Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
The
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (often abbreviated to
RBKC) is a
London borough in the west side of
central London, created in
1965 from the former boroughs of
Kensington and
Chelsea. Kensington's
Royal Borough status was inherited by the new borough. It is an
urban area and was named in the
2001 census as the most densely populated local authority in the
United Kingdom, with a population of 158,919 at 13,244 per square kilometre (the land area is approximately
12 square kilometres). The borough is immediately to the west of the
City of Westminster, which is at the heart of modern London, and itself contains a substantial number of city centre facilities such as major museums and universities (in "
Albertopolis"), department stores like
Harrods, and embassies. It also contains many of the most exclusive residential districts in London.
The borough includes the areas of:
*
Brompton*
Chelsea*
Earl's Court*
Holland Park*
Kensington*
North Kensington*
Notting Hill*
South Kensington*
West Brompton**
see also Kensington and Chelsea parks and open spacesAccording to the 2001 census the borough has a population of 158,919. It is 79% white, 4% Black African and 3% Black Caribbean. 44% of households are ownerâ€"occupiers.
As of October 2004, statistics released [
1] by the
Office for National Statistics show that
life expectancy at birth for females in Kensington and Chelsea was 84.8 years in 2001-2003, the highest in the United Kingdom. Male life expectancy at birth for the same period was 79.8 years, third highest in the UK. The figures for Kensington and Chelsea during 1991-1993 were significantly lower: 73.0 years for males (ranking 301st in the nation) and 80.0 for females (ranking 129th).
Kensington & Chelsea's affluence is demonstrated by the fact that it has the largest number of high-earners (over ÂŁ60,000) of any administrative region in the country â€" 16.6% [
2]. It has the highest number of workers in the financial sector and the lowest number working in the retail sector.
The Royal Borough is divided between two
constituencies represented in the
House of Commons of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom:
*
Kensington and Chelsea, held by
Malcolm Rifkind for the
Conservative Party, and
*
Regent's Park and Kensington North, currently held by
Karen Buck for the
Labour Party.
*
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea official website
