Organisers of the 2012 Olympics have been criticised for making Barking and Dagenham the 'forgotten borough' of the London Games by the local authority.

Liam Smith, leader of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham council, said the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) had failed to provide the area with any benefits from the event. Criticism of the borough's treatment by Olympic organisers follows a new study by the London Assembly's economic development committee, which outlined concerns that the Olympic Park could become an "island of prosperity".

Smith said: "To date there's been no Games dividend for Barking and Dagenham and no sign of an Olympic legacy for our borough. We are the forgotten borough when it comes to the Olympic Games. "In the wake of the London Assembly report, I will be writing to LOCOG chair Sebastian Coe calling on him to remember Barking and Dagenham exists as an Olympic borough and calling on LOCOG and the Olympic Board to recognise that when the Olympic Games comes to town that the people of Barking and Dagenham should see something tangible from the event both during and after games time."

Image: Olympic Delivery Authority/London 2012