Once considered beyond the pale and known as the “race hate capital of Britain”, Barking now deserves to be known for being multicultural – its current population is comprised of 41.7% Africans and Asians. Barking’s turnaround has made it the perfect place to live. After moving to this borough over six months ago I could not imagine myself living anywhere else: it has everything anyone could need – food and clothes markets, affordable housing and good transport links into Central London.
Six years ago it looked very different. I visited Barking for an interview I had at the Premier Inn hotel that is near the Tesco Superstore, and I could not wait to get out of there quick enough. Exiting the station, the first things I was struck with were the dirty pavements and strong smells of fried food and cigarettes. The town looked battered, abandoned and polluted, as if a grey cloud had been placed above it a long time ago.
Around this time there were concerns about a different kind of visitors – neo-fascists. The anti-immigrant British National Party (BNP) briefly held 12 seats on the borough council, but they lost these at the next election, when the Labour Party regained control with 41% of the popular vote.
Nowadays, Barking’s multicultural inhabitants make it a very welcoming and vibrant town. Visitors and locals can enjoy a wide variety of restaurants, bars, cafes, gyms, and food and clothes shops. Its proximity to London City Airport, Canary Wharf and the Docklands Campus of the University of East London make it a very convenient place to live for students and business people. Plus, its effective and quick transport links into Central London and out to Southend Airport have attracted many recent incomers who are snapping up new housing developments in the area. In the long term it’s likely to become gentrified but thankfully that hasn’t happened yet.
To conclude, Barking’s makeover has been spot-on. Its affordable housing is already bringing in more people, and at some point – when supply outstrips demand – it will stop being affordable. But for now it is simply the best place to live – believe me!
“Barking station” by Ewan-M is licensed under CC BY-SA
