Basildon in the context of Essex, England

Essex (/ˈɛsɪks/ ESS-iks) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the south, Greater London to the south-west, and Hertfordshire to the west. The largest settlement is Southend-on-Sea.

The county has an area of 3,670 km (1,420 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 1,929,610 in 2024. The south of the county is densely populated, and includes Southend-on-Sea in the south-east and Basildon in the south-centre. The centre and north of the county is more rural, and its principal settlements include Chelmsford in the centre and Colchester in the north-east. The districts of Chelmsford, Colchester and Southend hold city status. For local government purposes Essex comprises a non-metropolitan county, with twelve districts, and two unitary authority areas: Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea. The county historically included north-east Greater London, the River Lea forming its western border.

CNH Industrial NV is an Italian-American multinational corporation with global headquarters in Basildon, United Kingdom, but controlled and mostly owned by the multinational investment company Exor, which in turn is controlled by the Agnelli family. Through its various businesses, CNH Industrial designs, produces, and sells agricultural machinery and construction equipment (Case IH and New Holland brand families). Present in all major markets worldwide, CNH Industrial is focused on expanding its presence in high-growth markets, including through joint ventures. In 2019 CNH Industrial employed more than 63,000 people in 67 manufacturing plants and 56 research and development centers. The company operates across 180 countries. Following the execution of the deed of demerger from CNH Industrial N.V., Iveco Group was established on 1 January 2022.

CNH Industrial is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The company is incorporated in the Netherlands. The seat of the company is in Amsterdam, Netherlands, with a principal office in London, England.

The East of England is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It consists of the ceremonial counties of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. The northern part of the region, consisting of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, is known as East Anglia. The latter region has been considered an informal region in its own right due to its differing cultural identity.

The population of the East of England in 2024 was 6,576,306. Bedford, Luton, Basildon, Peterborough, Southend-on-Sea, Norwich, Ipswich, Colchester, Chelmsford and Cambridge are the most populous settlements. Peterborough is the largest city in the East of England at 215,000. The southern part of the region lies in the London commuter belt.

Access was a British credit card brand launched by Lloyds Bank, Midland Bank and National Westminster Bank in 1972 to rival the already established Barclaycard. It was established as a joint venture incorporated as The Joint Credit Card Company Limited and operated from Southend-on-Sea, until 1989 when part of the business was transferred to Basildon. In July 1991, First Data Resources purchased the business, and with the member banks being allowed to process their own transactions, the name eventually disappeared from the market.

The Borough of Basildon is a local government district with borough status in Essex, England. It is named after its largest town, Basildon, where the council is based. The borough also includes the towns of Billericay and Wickford and surrounding rural areas.

The borough borders the City of Chelmsford to the north, the Borough of Brentwood to the west, the Thurrock unitary authority area to the south, the Borough of Castle Point to the south-east, and Rochford District to the north-east.

Wickford is a town and civil parish in the Basildon borough of Essex, England. It is located approximately 30 miles (48 km) east of London and 4 miles (6 km) north-east of the centre of Basildon. At the 2021 census the parish had a population of 27,601 and the built up area as defined by the Office for National Statistics had a population of 27,535.

Wickford has a main high street which includes a wide range of shops. It also has a swimming pool, library, open-air market and a community centre within the vicinity of the town centre.

London overspill communities were established as part of a government-led initiative to alleviate overcrowding in Greater London by relocating residents to other parts of England between the 1930s and 1970s. The earliest efforts focused on nearby areas in the South East, with the development of towns such as Harlow, Crawley, Basildon, and Stevenage. These initiatives were underpinned by the Greater London Plan of 1944, authored by Patrick Abercrombie, which proposed a ring of satellite towns beyond a newly defined Green Belt to decentralise population and industry.

From the 1950s, the scheme extended into East Anglia, where towns such as King's Lynn, Thetford, Haverhill, and Bury St Edmunds were expanded or redeveloped to accommodate Londoners. This regional inclusion aligned with the New Towns Act of 1946, which empowered the government to designate development areas and establish corporations to oversee their planning and growth. Peterborough, for instance, was designated a New Town in 1967 with a target population increase of 70,000.

Pitsea is a suburban town forming the eastern part of Basildon in Essex, England. Pitsea was historically a separate village and parish. Pitsea was a small village until the first half of the 20th century, when it saw significant plotlands development. In 1949 the village was included in the designated area for the new town of Basildon, since when the area has seen further extensive development. It now forms part of the built up area of Basildon.