[2] Within the boundaries of the historic county of Essex, East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a Major Centre.

The first known written use of the term, as 'Hamme', is in an Anglo-Saxon charter of 958, in which King Edgar granted the Manor of Ham, which was undivided at that time, to Ealdorman Athelstan.

A subsequent charter on 1037 describes a transfer of land, which has been identified with East Ham, indicating that the first division of the territory occurred between 958 and 1037.

In 1886 the local government district was extended to include the civil parish of Little Ilford (also known as Manor Park), and the board was increased to 12 in number.

As a result of popular pressure, East Ham sought and obtained county borough status on 1 April 1915.

[5] The principal offices of Newham Council were at the junction of Barking Road and High Street South in the former East Ham Town Hall, a Grade II listed Edwardian structure designed by A. H. Campbell, H. Cheers and J. Smith, which included a landmark clock tower.

[8] In 1859 East Ham railway station opened and, although in 1863 the area was still being described as a "scattered village" the availability of transport resulted in increasing urbanisation, especially from 1890 onwards.

The graveyard of the Norman St Mary's church, is maintained as a nature reserve, the largest of its kind in Greater London.

East Ham is a multicultural area, with many Caribbean, South Asian, African and eastern European residents.

Around 7 in 10 children living in East Ham are from low income families, making it one of the worst areas in the country for child poverty.

[13] The Wall End ward (eastern parts of East Ham) had a crime rate of 46.6% in 2014-15, far below the average for both Newham and Greater London.

Newham Council run a number of subsidised or free support programs for locals such as the ParkLives scheme.

They host a bi-annual bike ride from Upton Park to West Ham's new stadium in the Olympic Park to promote and preserve the historic, community and economic links between Boleyn and West Ham United as well as the local area and community networks.

The group meets regularly and publishes a biannual newsletter, as well as being involved in local events and working with the council to encourage improvements to the area.