The 1978 Havering Council election took place on 4 May 1978 to elect members of Havering London Borough Council in London, England. The whole council was up for election and the Conservative Party gained overall control of the council for the second time.
The election was originally scheduled for 1977, but was delayed for one year to bring London borough council elections into a four-year election cycle. New ward boundaries were used for the first time. Prior to the 1978 election the council had 64 members (55 councillors and 9 aldermen). From the 1978 election, 63 councillors were elected from 25 wards. Each ward returned two or three councillors.
Ten of the wards were entirely new, including Airfield ward covering the new Airfield estate in Hornchurch. The remaining wards shared the names of previously used wards but with new boundaries. Councillors were elected for a four-year term with the next election scheduled for 1982.
Polling took place on 4 May 1978, except in Gooshays ward where the election was delayed until 25 May 1978, due to the death of a candidate.
With 38 seats, the Conservative Party won overall control of the council for the second time. Labour Party wins were concentrated in the wards covering the Harold Hill estate (Heaton, Hilldene and Gooshays) with the addition of the new Airfield ward in Hornchurch. Residents and ratepayers candidates were successful in the two seats covering Cranham (Cranham East and Cranham West) as well as Rainham and wards covering southern Hornchurch (Hacton and South Hornchurch).
The following by-elections took place between the 1978 and 1982 elections: