July 2022

From small spotty-eyed drone flies to a rare jumping spider and pink moth, chair of the Wren Wildlife Group James Heal reports on some of the highlights of the recent bioblitz in Wanstead

The Wren Wildlife and Conservation Group is 50 years old this year. Fifty years of helping to promote and protect the wildlife of the Wanstead area and its surrounds, and helping to bring the people of east London closer to the wildlife that can be found on their doorstep.

One of the most popular activities of the Wren Group in recent years has been an almost annual ‘bioblitz’, a range of family-friendly wildlife surveys and walks to get a snapshot of what flora and fauna can be found here.

On the last weekend of June, we spent a day each on Wanstead Flats and Wanstead Park. Saturday 25 June started very early, with an ‘almost dawn chorus walk’. Several people set their alarms to walk into Bush Wood to listen to the birdsong at 5.30am. Chiffchaff, blackcap, song thrush and blackbird serenaded us as we walked, but a highlight was a singing reed warbler, not in a reed bed where they are more usually found, but in a rose bush.

A few hours later, a larger group joined us for a walk on Wanstead Flats. Amongst other things, we found green-eyed flower bees (Anthophora bimaculata), small spotty-eyed drone flies (Eristalinus sepulchralis; pictured here) and yellow 22-spot ladybirds (Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata – try saying that after a few sherries!).

Later in the day, we were joined by spider expert David Carr. The conditions weren’t great for spiders as, despite the warmth, it was windy and the branches we were checking were clear. However, David’s eagle eye spotted the tiny, nationally scarce jumping spider Salticus zebraneus on a tree in one of the Flats’ plantations. This is a stripy, zebra spider and is closely related to its more common and similar but larger cousin Salticus scenicus, which you may well find in your homes and gardens (one to look out for). 

Later that day, we put out two moth traps near the Temple in Wanstead Park. The next morning was another very early start to check the traps. The highlight was a beautiful salmon pink and black moth called a rosy footman (Miltochrista miniata) – the first time it has been found locally. Later in Wanstead Park, we watched the macabre sight of beewolf wasps (Philanthus triangulum) carrying paralysed honey bees down to their nest holes in the ground to feed their larvae.

We were also joined by local school children to do some pond dipping, where the kids marvelled at being able to hold a young newt in their hands. The day ended watching and listening (using electric sonic detector technology) to bats near Perch Pond.

If this brief snapshot whets your appetite, do join the Wren Group to find out about more wildlife activities coming soon.

For more information on the Wren Wildlife Group, visit wnstd.com/wren

Developers behind plans to build a four-storey building on Evergreen Field have agreed to accept feedback from residents until 15 August.

“The original deadline was 31 July, but we won’t be submitting a planning application until the autumn and we are keen to gather as many responses as possible by then,” said a spokesperson for Local Government Insights, which is overseeing the consultation on behalf of land owners Caerus Developments.

The proposals would see the creation of 24 homes, a ground-floor nursery and a public playground. The developers will also be donating half of the site for community use and have put forward three garden design options.

Located off the High Street, adjacent to Christ Church Green, the fenced-off land has been unused for over 50 years.

Visit wnstd.com/efconsult

With the dry, cracked bed of the Ornamental Water once again on show, Benjamin Murphy, chair of the Epping Forest & Commons Committee, explains the inherent difficulties in managing the water levels of Wanstead Park’s lake system. Photo by Geoff Wilkinson

The water bodies in Wanstead Park were created in the 18th century, originally as a cascade of nine lakes. They were filled by a diversion from the River Roding,
which has long since been lost.

Today, five lakes remain. They run in a semi-circle in an anticlockwise direction. First is The Basin, which is the head of the cascade in the ownership of Wanstead Golf Club. The next four lakes running down the cascade are Shoulder of Mutton Pond, Heronry Pond, Perch Pond and the Ornamental Water, all under City of London Corporation ownership.

The catchment area for surface water naturally draining into the ponds has vastly diminished in size since their creation due to housing and roads that have since been built. Essentially, we are now dealing with a series of artificial water bodies that, for over a century, have not had a sustainable water source. 

For many years, the City of London Corporation’s Epping Forest charity has helped to alleviate the water shortage by pumping directly from the underground water aquifer. However, there are legal limits on how much water can be pumped and this is subject to licensing from the Environment Agency. 

We have now had over six months of notably low levels of rainfall. The River Roding is at 39% of its normal level. Ponds throughout the Forest, which rely on rainfall and sit on clay soil, are at notably low levels or have completely dried up. 

In Wanstead Park, the borehole from the aquifer tops up water levels to the Heronry Pond. A second pump takes water from the Heronry to Perch Pond. When the Perch Pond is full it overtops and spills into the Ornamental Water. 

The pump used to extract water has a limit on the capacity of water it can pump. Therefore, it can be alternated to fill either Heronry Pond or Perch Pond. The pump has been working on Perch since June. It normally takes around four days to fill Perch enough to flow into Ornamental, but the heat and dryness of the earth means that even when the small amounts of water do flow into The Dell and on to Ornamental Water, this is rapidly absorbed or evaporates. Simply put, there is neither enough rainfall nor surface water naturally, nor enough water being pumped artificially from the aquifer, to resolve the problem. 

Even if we could pump directly into the Ornamental Water, the dryness of the lake would absorb most of the water into the ground without the help of additional rainfall. 

The Epping Forest trustees are committed to finding a strategic solution to identify alternative water sources and to improve water retention. Actions taken include: 

• A series of expert engineering surveys have been commissioned to consider options available. 
• Created plans to replace the pumping infrastructure at the River Roding to reinstate water pumping during the wetter winter months.
• Designs to install more land drainage to take rainwater into the Ornamental Water.
• A successful grant award from the Mayor of London for a study into a Sustainable Urban Drainage Scheme (SuDs) as part of developing wetland habitats.
• Contingency plans have been put in place to protect animal welfare.

For more information on Wanstead Park’s lakes, visit wnstd.com/parkwater

Pottery is the perfect way to combat the stresses of modern life, says Julia Dreher, who is excited to be launching her Wanstead Pottery business from her new garden studio during next month’s Fringe

It was whilst studying art and design during a foundation course that I first encountered clay, and it was a meeting that would shape my future, albeit via a rather convoluted route.

Following the foundation course, I specialised in ceramics at Falmouth School of Art, a stunning part of the country to be based. From there, and having moved to London, a chance opportunity secured me my first job, as a leather goods designer. And so began a career that spanned 25 years, took me all around the world many times, and allowed me the privilege of working with some of the most recognised British retailers and designer brands.

My career as a design manager ended abruptly, however, when, following a cancer diagnosis in 2017, I was made redundant. My health and recovery were, of course, my main focus during this phase, but it was around this time that a friend suggested we sign up for a pottery course. I’d dabbled with clay during the intervening years, but my career had been relentless and never afforded me the time to pursue ceramics, even as a hobby. 

The chemotherapy treatment had not long ended and I felt that working with clay again would be the positive distraction I needed. I was not wrong. I can only describe the sensation I encountered on entering the pottery class on our first day as a kind of epiphany. I felt an overwhelming sense of belonging and a realisation that I had ‘come home’. It was quite surreal and that experience marked a fundamental turning point in my life. Following the diagnosis and redundancy, my future had been very uncertain, but in that moment, I knew what I had to do.

It has taken quite some years to get to this point. My recovery has been slow, but the studio is now complete and I am very much looking forward to welcoming students, young and old, to join me in a calm and inviting space to explore the marvellous medium of clay.

Pottery is an ideal antidote to our frenetic modern lives. You simply cannot rush clay. You must be present and focused. It’s the perfect way to disconnect from the world and lose yourself in the mindful nature of the craft.

I have a fully equipped garden studio and will be teaching various hand-building techniques and how to throw on the potter’s wheel. The classes will be small and I am very excited to be launching the business as part of the Wanstead Fringe in September. If you are interested in experimenting with form, texture and decorative techniques to create something you will cherish, please do join me.

For more information on Wanstead Pottery, visit www.facebook.com/Wanstead-Pottery-109328661834617

For more information on Julia’s Wanstead Fringe classes, visit wansteadfringe.org

Work has been progressing on Wanstead Park’s new natural playground.

“The balance logs and log stepping stones are now in place, and the team have started to smooth off sharp edges and corners. Once the monkey bars and balance ropes are installed, the play trail will be a fantastic resource for local kids,” said Gill James.

All timber used is from trees that have either fallen naturally or have had to be felled as part of tree safety works.

“So far, volunteers have raised £30,000. Can you help us reach our £40,000 target?”

Visit wnstd.com/wpplay

Over 100 new cycle parking racks have been installed across the borough, including 22 along Wanstead High Street.

“We’re keen to support residents to make the switch from car to bicycle where they can and the provision of safe and secure cycle parking is essential to that,” said Councillor Jo Blackman. Redbridge Council is also encouraging more residents to get on their bikes by offering free cycle training to adults and children who live, work or study in the borough.

Visit wnstd.com/cyclecourses

Redbridge Museum will open a new permanent exhibition later this year exploring 200,000 years of local history. In the sixth of a series of articles, Museum Officer Nishat Alam looks at some of the items on show

One notable transformation visitors will see when Redbridge Museum reopens later this year will be in the section we call ‘From Village to Suburb’. This part of the museum looks at the period between the end of the 19th century and the 1930s, when the borough saw a rapid growth in population. The new displays will showcase more objects from our collection, exploring the changes that took place as Wanstead became a suburb.

The railway came to Wanstead in the mid-19th century, with Snaresbrook station opening in 1856. This was a key catalyst for the transformation of the area over the next 80 years. With a direct link into the city, professionals working in London began to move into places like Wanstead and surrounding areas that offered the peace and fresh air of the countryside, with the possibility of a quick and convenient commute to work.

Following the creation of the Wanstead Urban District Council in 1894, local services improved with the building of new roads, sewage pipes and electric street lights. New schools and churches were also established to serve the growing community.

Between the two World Wars, Wanstead experienced rapid growth, which brought further changes. Many people were attracted to the new housing built here in the 1930s, which were fitted with gas, electricity and the latest household appliances. It was at this time construction began on a new Underground station at Wanstead, although this did not open until 1947 due to the onset of war.

Much like today, the people of Wanstead enjoyed a buzzing community life. There was plenty to do, like watching movies at the Wanstead Empire (later Kinema), or visiting Wanstead Park, which had opened in 1881, to take tea, feed the swans and even ice skate on the frozen pond in the winter. Wanstead High Street soon became a popular shopping destination too. In 1939, the High Street was used by local estate agents Cheke & Co to encourage retailers to open hairdressers, butchers and fishmongers on the new ‘shopping parade’.

In 1934, Wanstead merged with Woodford to form a new urban district, which became a municipal borough three years later. By the end of the 1930s, Wanstead had transformed into a fashionable suburb while retaining its quiet village feel – a lasting quirk that continues to attract new residents today.

The new displays at Redbridge Museum will feature a variety of objects from our collection, like the pair of 1930s girls’ ice skates shown in the photo above, to illustrate life in Wanstead as it transformed from village into suburb.

Redbridge Museum is located on Clements Road, Ilford. Visit wnstd.com/rm
To complete a survey on what else should go on display, visit wnstd.com/rms

Darren Morgan from Age UK Redbridge, Barking and Havering highlights the importance of keeping active, and invites over-55s to take advantage of the charity’s activity centre in Wanstead

Following the pandemic, levels of social isolation remain high, so here at Age UK, we’re trying to tempt older people back out again. Now the pandemic is easing and things are slowly returning to normal, I would also like to highlight the importance of keeping active.

If you are over the age of 55 and live locally, you can give your fitness, mental well-being and social life a real boost by dropping into our activity centre (The Allan Burgess Centre) at 2 Grove Park, Wanstead. The centre, staffed by wonderful volunteers, is a short walk from the station and bus stops, and is a homely, welcoming and safe environment.

What’s on offer? We can help you get fit with chair exercises and yoga, or if you prefer something livelier, Zumba at the nearby Cherry Tree Café. If you fancy something more intellectual, join us for a game of bridge, read along at the book club, or learn how to get the most out of your smartphone, tablet or computer. Creative? Then arts, crafts and knitting may be for you.

Our activities are food for thought. And speaking of food, we provide a two-course lunchtime meal cooked fresh on-site using wholesome, high-quality ingredients by a trained chef. The menu changes daily, except for Fridays, when we love to serve a delicious, traditional roast dinner.

We’re open Monday to Friday, with activities typically taking place between 10am and 3pm, and lunch served around 12 noon. Activities are £3 per session, with Monday to Thursday lunch priced £5, and £5.50 on Friday. As we are a charity, we do not make a profit – all proceeds are ploughed back into the centre.

Our knowledgeable staff and volunteers are also able to give helpful information and advice. So, you can pop in if you have any questions about things that may be causing you concern and don’t know where to look for guidance. A very big part of our service is providing you with information or signposting you to other organisations that will help.

We also have talks from the local police on keeping safe, and from local health services on keeping fit, healthy and independent.

Dropping into the centre is a great way to spend an hour or two, to do something interesting, eat and drink, and most importantly, to make friends. But don’t take my word for it. Geraldine, who has been attending the art classes, says: “I thought I’d give it a go, and not only did I find a new talent for painting, I’ve made several new friends over the weeks. We’re like a family here. We all have a laugh and the staff really look out for you as well. I’m so glad I initially popped in. It’s now something to look forward to, and I certainly recommend it.”

The Allan Burgess Centre is located at 2 Grove Park, Wanstead, E11 2DL.
For more information, call 020 8989 6338

Wanstead resident Eileen Flinter documents her experience of sponsoring two Ukrainian refugees, and says she has nothing but admiration for the fortitude and pragmatism her guests showed

My Ukrainian adventure began on 24 February this year. I saw a Facebook post from a lady who had been my cleaner in London for a while but had returned home to her family in Ukraine about four years earlier. I contacted her to offer my sympathy for the current situation. A few days later, she replied: “I hope it will end soon. The war is very scary, every night we pray to see a new day in the morning.”

I should explain that although our messages were in English, Nataliya (not her real name) has limited English, and I have no Ukrainian, so Google Translate did the work!

On 13 March, she contacted me to say she had heard about a scheme for Ukrainians ‘arriving in Poland in connection with the armed Russian aggression’ to come to the UK. She asked if it was true.

The UK government was refining and developing a scheme in stages, and information was gradually being posted on the Homes for Ukraine website. I forwarded relevant points to Nataliya, although her replies were infrequent due to interruptions to the Wi-Fi reception. It became clear a sponsor would be needed, and I persuaded myself I could and should do this. The form was in English, and each page had to be completed before accessing the next one. So, I had to message with a request for her passport details, street address, place of birth… on and on, wait for a reply, and then carefully type the Ukrainian words, check the Ukrainian words and move on to the next page. Somewhere along the way, I also agreed to sponsor Nataliya’s sister. Nataliya’s daughter had moved to Poland to stay with her grandmother, and, of course, her partner is not allowed to leave Ukraine. The final page listed documents to be included: proof you were in Ukraine on 1 January 2022, a bank statement, a mortgage statement and more. These are, of course, the very things a person fleeing for their life would pack! In exasperation, I wrote a terse note in the comments that these papers were not to hand. Completing the forms took over two stress-filled weeks.

In all, Nataliya and I exchanged 163 messages between 24 February and 7 May, when I unexpectedly received a photo from Rzeszow airport showing a flight to Luton on the departures board. Nataliya had contacted an office cleaning agency in London before leaving Poland and the sisters started working immediately! Every morning they left the house before six. Apart from a £200 payment – which all arrivals received – they are financially self-sufficient. They have now rented accommodation in Leyton and, as they left, presented me with a beautiful bunch of yellow roses and a large box of chocolates as a thank you for sponsoring them. I know they will not stay in London a day longer than necessary. Their lives are in Ukraine.

For more information on Homes for Ukraine, visit wnstd.com/homesukraine

Following the success of the Aldersbrook Eco Fair in March, the Friends of St Gabriel’s are planning their next fundraiser, a pop-up fine dining event. Georgina Brewis talks to leading local chef Duncan Cruickshanks. Photos by Iain Smith

For one night only, leading chef and Aldersbrook resident Duncan Cruickshanks will transform St Gabriel’s Church into a fine dining restaurant, with the aim of raising as much money as possible for much-needed, ambitious improvements to the church hall. The event sold out within a week of tickets going on sale.

Duncan’s career as a chef spans three decades, during which time he has worked in fine dining restaurants around the world, from Alaska to Dubai, and France to New York. He has just taken over as executive chef at a top London law firm, where he oversees dozens of chefs working across four restaurants.

I visit Duncan at his Aldersbrook allotment on a sunny Saturday in late May. Duncan’s seedlings are still quite small, but he has rows of potatoes doing well and he shows me the wild herbs he uses in his recipes, including lemon balm, wild rocket, bronze fennel and horseradish root. It all smells amazing.

In keeping with the Friends of St Gabriel’s focus on sustainability, ‘A Taste of Aldersbrook’ is intended to be exactly that, a hyper-locally sourced meal using seasonal and sustainable ingredients.

So, what’s on the menu? “I haven’t decided yet as it depends on what’s available,” Duncan muses, “but I’ve lots of ideas. By October, there will be lots of root vegetables, so dishes like potato and pumpkin rösti might feature. And I’m sourcing raw milk to make my own cheese.”

How is he planning to reflect the changing seasons of Aldersbrook at an event held in October? “Well, the plan is to forage or harvest the produce throughout the year,” Duncan says. “I will then preserve, pickle and puree ingredients, which will come together for the final dinner. For example, back in March, I picked a lot of wild garlic and made pesto and this might be used in a wild garlic pasta for the evening, perhaps. I’ve been making syrups using elderflower blossom this month as well.”

Duncan has also put a call out to local gardeners and allotment holders to donate produce for the event. We head over to the other side of the allotment to meet Heather Goodman, who has owned a plot here since the early 1990s and is keen for Duncan to help clear her overflowing rhubarb patch. We pull up a sample batch, which Duncan takes home to trial some recipes.

Get in touch with the Friends of St Gabriel’s if you too can help with surplus produce this summer, or if you have ideas and would like to help run other exciting events. Launched in 2021, the group exists to secure the long-term future of the church and its hall for all who live locally, and the group is open to anyone who values the presence of St Gabriel’s as a community asset, including people from any religious background or of no faith at all. We welcome new members and volunteers.

To contact the Friends of St Gabriel’s, email friendsofstgabriels2021@gmail.com

To make a donation to support the Friends of St Gabriel’s work, visit wnstd.com/fstg

Following recent changes from Her Majesty’s Land Registry, Derek Inkpin from local solicitors Wiseman Lee looks forward to a new era of electronic signatures in the conveyancing world

Your signature on a document as proof of your binding commitment has been with us for centuries. Sign a piece of paper and you are demonstrating to the world that you will be bound by the document you sign because that is your act or deed which commits you to a legal obligation.

There is in the main, however, nothing wrong with a verbal contract. Once two people orally agree to do something, it can, in many circumstances, be legally binding upon each of them, such as: “I agree to buy your car for £10,000,” says the buyer, and the seller replies: “I accept.”

A contract then comes into being, following which either the seller or the buyer can be sued if one of the parties fails to perform their obligations. It starts getting complicated when the buyer says: “I am interested in buying your car,” and the seller interprets those words as an offer which, in his mind, he has accepted. Verbal contracts can therefore become complicated because of a lack of certainty. Buying or selling a house or flat is legally simpler because for the contract to be enforceable it must be in writing, containing all the terms upon which the parties agree, and signed by each of the parties, or by an attorney on their behalf or (if so authorised) by their solicitor.

As we all know, the world has changed since the World Wide Web came into being, courtesy of Tim Berners-Lee in 1991. Some 30 years later, people who are selling or buying property in this country may simply say to their conveyancer: “Email me the contract and I will print it, sign it and email it back to you.” Does that work as a legal concept? I’m afraid not unless the correct procedure is followed.

What your conveyancer has always asked for is the original contract to be signed (normally referred to as a wet signature) and then returned to their office. Why? Because the law and procedures say so. However, at long last, help is at hand because the Land Registry – which governs the registration of sales and purchases of property – has recently published guidance on the acceptance of electronic signatures.

All parties signing a deed for a property transfer must be represented by a conveyancer and all must agree to the use of such an electronic procedure. The parties must still have their signatures witnessed, and once each conveyancer is in receipt of the transfer deed, the transaction is then completed and transmitted to the Land Registry electronically. This will involve a conveyancer acquiring a software package which will meet the Land Registry’s specific requirements. After hundreds of years of ‘wet’ signatures, we are now entering a new era.

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

The Wren Wildlife and Conservation Group is holding a photography competition to mark its 50th anniversary.

“The theme is broad and simple: nature and wildlife of our local area. It could be of a fox, a bird, an insect, a misty morning, or of people enjoying the outdoors. All entries need to be taken this year and must be local, primarily Wanstead Flats, Wanstead Park, Leyton Flats, Gilbert’s Slade or the surrounding areas,” said a spokesperson for the group, which was founded in October 1972.

Maximum 4 entries per person, to be sent to: wrenconservationgroup@gmail.com

A property developer has launched a consultation over plans to build a four-storey building on Evergreen Field, off Wanstead High Street.

The proposals would see the creation of 24 homes, a ground floor nursery and a playground for public use. The developers also highlight that they will donate over 50% of the site to public open space, and are seeking feedback as to how this space can be used with three garden design options.

The consultation is open until 31 July, with plans to submit a planning application to the council by the autumn.

Download a PDF of the plans here.

For more information and to comment, visit www.wansteadhighstreetconsultation.com

Streets Apart – run by the charity Living Streets – arranges weekly walks for the over-65s. Here, project coordinator Tracey Chitnis explains why she is keen to see the initiative continue to grow over the summer

Streets Apart is a programme aiming to build confidence and enthusiasm for walking in your local neighbourhood, focused on the over-65s living in Redbridge, Havering and Barking and Dagenham who may have seen their lives restricted most by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Despite a strong start in 2019, successive lockdowns prevented our project from really flourishing, and although a handful of groups bonded early on and remained through the past two years, it is only now we really get the chance to reach out to the community and welcome them back to group walking. And a recent upsurge in participants tells us summer 2022 is the time to take part!

The health benefits of walking on a regular basis are outstanding: strengthening muscles, getting fresh air into the lungs and warming all the body’s organs. It’s easy and free, it adds interest to our daily chores and it fosters talking and socialising while raising awareness of the environment and neighbourhood. What’s not to like? Walking is perfectly suited to over-65s who wish to remain active and independent as the effects of age can limit other kinds of intensive exercise.

“I feel better, and it was nice to have someone to talk to. I enjoyed both the walk and walk leader, who has given me new information about where I live,” said one participant.

Our groups are small and local; with a maximum of eight walkers, everyone can get to know each other and can help decide the pace and distance. Our groups help rebuild social links, walking weekly in beautiful parks with space for calm and mental well-being. Each walk ends at a café to allow members to relax and talk further.

Many of our participants become walk leaders and maintain the groups as volunteers, allowing us to develop even more groups and reach more people. In the past two months, three new groups have sprung up and our existing groups are now filling up.

All our leaders are police-checked, trained and risk assess the routes. We support our volunteer leaders with training, regular catch-ups and travel expenses.

So, now the summer is here, the masks can come off and we can be together again, why not come along for a taster walk?

In Redbridge, groups are currently meeting in Fairlop Waters Country Park, Clayhall Park and Valentines Park, with one due to start soon in Wanstead. We also have a group that meets in Parsloes Park in Dagenham and one in St Chad’s Park in Chadwell Heath. We are interested in establishing a group in the Woodford area as well, so do get in touch if this is something you would like to be part of.

For more information about the Streets Apart groups, call 0756 678 9456 or email tracey.chitnis@livingstreets.org.uk

The Wanstead Park Liaison Group has identified three ways to improve protection for the park’s iconic bluebells, which have drawn increasing visitor numbers in recent years. Richard Arnopp reports

Last month, I wrote about Wanstead’s bluebell season, which is a major attraction for visitors to Wanstead Park. As I explained, bluebell management is discussed every year by the Wanstead Park Liaison Group, which consists of Epping Forest management and other stakeholders. In recent years, they have taken measures to protect the bluebells from trampling, notably by demarcating paths through Chalet Wood with logs.

Bluebells are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981), and are easily damaged by trampling, taking several years to recover and flower again. It is therefore important park visitors are encouraged to respect these iconic wild flowers.

This year, the perception of increased visitor pressure raised anxiety among local people, several hundred of whom signed up to a letter of concern on Facebook, asking Epping Forest to look at ways to protect the delicate flowers better. Links to the Facebook discussions were circulated to members of the Liaison Group, and bluebells were on the agenda of the meeting on 25 May. A number of new initiatives were agreed.

Firstly, there is an area within Chalet Wood that has long been used for den-building by children, using fallen branches from trees. Nobody wishes to stop children from playing and, in fact, the lack of play facilities locally has led to plans for a new play area in Wanstead Park. However, in this instance, the location was felt to be inappropriate. Accordingly, the den-making material will shortly be moved elsewhere and the existing location, which has been badly trampled, will be fenced off. A soil regeneration project is being discussed.

Secondly, the current arrangement of paths delineated by logs has been generally successful, but more and heavier logs will be brought in for future years.

Thirdly, it was agreed that signage in Chalet Wood needed to be reconsidered. At the moment, it is present for two months of the year. However, it was felt that permanent signs may be a better option, rather like those used on Wanstead Flats in relation to the skylark area. Design options will be worked up. Also, small temporary signs may be appropriate to warn the public off little meandering paths and bare patches created by people in the past. It was often not understood that walking on those areas prevented the plants from recolonising them.

The Liaison Group continues to feel a balance has to be struck between protecting the bluebells and preserving the natural feel of Chalet Wood. They hope the changes they propose will get this balance right for 2023 and future years.

For more information on Wanstead Park, visit wnstd.com/park

In the 13th of a series of articles by plot holders at Redbridge Lane West allotments – which are under threat from the adjacent gas works – Roger Snook explains the ongoing frustrations with Cadent

As many readers will know, Cadent (the ‘gas giant’) is erecting a new security fence around their installation on Eastern Avenue, and in the process, will be taking part of the land which has for decades been the home of Redbridge Lane West allotments.

Allotment holders have been treated to months of PR, with promises of reparation to those effectively evicted or moved. They have also promised significant ‘betterment’ of the site as a whole to compensate for the months of disruption and damage that lie ahead. Unfortunately, these promises have yet to be realised.

At long last, at the time of writing, displaced allotmenteers have received details of the promised compensatory packages, but have still to discuss the contents of these proposals. The promised ‘betterment’ of the site as a whole seems to be dying on the vine. Apart from like-for-like replacements, where Cadent will be destroying or commandeering part of the site, nothing has been agreed with plot holders.

Cadent has replaced the storm-damaged plastic polytunnel for the charity Sprout There!, which is welcome, but also good PR for Cadent. However, the more mundane but essential ‘betterments’ the site desperately needs have somehow ‘run into difficulties’ or quietly fallen off the agenda altogether.

So, after months of meetings and discussions, we are still waiting and wondering whether – yet again – big business will talk-the-talk, but not walk-the-walk until, eventually, we lose the will to live!

I am loath to appear emotional about the value of allotments in today’s world, as such rapacious behaviour by powerful business requires us to fight back. However, certain things must be said. I am 80 and disabled. I have tended my allotment for nigh on 20 years. I am the carer of my disabled wife and, not to put too fine a point on it, my allotment is my lifesaver – physically and mentally.

Other allotment holders could tell you similar stories. Some plants, such as the vines and fruit trees on my allotment, have taken years to come to fruition. To grow them again, I would have to live longer than Her Majesty (who, incidentally, has visited our allotments). I am a naturalist, and our site is a wonderful haven for all kinds of wildlife. The beautiful wild flower corncockle appeared on our site some years ago and still deigns to pay us an annual visit, as do over a hundred other wild flowers.

Finally, a big thank you to everyone who has supported us over the past 18 months by signing our petition.

To view the petition to save the Redbridge Lane West allotments, visit wnstd.com/sta

Members of Woodbine Day Opportunities – a venue for adults with learning and physical disabilities – have established a cottage garden in Wanstead.

“Our members have been learning gardening skills to grow and nurture seeds and cuttings. We aim to produce plants, vegetables and fruit that we can use or sell,” said a spokesperson for WEL Enterprises, which runs the service. Produce will be on sale every Thursday from 11am to 2.30pm (reception entrance via Wanstead Library car park).

Visit welenterprises.co.uk

Families with children are invited to take advantage of Wanstead Library’s participation in the Alive and Kicking Football Library Network.

“We loan footballs to local families with children (aimed at under-16s). The loan is free and all we ask is that the ball is returned! The footballs were supplied by Alive and Kicking, the world’s only not-for-profit ball manufacturer,” said a spokesperson.

There are over 250 football libraries across the UK, with the aim to increase the use of local playgrounds and parks.

Call 020 8708 7400

Over-55s poetry group the Redbridge Rhymesters will be joined by pupils from Snaresbrook Primary School at their next meeting on 12 July.

“We shall be writing poems with the theme of ‘jubilations’… It’s always a very creative time when younger and older poets get together and bounce ideas off each other!” said group founder Alexandra Wilde.

Taking place at Age UK’s Allan Burgess Centre in Wanstead from 10.30am to 12 noon, the meeting is open to any over-55s with an interest in creative writing.

Call 020 8989 6338

Handwriting is not an art of the past, says Maura Wilson, and this year’s Wanstead Fringe is giving Wanstead’s primary school children the chance to prove it with a handwriting competition

Like me, most readers of the Wanstead Village Directory can probably remember sitting in a classroom as the teacher stood writing beautifully shaped letters on the blackboard. As pupils, we followed suit, repeating the same letter formations time and time again.

By right, everyone’s handwriting should be identical. And yet, even though the days of elegant copperplate script are long gone, we all have our own styles, each of which says something about us. I don’t buy the notion that your handwriting reveals deep secrets about your personality, but you can’t deny that you reach certain conclusions about someone when you see their writing.

Even though we prod our phones all day long, and rarely, if ever, write even so much as a cheque, our handwriting still matters. It still says something, whether that’s a message that you’re carefree, confident or fastidious. It still shows how much attention you are paying to the way you’re presenting yourself on paper. And it’s still a joy to see someone’s beautiful handwriting, even if nowadays they only really get to exercise their talents when writing postcards from a sunlounger or Christmas cards to Aunt Jane.

Which is why, as part of this year’s Wanstead Fringe, we’re inviting the primary school children of Wanstead to pick up their best pens and start writing, and really show the rest of us what they can do. They stand the chance to be named as Wanstead’s best handwriters and to win prizes for their school, courtesy of our sponsors Petty Son & Prestwich.

The rules for the competition are simple. Any pupil up to Year Six can take part, as part of their class or individually. All they have to do is write out the Lewis Carroll poem The Crocodile, as reproduced below. All submissions must be made by the end of the summer term and will be judged over the holidays. The winners will be announced during Wanstead Fringe fortnight, which this year is running from 10 to 25 September.

Full rules and entry forms are available on the Wanstead Fringe website. You’ll also be able to sign up for the Fringe newsletter and be among the first to hear about all the cultural activities being planned for this year. Though I tried my best, I’m afraid the newsletter will be sent by email and will not, unfortunately, be handwritten!

The Crocodile by Lewis Carroll
How doth the little crocodile
Improve his shining tail,
And pour the waters of the Nile
On every golden scale!

How cheerfully he seems to grin,
How neatly spreads his claws,
And welcomes little fishes in,
With gently smiling jaws!

For more information and an entry form, visit wnstd.com/handwriting

Work to improve the safety of the High Street zebra crossing near the Co-op began last month.

“There was an incident at this location, alongside reports of concerns around the crossing point… We’re building out the junction and raising the crossing to improve visibility and reduce speed. The works will continue for at least another four weeks,” said a Redbridge Council spokesperson.

A pedestrian was injured at the crossing earlier this year, and in 2016, a 91-year-old man was knocked over and killed.

From oxeye daisy to yellow rattle, Richard Strange explains how he has been increasing floral diversity on Christ Church Green as part of Wanstead’s Grow Zones initiative. Photo by Geoff Wilkinson

I spend a lot of time in Wanstead and have taken an interest in the Grow Zones within Christ Church Green, which I regularly check up on during dog-walking duties. These zones are areas where the grass is not mown, so a variety of wild flowers and grasses can establish undisturbed. They could be described as mini-meadows.

Grow Zones were created as part of a project by Wild Wanstead, Redbridge Council and Vision RCL, and form a network across the borough. From time to time, volunteers add plants to the areas to further improve their diversity. It’s a great initiative, and part of the project is to encourage residents with gardens to take a similar approach. Through intensive maintenance of our open spaces and gardens, we have allowed the variety and quantity of wildlife to rapidly diminish. This is a way to help reverse that trend.

In 2020, after getting permission from the Grow Zone team, I started helping enhance some of the zones, as I love all things related to meadows and the resulting wildlife they attract, especially the butterflies.

There is an unseen and unnoticed chain of life that, given time, slowly develops in meadows, as each species of wild flower supports a wide range of insects, forming part of their life cycle. These insects are, in turn, food for birds and bats. Long grass also creates cover for small mammals, thus providing foraging habitat for owls.

The process I use to enhance the areas is to remove small sections of turf, picking areas where there is just grass growing currently. I then seed the bare soil with wild flower seed to introduce more diversity, interest and flowers. In the first summer, a few new plants established and flowered, but this year, there are many more. The plants so far established include ragged robin, lesser knapweed, wild carrot, oxeye daisy, musk mallow and yellow rattle.

Yellow rattle is one of the species especially treasured by those wishing to develop meadows. Its name comes from its yellow flowers and the rattling sound made when the seed pods dry out. This plant is unassuming but plays an important role and is known as the ‘meadow maker’ because of its parasitic properties, especially to grass. This means the plant causes the grass to weaken, allowing other plants to establish, thus improving the meadow. I have managed to establish yellow rattle in a few of the Grow Zones on Christ Church Green.

Working by hand is a very slow process, so the areas will slowly improve over the years, but I take great pleasure in watching how they develop. Once species are established, they will also hopefully spread without my involvement.

I encourage everyone to follow the Grow Zone principles and allow part of their lawn to grow long and see what comes up.

For more information on Grow Zones in Wanstead, visit wildwanstead.org

Chair of East London Humanists Paul Kaufman introduces prize-winning author Yvvette Edwards, who will be speaking about how she discovered writing – and humanism – at the group’s July meeting

Yvvette grew up in Hackney and continues to live in east London with her family. First finding publishing success in her forties, Yvvette will talk about her books, her background and her long journey to becoming a professional writer.

“I never seriously believed I could make a living from writing. I never met anyone who did till after my first novel was published. I wrote because I enjoyed it and found the process cathartic. It was my refuge throughout my formative years and into my adulthood. I wrote about whatever caught my attention. Then, in the run-up to my 40th birthday, I found myself thinking about my life. The only thing I really wanted to do was write. I decided it was time to either focus on building a practical and realistic career, or do the writing properly so that, maybe, I could earn a living from it. I reduced my hours at work, wrote A Cupboard Full of Coats, and edited it myself. The rest is history,” said Yvvette.

A Cupboard Full of Coats made a big literary impact and was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. It went on to garner numerous other nominations and prizes.

Yvvette’s second novel, The Mother, has been described as ‘stunning’ and ‘masterful.’ It follows the trial of a 16-year-old boy who is stabbed and killed by another 16-year-old boy. The narrator is the victim’s mum.

“A couple of things happened that escalated my interest in young people and violence. I wanted to have a better understanding of how a child could so easily write off another person’s life and, in the process, write off their own. It’s a regular starting point for me as a writer, a subject I’m interested in and questions I do not have answers to that I cannot switch off from till I have explored them further,” said Yvvette.

“I am particularly interested in fully-fleshed female and Afro-Caribbean characters, perhaps because I am a woman and my family are from the Caribbean, and too often they are presented as tropes and stereotypes. If I have a purpose as a writer, maybe it’s stripping that back to reveal the humans beneath, giving a true voice to people we do not hear enough from – if at all – in modern literature.”

The event will be chaired by East London Humanist member, and long-standing friend of Yvvette, Olcay Aniker. Olcay explains: “Yvvette hadn’t thought of herself as a humanist until she was invited to speak, but as someone with a non-religious, ethical outlook, realises that this probably best describes her beliefs. She says jokingly that this is the first event where she will ‘come out’ as a humanist.”

Yvvette Edwards will be speaking at Wanstead Library on 11 July from 7.30pm (free; doors open at 7pm). For more information, visit wnstd.com/elh

A number of local businesses have donated prizes worth £500 for a raffle to raise funds for Wanstead resident Kirstin Maguire, who needs life-saving spinal surgery not available in the UK.

“For the past few years, Kirstin has been bed-bound… Her skull, neck and spine are unstable in a number of areas, and there are only three neurosurgeons in the world with the expertise to attempt the surgery,” said Kirstin’s sister Clara.

Tickets can be purchased by making a £5 donation, with the draw taking place on 30 July.

Visit wnstd.com/kirstin