June 2022

Derek Inkpin from local solicitors Wiseman Lee talks about conservation areas, the restrictions they impose on homeowners and, ultimately, the benefits they create for the common good

There are about 10,000 conservation areas in the UK, which says something for the ageing housing stock as well as parks, historic town centres and canals we have in this country.

Whilst newly built houses have their advantages, many people are drawn to buying in a conservation area with its protected neighbourhood status. Interestingly, research has revealed there is a premium of about 9% to be added to the valuation of conservation area houses. Many of these are in our communities of north-east London and west Essex, with their architectural features and picturesque surroundings.

Consequently, it is known there are conservation area restrictions on the type of work you can carry out on your property. Beware, therefore, of the strict penalties if, as a houseowner, you break the rules. The restrictions vary from one area to another according to what is set by the local authority.

The normal permitted development rights that benefit houseowners are displaced in conservation areas if the council imposes Article 4 Directions, which then lay down specific restrictions on what you can do to improve your home. Consent will be required, for example, if you want to demolish a gate, wall or fence of over one metre in height if it borders the road or higher than two metres if it does not. Permission is also required for cladding, side extensions, new construction of sheds, outbuildings and swimming pools or if you wish to install satellite equipment which faces the road. Solar panels also have restrictions as well as alterations to roofs. Even changing the colour of window frames and doors and the lopping of trees are caught by these rules. Lack of knowledge if you carry out such works without permission is no defence.

It follows that talking to your council at an early stage is vital because failure to do so could ultimately be punished by a substantial fine or, at worst, a two-year prison sentence. On the plus side, some councils offer grant aid for the extra costs and, of course, the additional protection does mean you will not see poor quality development, thereby making your area more desirable.

If you have carried out work on your home before the conservation area rules in your community came into force you can perhaps count your blessings, because such works following these rule changes may prevent you from proceeding or force you to reduce the extent of the building work you have in mind.

This is one more example of restrictions being placed on individual freedoms because of the ‘common good’ argument which conservation areas are intended to achieve.

Wiseman Lee is located at 9–13 Cambridge Park, Wanstead, E11 2PU. For more information, call 020 8215 1000

Those interested in space exploration are invited to join members of the North East London Astronomical Society on 19 June for a talk about the Apollo programme.

“My presentation will look at each Apollo mission where they walked on the moon. I will start by debunking the conspiracy theories about fake moon landings,” said Jerry Workman, who has met two of the 12 men to have walked on the lunar surface.

The event will take place at Wanstead House from 10.30am (first-time visitors: free).

Email stevek1951@hotmail.com

As the nation celebrates the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Wanstead resident Eileen Flinter reflects upon her memories of the monarch’s 70-year reign

When I was six, I saw my mother cry for the first time. We lived in a tenement in Glasgow and I was in bed suffering from chickenpox when Mum came into the room, wiping her eyes and crying. “The King is dead,” she told me. It was February 1952.

By June 1953, we had moved and our home was a fish and chip shop in Manchester. My parents, like millions of others, bought their first television to watch the Coronation. I can remember perching on the arm of a chair in our crowded sitting room as the young queen was crowned and family and neighbours watched in reverent silence.

My brother and I were two of the many children who were given Coronation mugs at school. We used our Coronation mugs on a daily basis for years. One of the mugs still survives. As the Queen passed more and more milestones, this shabby piece of crockery was elevated to the status of family treasure and put away for safety.

By the time of the Silver Jubilee in 1977, I was married and living in Dublin. This was not the easiest place to look for red, white and blue bunting or Union Jacks, so I watched the events in Britain on the BBC and spoke to my parents on the phone.

When the 2002 Golden Jubilee took place, I was living in Wanstead. My daughter remembers that everyone in the estate agents where she then worked was told to wear red, white and blue that day. She also remembers I bought her Union Jack shot glasses which she and her friend used as ashtrays when I was out one night. Apparently, I was mad with them for abusing the gift – and for smoking!

Ahead of the Diamond Jubilee in 2012, my granddaughter was taken to see the Queen and Prince Philip in Valentine’s Park. Niamh had her photo taken wearing a Union Jack hat and clutching a flag. This photo is stored in her memory box, along with the mug she got at the Cranbourne Avenue street party, and the 1953 mug from her grandmother.

Fast forward another decade to the Platinum Jubilee. From Brexit to the pandemic and an 11-year-old asking me if we are going to have a nuclear war, the intervening 10 years have been tumultuous and unsettling for many, and tragic for some. And the Queen has not been exempt personally, losing her husband and enduring the most tragic of all funerals for anyone, let alone doing so in the glare of cameras. She is left dealing with the fallout of the shameful behaviour of her favourite son and the absence of her cheerful grandson.

Around these landmarks, I have grown up and grown old, but the young girl who inherited the Crown whilst on holiday in Africa has gone on doing the same job, day after day and year after year. It is a formidable employment record. For all of us, there have been good times and bad, happy times and sad over the last 70 years.

Royalist or republican, it is hard not to offer the Queen respect and admiration for a life lived in complete dedication to a job and way of life that came to her accidentally. Elizabeth’s recent birthday photo with two ponies signalled the life she would have chosen for herself. Most of us have no memory of another monarch. So familiar that she is just there, an unconsidered part of our lives. We owe her our very warmest wishes. She has done us proud. Take care, ma’am.

Pupils from Nightingale Primary School completed their annual ‘marafun’ challenge last month.

“Walks took place all over the area, with the children covering 1,174km in total! They raised £2,100 for the school’s hardship fund, supporting low-income families with school-related costs,” said a spokesperson.

Peter Hughes, parent and owner of event sponsor Gotto Trattoria, said: ‘’We were thrilled to be able to support the ‘marafun’, to bring families together and for the children to contribute to their community.’’

A communal compost bin will be temporarily installed on Christ Church Green this month. The only thing you have to do is to throw in your fruit and veg scraps, says Yann Corre

Every year, London Local Authorities collect more than 3.6 million tons of waste, and generating more rubbish for waste collection day means more lorries using more fuel and causing more air pollution and greenhouse gases to be released. Considering the current geopolitical and climate situation, there is an urgency to reduce our fuel consumption and carbon footprint in general.

But there is good news! There is one simple thing households can do that would lead to a huge reduction in waste: composting!

Some 30% to 40% of rubbish thrown away could be composted, including garden waste like dead leaves, grass cuttings and twigs, and kitchen waste such as uncooked fruit and veg scraps, coffee grounds and certain tea bags. Composting is a brilliant way of dealing with food waste, as well as scrap paper and card.

The general principle is to mix around 50% soft green material (grass clippings, weeds, uncooked vegetables) with 50% woody brown material (prunings, wood chippings, shredded paper, cardboard or dead leaves). This mix is important to maintain optimal moisture in the system; if it gets too wet, the compost bin can become smelly. Mixing the compost regularly is also crucial as it is an aerobic process (with oxygen).

Composting significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions. It doesn’t take up much space and produces a soil improver that’s great for the garden and perfect for growing your own plants.

For Wanstead residents who don’t have space for their own compost bins, and for people willing to try this experience, Cleaner Greener Wanstead and Redbridge Council will install a shared compost bin on Christ Church Green this month. It will be placed on the grass verge near the entrance of the church (Wanstead Place), open to everyone, for a few weeks.

As an experiment, we aim to invite as many people as we can to start composting. The only thing you have to do is to throw your fruit and veg food waste into the bin and we will manage it. The compost generated could be used by everyone for gardening.

Workshops, support, advice and tips will be provided to teach you what food waste can be thrown in and how you can store your kitchen waste for a few days in your home before dropping them into the communal bin. Our approach is totally flexible, so do not hesitate to contact us for any information.

Let’s get composting!

The Christ Church Green communal compost bin will be available in early June. For more information on the initiative, visit wnstd.com/compost

Ask not what your council can do for you, ask what you can do for your community, says Councillor Paul Canal as he updates on the appeal to replace the benches damaged by the Christ Church Green arson attack

Setbacks and challenges always bring the best out of people and communities. As bleak as the Covid pandemic was, people across Wanstead and Woodford rallied round in a remarkable display of mutual support. From foodbanks to shopping, hospital lifts to home visits, our community came together as never before.

The recent arson attack on the Christ Church Green children’s playground elicited a similar fantastic response, with an outpouring of sorrow and generosity raising over £5,500 through the crowdfunding appeal I launched after the act of vandalism.

It was suggested by some that we should have sat back and demanded the council – through the parks’ operator Vision – fund the repairs and replacement of the damaged benches. After all, we pay more tax and rates per person than most of the borough, goes the argument, and deserve our fair share back. That is a valid view, but I would suggest there is a bigger picture to consider.

Resources are constrained, and Vision simply don’t have the capital budget to do all they want to do, let alone what we would like as a community here in Wanstead.

We also live in one of the wealthier areas of Redbridge, where people have the capacity and the will to contribute to their community, which has been demonstrated time and time again.

I would suggest the kindness of our community, exemplified by generous donations from businesses such as Nightingale on the Green, Smile In London dental clinic and North London Loft Rooms, along with dozens of individual benefactors, has had a positive effect that extends beyond our borders.

Not only has our local community funded the repair and replacement of equipment on Christ Church Green, but we have also allowed Vision to invest in playgrounds for less well-off children in a more deprived part of the borough. This seems particularly fitting for a playground named after a church.

Vision will receive £3,000 of the funds raised, £2,000 to replace the benches in the playground and £1,000 to provide a new bench on the green. The balance will be donated to the Wanstead Fringe, allowing Giles Wilson to put on an even more ambitious programme for 2022; our community at its best.

Wanstead and Woodford, thank you. I am humbled to live in such a great community.

For more information on the Christ Church Green Playground Arson Appeal, visit wnstd.com/arsonappeal

Paul Canal is a Conservative councillor for Bridge ward.