Tower Hamlets
§ This page gives an overview of the Tower Hamlets local authority district, bringing together key facts, maps, and data to help you quickly understand the area. This is one of 361 LAD profiles on Baseview.
Overview ⁞ Tower Hamlets is an East London borough combining historic areas like the Tower of London and Docklands with modern developments in Canary Wharf. It is highly diverse and plays a major role in London’s financial and cultural life.
Tower Hamlets Boundary Map
This map shows the official boundary of the Tower Hamlets local authority district, based on the latest geographic data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It provides a clear view of the district’s extent and helps you understand how the area fits within the wider regional and national landscape.
Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2025. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
The administrative boundary of Tower Hamlets can also be viewed on OpenStreetMap: District Boundary of Tower Hamlets.
Key Facts about Tower Hamlets
What region is Tower Hamlets in? Tower Hamlets is in the Greater London, an administrative region and a ceremonial county in England.
Is Tower Hamlets a city? No, Tower Hamlets is not a city. (Note: the UK has 76 officially designated cities.)
Who governs Tower Hamlets? The local government for this district is: The London Borough of Tower Hamlets (London Borough).
▶ Official website of The London Borough of Tower Hamlets 🔗 towerhamlets.gov.uk
Which police force covers Tower Hamlets? Policing in Tower Hamlets is provided by Metropolitan Police Service 🔗 met.police.uk, which serves 32 London Boroughs.
Tower Hamlets in International Geographies
In the International Territorial Levels (ITLs) hierarchy, Tower Hamlets is an ITLs Level 3 area:
- (ITL 1) London
- (ITL 2) ⇒ Inner London - East
- (ITL 3) ⇒⇒ Tower Hamlets
The International Territorial Levels are used by OECD member countries for statistical purposes to classify administrative areas. We have this listable page for easy browsing of ITL names and codes: International Territorial Levels.
Constituencies in Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets is divided into 3 parliamentary constituencies, listed below in alphabetical order.
A constituency is a specific geographical area that elects one Member of Parliament (MP) to represent them in the House of Commons. The United Kingdom is divided into 650 parliamentary constituencies, 75 of them are in Greater London (covering 32 London boroughs). We have this list page for easy browsing of all UK parliamentary constituencies: List of Constituencies.
Wards in Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets is divided into 20 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Bethnal Green East
- Bethnal Green West
- Blackwall & Cubitt Town
- Bow East
- Bow West
- Bromley North
- Bromley South
- Canary Wharf
- Island Gardens
- Lansbury
- Limehouse
- Mile End
- Poplar
- Shadwell
- Spitalfields & Banglatown
- St Dunstan's
- St Katharine's & Wapping
- Stepney Green
- Weavers
- Whitechapel
In the UK, a ward is a subdivision of a local authority area, used mainly for electoral and statistical purposes. Defined by the ONS, wards represent the primary unit for local elections, each returning one or more councillors to the local council. Wards are also used as a key geography for presenting population and census data. We have this list page for easy browsing of all electoral wards: List of all Electoral Wards in the UK.
Parishes in Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets is entirely unparished—there are no civil parishes in this local authority district.
Parishes are the lowest tier of local government; where they don’t exist, those very local services and representation sit directly with the principal council. We have this list page for easy browsing of all parishes: List of Civil Parishes in England and Wales.
Built-up Areas in Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets covers 4 built-up areas, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Hackney *
- Newham *
- Southwark *
- Tower Hamlets *
In the UK, a Built-up Area (BUA) is a continuous urban area of at least 20 hectares (0.2 km²), defined by the ONS as land where buildings are generally no more than 200 metres apart, such as towns, cities, or large villages. (Note: A BUA name marked with an asterisk (*) indicates that the area is situated partly in the district of Tower Hamlets.)
We have this list page for easy browsing of all built-up areas: List of all Built-up Areas in GB.
Railway Stations in Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets is served by a number of National Rail stations, providing rail connections to nearby towns, cities, and destinations across Great Britain. The railway stations listed below are located within the Tower Hamlets Local Authority District and are grouped by train operating company for clarity.
- c2c ▸ Limehouse (E14 7JD)
- Elizabeth line ▸ Canary Wharf (E14 4QS)
- London Overground ▸ Shoreditch High Street (E1 6GJ) ⁞ Shadwell (E1 2QF) ⁞ Wapping (E1W 3PA) ⁞ Bethnal Green Rail (E2 6JL) ⁞ Cambridge Heath (E2 9EG)
- London Underground ▸ Whitechapel (E1 1BY)
This is a district-level view only. For a complete list of all National Rail stations across Great Britain, see the UK National Rail Stations Directory.
Tower Hamlets compared with other districts in the UK
This section shows how Tower Hamlets compares with other local authority districts in the UK, using a variety of measures and rankings.
Tower Hamlets has 20 electoral wards.
Tower Hamlets has a population of 331,886 (2024 mid-year estimate by ONS)
Population and Migration Trends in Tower Hamlets
This chart shows the population trend for Tower Hamlets from 2015 to 2024. It provides a quick overview of whether the local authority is growing, stable, or declining over time, and helps set context for the migration patterns shown below.
Population change is influenced by natural change (births minus deaths) and migration. The net migration chart below focuses on migration, separating internal migration (moves within the UK) from international migration (moves to and from abroad). Positive values indicate net inflows, while negative values indicate net outflows. The rate labels (per 1,000 residents) help compare migration intensity across years, even when the population size changes.
More local statistics and data for Tower Hamlets can be found on the ONS statistics for Tower Hamlets.