Hendon is a suburban constituency in the Borough of Barnet in Greater London, located around 8 miles (13 km) north-west of the centre of London. It includes the neighbourhoods of Hendon, Colindale, Mill Hill and parts of Edgware. Like much of suburban London, the area was developed during the late 19th and early 20th centuries after the arrival of rail transport connecting it to the city centre. Hendon was an important centre for aircraft production as the site of Hendon Aerodrome, which has now been redeveloped. The constituency has below-average levels of wealth; there is high deprivation in Hendon whilst Mill Hill is more affluent. House prices are higher than the national average but marginally lower than the rest of London.
Hendon is ethnically and religiously diverse. White people made up 50% of the population at the 2021 census, just over half of whom were of British origin. The area has large Eastern European communities including Poles, Romanians, Hungarians and Albanians. Asians were 24% of the population, mostly Indians and Iranians, and Black people were 11%. The Asian and Black communities are mostly concentrated in Colindale. The constituency has one of the largest Jewish communities in the country; they made up 14% of residents in 2021 and are concentrated in Hendon and Edgware, where they made up around a third of the population.
In general, residents of Hendon are young and well-educated. They have low rates of homeownership, and household income is below the London average. A high proportion of residents work in health, education and retail, and few work in professional or scientific occupations. At the local borough council, West Hendon and Colindale are represented by the Labour Party whilst the rest of the constituency elected Conservatives. An estimated 58% of voters in the constituency supported remaining in the European Union in the 2016 referendum, a similar proportion to the rest of London and higher than the nationwide figure of 48%.
History
1918–1945
The first incarnation of the constituency was created for the 1918 general election. By 1941, the estimated electorate reached 217,900. For the 1945 general election, the areas of the constituency were thus divided between North and South new entities and contributions to other new seats, including the principal part of Harrow East. The 1918–1945 was a period of near-full adult franchise and saw the most significant adult population increase nationally within the constituency, this coincided with a period of major residential building locally.
Since 1997
In the boundary change legislation passed to implement the Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies for the 1997 general election, the London Borough of Barnet's parliamentary representation was reduced from four seats to three and the Hendon North constituency was combined with a northern part of the Hendon South constituency, creating the present Hendon constituency. A south-eastern swathe of former Hendon South was placed into Finchley and Golders Green. Within 10% of the average electorate, the seat avoided malapportionment that would otherwise exist by way of two undersized constituencies.
Including the period of division of the present area (1945—97) the various general elections up to 1997 were won by Conservatives, except for the 1945 victory of Barbara Ayrton-Gould (Labour), in Hendon North (1945–50). The last Liberal or Liberal Democrat to serve the area of either Hendon seat was in 1910. Only these three parties have won the seat or its predecessors.
Boundaries
Hendon in Middlesex 1918–45Map of boundaries 1997 to 2024
1918–45
The constituency covered the Urban Districts of Hendon and Kingsbury, and Hendon Rural District.
No national reviews took place between the Representation of the People Act 1918 which enfranchised this constituency and the next such Act in 1945. Later national reviews took place by the newly established Boundary Commissions for the four countries of United Kingdom for the elections of 1950, 1974, 1983, 1997 and 2010. As can be seen from the map, during the early period the seat spanned the area made up of the present seat and primarily the two neighbours to east and west, Chipping Barnet and Harrow East.
1997–2024
The London Borough of Barnet wards of Burnt Oak, Colindale, Edgware, Hale, Hendon, Mill Hill, and West Hendon.
The new boundaries reflect the local authority boundary review which came into effect in May 2022. The composition of the constituency was reduced to bring the electorate within the permitted range, with Edgewarebury ward being transferred to Chipping Barnet.
