Pitsea Library at Rectory Park Drive opened. The Essex County Council run facility occupies two floors in a newly completed complex that includes Pitsea Leisure Centre. A library serving Pitsea and Vange had previously existed at Woodfield Hall in Woodfield Road (later Grapnells) off the High Road.

The Watermill public house and restaurant in Felmores opened. Built on land bordering the A132 East Mayne the new public house was ideally placed to serve the nearby Felmores housing development and as a stop off for passing traffic using the A132. On site food is provided in the Beefeater Steakhouse Restaurant.

January

Dame Elizabeth Coker, D.B.E., D.L., succeeds Sir Reginald Goodwin as Chairman of the Basildon Development Corporation. Formerly Chairman of Essex County Council (1971-1974) and deputy chairman of B.D.Corp., Dame Elizabeth would remain in the post through to the winding up of the Development Corporation in 1986.

20th February

Basildon band Depeche Mode release their first single "Dreaming of Me" which charts at number 57. The band, formed the previous year by Vince Clarke, Martin Gore, Andrew Fletcher and Dave Gahan, all lived within the town and first played together as Composition of Sound at Nicholas County Secondary School in Leinster Road, Laindon on 14/06/1980. They are noted for their distinctive synth-pop sound, though sometimes guitar based, and went on to achieve worldwide success. Nearly thirty nine years later and with three of the original members still in the line-up they have now achieved more than 226 weeks on the British charts from 48 hit records and are still going strong.

April

The 1st house on a new housing development at Daltons Fen in Pitsea is opened by Mr. John Stanley, Conservative MP and Minister (Department of the Environment) (Housing & Construction). The houses were constructed by Potton House Development off Rectory Road on land cleared for development by Basildon Development Corporation.

5th April

Population Census statistics for Basildon district; 94,232.

21st May

Marks Hill Nature Reserve in Langdon Hills officially opened. The 43 acre site was created in the mid-to-late 1970s on land owned by Basildon Development Corporation. In 1976 Basildon Natural History Society were granted a licence to run the area as a nature reserve and this arrangement has continued since ownership of the land passed to Essex Wildlife Trust in 1989. A feature of the landscape is an artificially made pond called Pecks, created in the once residential Albemarle Crescent. The official opening was carried out by wildlife artist, broadcaster and author Gordon Beningfield at the Triangle Community Centre.

July

Street parties were held throughout the town to mark the occasion of the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer on Wednesday 29th July.

August

Pitsea Leisure Centre in Rectory Park Drive opened. The new three-storey Basildon Council run facility was built at a cost of £1.5 million and includes a large hall and stage, meeting and games rooms, a licensed bar, dining room and day facilities for older people. An Essex County Council library is also housed within the complex. In the 1990s it was renamed Pitsea Welcome Centre but later reverted back to its original name until February 2012 when it became The Place.

August

Basildon south-west area nature trail opened. The new route of bridleways and footpaths was provided to link up with the existing country parks at One tree Hill and Westley Heights in Langdon Hills. Car parking with picnic areas, including one at The Chase off Dry Street, were provided as well as seating and bridges at various points along the trail.

7th August

The Cats Cradle Pussiwillow III Clock in Eastgate Centre, Basildon inaugurated. The clock was commissioned by Basildon Council and designed by cartoonist Frederick Rowland Emett, O.B.E. It chimes every 15 minutes and gives a moving performance each hour where cats and butterflies are seen to spin and rotate to the accompaniment of music. Its ornate circular water fountain feature divided into eight equal segments proved popular with the public who deposited coins into it which when collected are donated to charities. Film and Television comedy actor, writer and ex-Goon Michael Bentine performed the inauguration ceremony in the presence of its creator. The clock, minus its circular water pool, was later moved from its original location in front of Savacentre (now Asda) to the upper mall during the 1995 refurbishment of Eastgate.

28th August

The Church of St. Mary & All Saints in Old Church Hill is designated a Grade II listed building.

September

Lee Chapel County Infant & Junior School in The Knares merge to become Lee Chapel County Primary School. The schools' first appointed Headteacher is Mr. John McGeachie who previously taught at Bryn County Junior School in Church Road, Fryerns.

7th September

Felmores End between Felmores and Lanhams is designated as a 'Bus Lane'.
BASILDON DISTRICT COUNCIL The District of Basildon (Road 45 Felmores End and Service Road) (Bus Lane and One Way Traffic) Order 1981.
The effect of the Order is to: (1) prohibit any vehicle other than a public service vehicle or pedal cycle from entering, proceeding or waiting in that part of Road 45 Felmores End, Basildon, designated as a bus only lane; (2) prohibit any vehicle to proceed in the service road to the shops at Felmores End, Basildon, in a direction other than east to west. The Order came into operation on 7th September 1981. Source: The London Gazette, publication date: 30/09/1981, issue number: 48750, page: 12387.

30th October

The New Towns Act, 1981 receives Royal Assent. This Act is a revision of the previous 1965 Act, itself revised from the original New Towns Act of 1946.

10th November

Langdon Hills Hall Farmhouse in Old Church Hill is designated a Grade II listed building.

10th November

Hall Farm Cottage in Old Church Hill is designated a Grade II listed building.

10th November

Depeche Mode perform at Raquels nightclub in Market Pavement, Basildon Town Centre. The Basildon band featuring Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Andrew Fletcher and Vince Clarke were making their second and final appearance at the club, and to date, last appearance in Basildon. The band, formed the previous year, had already played in the town centre at Sweeney's discotheque back in April following the release of their first single "Dreaming of Me" and had so far achieved a hit album and three chart hits including "Just Can't Get Enough" in a career that continues to the present.