The River Rom, also known as the River Beam below its confluence with the Ravensbourne[n 1], is a tributary of the River Thames in England that flows through the east London suburbs around Romford before joining the Thames at Dagenham.
Part of the river forms a section of the boundary between the London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham and Havering. The Rom is culverted as it passes through the centre of Romford.
Course
Course of the River Rom
Starting in Essex, the Rom is the continuation of the Bourne Brook after Bournebridge, Stapleford Abbotts in the Epping Forest district of Essex which rises 3 miles (4.8km) northeast at Spring Farm by Stapleford Abbotts Golf Course in the Essex Borough of Brentwood.
Taking an almost straight south-flowing course, the Rom passes under the London Loop and experiences a drop of 24 metres (79ft) in elevation before it enters the ringroad enclosed town centre of Romford where it becomes underground in a culvert, a man-made tunnel, at 16m AOD.[1] To the south of the town centre it regains green banks and adjoins the retail park on Rom Valley Way, passes under Roneo Corner, divides two residential estates at 8m AOD and enters Eastbrookend Country Park where it is joined by a tributary, The Ravensbourne that has flowed through Emerson Park (a residential area) and then a park, Harrow Lodge Park, from its source in Ardleigh Green.[n 2][2]
The river is culverted north of Roneo Corner and runs underneath Romford
The Rom then continues under the name of the Beam and forms the boundary between the London Borough of Havering and the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham before reaching the River Thames in the Dagenham industrial estate which included the Ford Motor Company works. The Beam Valley comprises 182 acres (0.74km2) of land running the entire stretch of the river. The valley also includes various historical features including tank traps, pillboxes and a section of the old Romford Canal.[3]
Etymology
Rom is a back-formation from the name of the town of Romford, which is located on a crossing of the river.[4] The name 'Romford' is first recorded in 1177 as Romfort, which is formed from 'rūm' and 'ford' and means "the wide or spacious ford".[4] The name of the river is first recorded in the 13th century as le Markediche, meaning 'boundary ditch' and referring to the ancient boundary between the parishes of Dagenham and Hornchurch which later gained borough status. A more recent name for part of the river of the Beam originated from an early bridge over the river, consisting of a beam of wood.[4]
Wildlife and environment
The river emerges south of Roneo CornerRiver Rom in the north of Romford
Throughout the northern section, where the Rom starts, in the north western part of the London Borough of Havering its valley has been designated as a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation[5] The river contains unbranched bur-reeds (Sparganium erectum and Sparganium emersum) and fool's watercress (Apium nodiflorum), and supports water voles, kingfishers and reed buntings. Surrounding farmland has lapwing and Eurasian golden plover in winter. Apart from the river environs, the Site of Importance for Nature Conservation also includes Foreberry Wood through which the river runs. This contains both pedunculate oak and hornbeamcoppices.
Also in the upper parts of the river is another Site of Importance for Nature Conservation where the river flows through King George Playing Fields in Romford.[6]
Beam Valley
Further downstream, the Beam Valley is a mixture of woodlands, acid grassland, ponds and marsh areas, a habitat for many types of wildlife. The London Boroughs of Barking and Dagenham and of Havering plan to develop the area to improve the conservation interest and to create new opportunities for recreation and education. The River Beam is home to the rare water vole, while the grassland in the valley includes certain rare and endangered plants.[7]
↑ One of two large streams in London with this name, this part-rural Ravensbourne has not been destroyed to allow dense urbanisation with a surface drains network
↑ Emerson Park and Ardleigh Green are residential parts of the post town Hornchurch
1 2 3 Mills, D., Oxford Dictionary of London Place Names, (2000)
↑ "River Rom in North-West Havering". Sites of Borough Importance - Grade 2. London Borough of Havering/Greater London Authority. 10 September 2007. Archived from the original on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
Hornchurch is a suburban town in East London in the London Borough of Havering. It is located 15.2 miles (24.5 km) east-northeast of Charing Cross. It comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential area. It historically formed a large ancient parish in the county of Essex that became the manor and liberty of Havering. The economic history of Hornchurch is underpinned by a shift away from agriculture to other industries with the growing significance of nearby Romford as a market town and centre of administration. As part of the suburban growth of London in the 20th century, Hornchurch significantly expanded and increased in population, becoming an urban district in 1926 and has formed part of Greater London since 1965. It is the location of Queen's Theatre, Havering Sixth Form College and Havering College of Further and Higher Education.
Romford is a large town in East London, England, 14 miles (23 km) northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major metropolitan centres of Greater London identified in the London Plan.
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Romford is a constituency in Greater London represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2001 by Andrew Rosindell, a Conservative.
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Hornchurch Marshes is an area of the London Borough of Havering, adjacent to the north bank of the River Thames in London, England. Susceptible to flooding from three adjacent rivers, it was the southernmost marshland section of the ancient parish of Hornchurch. It was used for cattle grazing from the 16th to the 19th century and became industrialised by the 20th century. The eastern part of the Ford Dagenham estate extended into the Hornchurch Marshes and it is now an area of regeneration that includes Beam Reach and part of Beam Park. Two of the Dagenham wind turbines are located there and the Centre for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence.
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