Southend-on-Sea, commonly referred to as Southend, is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in south-eastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, 40 miles (64 km) east of central London. It is bordered to the north by Rochford and to the west by Castle Point. The city is one of the most densely populated places in the country outside of London. It is home to the longest pleasure pier in the world, Southend Pier, while London Southend Airport is located to the north of the city centre.
Rochford is a town and civil parish in the Rochford District in Essex, England, 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Southend-on-Sea, 43 miles (69 km) from London and 21 miles (34 km) from Chelmsford. At the 2011 census, the civil parish had a population of 8,471.
The University of Essex is a public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass universities. The university shield consists of the ancient arms attributed to the Kingdom of Essex and the motto: "Thought the harder, heart the keener" is adapted from the Anglo-Saxon poem The Battle of Maldon. The university comprises three campuses in the county, in Southend-on-Sea and Loughton with its primary campus in Wivenhoe Park, Colchester.
London Southend Airport is an international airport situated on the outskirts of Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England, approximately 36 miles (58 km) from the centre of London. The airport straddles the boundaries between the city of Southend-on-Sea and the Rochford District.
The A13 is a major road in England linking Central London with east London and south Essex. Its route is similar to that of the London, Tilbury and Southend line via Rainham, Grays, Tilbury, Stanford-Le-Hope & Pitsea, and runs the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway area, terminating on the Thames Estuary at Shoeburyness. It is a trunk road between London and the Tilbury junction, a primary route between there and Sadlers Hall Farm near South Benfleet, and a non-primary route between there and Shoeburyness.
Leigh-on-Sea, commonly referred to simply as Leigh, is a town and civil parish in the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. In 2011 it had a population of 22,509.
Westcliff-on-Sea is a suburb of the city of Southend-on-Sea, located within the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the north shore of the lower Thames Estuary, about 38 miles east of London. The Westcliff-on-Sea area is described by Southend-on-Sea City Council as having a border in the east with Milton Road, Hamlet Court Road and Gainsborough Drive; Prittlewell Chase to the North and Valkyrie Road/ London Road/ Southbourne Grove in the west. Traditionally Westcliff included Chalkwell.
Beecroft Art Gallery is an art gallery in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The gallery is housed in the former municipal central library built in 1974 in the brutalist style. The Beecroft Art Gallery has a busy programme of changing exhibitions of art, photography and fashion. On the ground floor, the gallery presents temporary exhibitions of modern and contemporary artists, focusing on the work of emerging and established local artists. On the first floor, visitors can see works from the permanent collection and exciting fashion exhibitions.
Wickford is a town and civil parish in the south of the English county of Essex, with a population of 33,486. Located approximately 30 miles (50 km) east of London, it is within the Borough of Basildon along with the original town of Basildon, Billericay, Laindon and Pitsea.
Cliffs Pavilion is a theatre, sports, exhibition and concert venue located on Station Road in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, a suburb within the city of Southend-on-Sea. It is the largest purpose-built arts venue in Essex, and the largest capacity of any theatre in the East of England. In 2006, the operation of Cliffs Pavilion, along with the Palace Theatre, were handed to HQ Theatres by Southend-on-Sea Borough Council. HQ Theatres merged with Trafalgar Entertainment in 2021. In February 2022, the Cliffs played host to He Built This City concert, a tribute to the murdered MP for Southend West Sir David Amess.
Southend East and Rochford is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Bayo Alaba, a member of the Labour Party.
Southend West and Leigh is a constituency in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. In the 2024 general election the seat was won by David Burton-Sampson for Labour. It was previously held by Anna Firth who won the 2022 by-election, following the murder of the incumbent MP, David Amess.
Southend Pier is a major landmark in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, United Kingdom. Extending 1.33 miles (2.14 km) into the Thames Estuary, it is the longest pleasure pier in the world. The bill to build the new pier, to replace a previous timber jetty, received royal assent as the Southend Pier Act 1829 in May 1829 with construction starting in July 1829. The timber pier was replaced by an iron pier that opened to the public in August 1889. The Southend Pier Railway, opened in the early 1890s, was the first pier railway in the country.
Southend Central Museum is a museum in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. The museum houses collections of local and natural history and contains a planetarium constructed by astronomer Harry Ford in 1984.
Cornelius Vermuyden School is a secondary school with academy status for boys and girls ages 11–16. Located on Canvey Island, Essex, the school is named after the Dutch land engineer Sir Cornelius Vermuyden (1595-1683) who reclaimed large areas of fenland in England, and supervised the construction of the sea walls around Canvey in 1623. The school is a specialist arts and maths and computing college.
Southend University Hospital is an NHS hospital located in Westcliff-on-Sea, Southend-on-Sea, Essex. It is managed by Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust.
South Essex College of Further and Higher Education, also known as South Essex College, is a further education college located over three main sites in Basildon, Southend-on-Sea and Grays in Essex, England. The college provides courses for students of all ages, from 14 to 19-year-olds to undergraduates, adults and businesses.
Southchurch High School is a coeducational secondary school located in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. It opened on 1 September 2016, replacing the former Futures Community College. The school has had several previous iterations, having originally formed as Southchurch Hall School back in 1904.
Southend-on-Sea City Council is the local authority of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. Southend has had an elected local authority since 1866, which has been reformed several times. Since 1998 the council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council; it is independent from Essex County Council
Essex is a ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the south, Greater London to the south-west, and Hertfordshire to the west. The largest settlement is Southend-on-Sea, and the county town is Chelmsford.
