The borough was made up of three main districts, Shoreditch, Hoxton and Haggerston, and covered much of the north-western and northern East End of London.

The borough was in north-east London and comprised the area of the ancient parish of Shoreditch (St Leonard's) plus part of the ancient liberty of Norton Folgate to the south[1] The parish vestry had taken on local administration from the 17th century onwards.

The civic buildings of the borough included the Town Hall (originally the Vestry Hall) in Old Street with the Magistrates Court (derelict in 2007), the Coroner's Court in Boundary St and other civic offices nearby.

The building on Coronet Street is embellished with the motto E PULVERE LUX ET VIS (Out of the dust, light and power).

[10][11] The metropolitan borough inherited these eight wards for elections: Acton, Church, Haggerston, Hoxton, Kingsland, Moorfields, Wenlock and Whitmore.