July 2022

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