Markets

Theatres There are three theatres in the town.

The Cliffs Pavilion is a large building and is able to host different forms of show including musical concerts, and performances on ice.

The most recent theatre is the New Empire Theatre. It is, unlike the other two theatres, privately owned. It is used far more by amateur dramatic groups. The theatre was converted from the former ABC Cinema, which itself was originally a theatre, built in 1896. Therefore, as well as being Southend's newest theatre, it is arguably the oldest as well.

The Edwardian era Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea is a grade II listed building built in 1912. It shows plays from professional troupes and repertory groups, as well as some comedy acts. The theatre has two circles and is noted for having the steepest rake in Britain. Part of the theatre was a smaller venue called "The Dixon Studio". This was used for more intimate performances.

Sport Southend boasts two football teams, one of league stature, Southend United F.C., which is managed by former player Steve Tilson, the other being Southend Manor F.C., who play in the Essex Senior League. United competed in Football League Championship (the second highest division of the English football league system) after being promoted as champions of Football League One at the end of the 2005-06 in English football. They have since been relegated back down to League One.

There are 2 rugby clubs in town with a nationwide profile, Southend R.F.C. and Westcliff R.F.C., with Southend having the superior men's first team (playing in List of English rugby union teams#National Division 3 South) but Westcliff having the more developed youth set up.

County Cricket is played at Southend by Essex County Cricket Club for one week during the season. Previously the festival was held at Southchurch Park, but it has now moved to a newer facility at Garon Park. That aside, the only cricket in Southend is local league Cricket.

Music The establishment of the Junkclub in the basement of the Royal Hotel on Southend seafront in 2002 in music heralded the creation of a 'Southend scene'http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,,1862738,00.html - 'The beach boys', Guardian Unlimited Arts article on the scene. Bands associated with the scene included The Horrors, These New Puritans, The Violets, and Neils Children. Junk was terminated in 2006 in music, but a replacement, the Experimental Circle Club, was set up and now operates in both Southend and London. Chinnery's is the biggest venue of live music in Southend-on-Sea and has had a huge number of 'named' bands play there, especially over the past few years. Arctic monkeys, Zebrahead to name but two.

Notable people from Southend

James Bourne, singer/guitarist in Son of Dork and previously in Busted (band).
Kevin Bowyer, concert organist
Emma Chambers, actress
Brian Cleeve, author and broadcaster
Jonathan Clements, author
Phil Cornwell, actor and impressionist
Tina Cousins, singer
Danielle Dax, musician, actress and performance artist
Warren Ellis, graphic novelist
Lee Evans, comedian
Nick Fawcett, author
Benjamin Grosvenor, BBC Young Musician of the Year Finalist
John Hutton (politician), politician
Daniel Jones (musician), musician, producer and former member of Savage Garden
Oliver Jones (musician), singer, songwriter, musician, producer, and audio engineer
Svend Joscelyne AKA Dreadknux, owner of The Sonic Stadium
Phill Jupitus, comedian
Mickey Jupp, musician
Dominic Littlewood, TV presenter of several programmes, most notably To Buy or Not to Buy
John Lloyd, former British tennis number one
Robert Lloyd (singer), opera singer
Lee Mead, musical theatre actor and winner of the BBC show Any Dream Will Do (TV series) on 9 June 2007
Helen Mirren, actress
Annabel Port, broadcaster
Spencer Prior, former Southend United and Derby County footballer
Simon Schama, historian, who lived in Southend in the late 1940s
Jake Shillingford, singer/songwriter, founder of My Life Story
Peter John Taylor, football manager
Kara Tointon, actress (Currently plays the part of Dawn Swann in EastEnders)
Robin Trower and Gary Brooker, guitarist and vocalist of Procol Harum
Michael Ward, founder of Nita Nitros football team
Toby Whithouse, scriptwriter and actor

Bands

Dr Feelgood, Seventies pub-rock band. Their 1978 album 'Stupidity', recorded live at the Kursaal, was a UK No.1.
Junkboy, post rock band
Switches (band), rock band
The Horrors, rock band
The Kursaal Flyers, Seventies rock band
These New Puritans, rock band

See also Thames Gateway, UK topics

Towns within the Borough of Southend Chalkwell, Eastwood, Essex, Leigh-on-Sea, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, Westcliff-on-Sea

External links

Southend Association of Voluntary Services
University of Essex in Southend*
Southend Festival Home Page
Southend Borough Council
Southend-on-Sea - White's Directory of Essex, 1848
Essex Photos

Southend-on-Sea
Contains details of what's new and Council information.

Southend-on-Sea
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Southend-on-Sea Carnival Association-Front Page
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Southend-on-Sea Information
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