[2] The name probably derives from the Alborgh or Albourgh family who occupied the manor in the Middle Ages and mentioned in 14th and 15th-century records.

'Hatch' derives from the Old English word hæcc ('a hatch gate'), which originally gave access to Hainault Forest when it stood here.

Parliament considered it to be a waste and in 1819 passed a bill for the disafforestation of Hainault Forest which got thrown out by the House of Lords.

In 1851, ignoring public opinion, Parliament pushed through the Hainault Forest Inclosure Act 1851 (14 & 15 Vict.

[6] Under the Hainault Forest Inclosure Act (1851) land was set aside for the erection of a church for the new population expected in the district.

In 1861 the Commissioners of Woods and Forests agreed to give £1,000 for a building that would take the place of the chapel at Aldborough Hatch, and promised that they would continue the annual payment of £20 towards the salary of the incumbent.

Local inhabitants also contributed to the building fund including Mrs. Verbeke, who lived at Aldborough Grange.

[note 4] The organ at St. Peter's was built by Gray and Davison for the London Exhibition in 1862 held in the Royal Horticultural Society gardens.

[note 5] The public house, where the organ is said to have been installed, was most likely the Ship and Turtle in Leadenhall Street, London which was owned by Mr George Painter of Aldborough Hall.

There is an engraved stone beneath the eaves that reads "Her Majesty Queen Victoria granted this site and £200 towards the building of this school erected to the Glory of God and to the use of the poor of Aldborough Hatch".

Hesketh died suddenly at the end of 1965, only had the benefit of this stipend for a few months and never occupied the new vicarage which was erected as part of the deal with the builders.

When church law changed in the 1970s the stipend reverted to be the same as that for other clergy, and the Diocese probably put the balance in their general funds.

[note 7] South West Essex and Settlement Reform Synagogue is in Oaks Lane and was founded in 1956.

The school was named after William Stansfield Torbitt who was Director of Education for the Municipal Borough of Ilford from 1903 to 1938.

The sixth form has grown rapidly since it opened in September 2006 and offers wide range of courses to students, both from Oaks Park and other schools.

[15] Newbury Park Underground station on the Central line is on the western edge of Aldborough Hatch.

In 1836 William Pearce JP of Aldborough Grange (Great Ilford) wrote a letter to the finance committee, suggesting that the cost of feeding prisoners awaiting examination by a magistrate should be paid from the county rate, as this could no longer be paid from the poor rate.

A leaflet produced by Suburban Developments (London) Limited advertised their "Type C Improved" houses: "Come and live here!

Open country right at the doors; the seaside less than an hour by coach; Ilford's great shopping centres close by.

Bob and Mary Garrett undertook major renovation and rebuilding after the war, as the hall was in disrepair.

In the late 1930s, it was purchased by the City of London Corporation with the intention of upgrading it to a major airport, but the Munich crisis in 1938 caused the project to be shelved.

It was briefly considered again as a site for a new London airport, but in 1950 the government decided it should remain as an open space and Heathrow was developed instead.

In addition to the flora and fauna, there is a 38-acre lake for canoeing, sailing and windsurfing, which has two islands, the largest of which is a habitat for wild birds.

The area was the subject of an objection to the plans for an all-weather racecourse, which were overturned in 2002 by the Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott.

[29][note 24] Ron Jeffries was born in 1933 in King George Hospital, and spent virtually all of his life in Aldborough Hatch.

In 1968, with Rex Hazlewood due to retire, he was appointed as General Editor of the Scout Association, a position he held until 1979.

In April 1979, during his final year as editor, the Chief Scout Sir William Gladstone presented him with the Silver Acorn for his services to the Association.

A memorial tablet was placed at the site by Ilford Borough Council as part of the Festival of Britain commemorations.

[35][note 25] The original Dick Turpin was a beerhouse in one of the Aldborough Hall Farm cottages which are believed to date back to the 16th century.

This was probably the Old Clock House, demolished in the early 19th century, apart from the red brick garden walls with gabled coping and a former gazebo with a hip tiled roof.