November 2024

The Wanstead Fringe, traditionally a highlight of September, is set to expand its reach with more events throughout the year.

It follows the creation of the Wanstead Curtain, a new year-round theatre and performance space in the hall of Wanstead Methodist Church on Hermon Hill.

“We’ve got some festive fun lined up for this month, including a free Christmas film party for all the community on 8 December and the Curtain’s first-ever panto, Peter’s Pan: A Kitchen Sink Pantomime, on 23 December. We are really ambitious for the difference the Curtain can make to the cultural life of Wanstead, and that’s not just at festival time in September. But to make it happen, we still need to hear from people who want to be involved. It’s wonderful to be working on such a positive project, so do join us,” said Fringe chair Giles Wilson.

Visit wnstd.com/fringe

In the 41st of a series of articles, David Bird discusses the work of Redbridge Music Society and introduces local choir Modality Voices, who will perform a seasonal concert in Wanstead this December

One of the central aims of Redbridge Music Society is to promote and support local groups and musicians, and this month at Wanstead Library, local community choir Modality Voices will present an evening of seasonal music and readings entitled What Christmas Means to Me, directed by Jenny Ewington and accompanied by pianist Ben Summers. This will be followed in the second half of the evening by complementary wine and seasonal food.

Modality Voices was founded by Jenny Ewington in 2016 and is a friendly, diverse, mixed-voice choir with singers ranging in age from 16 upwards. The choir, which meets and rehearses weekly in Woodford, has established a reputation for its imaginative performances, its quality, blended sound and its great harmonies. 

For several years running, Modality Voices has been awarded first place in the choir section of the Stratford and East London Music Festival.

Modality Voices does much charitable work, in particular for the Centrepoint Charity, which supports and helps homeless young people.

Woodford-based Jenny Ewington, Modality Voice’s founder and musical director, is a qualified singing teacher with over 25 years of teaching experience. She has worked with singers of all ages, abilities and styles, and many of her students have gone on to careers in singing. Jenny also works in schools as a singing specialist, leads other choirs, writes vocal arrangements, leads workshops and creates performances. She strives to challenge her choirs musically (whilst having fun!) and her mission is to bring joy, connection and vitality to people’s lives through the inspiration of musical performance.

Piano accompanist Ben Summers studied at Baliol College, Oxford, and at the Guildhall School of Music where he specialised in double bass. He enjoys a varied playing career and has worked with London orchestras and X Factor winners, has given live radio performances and has recorded at the Abbey Road Studios; he has performed at the Royal Albert Hall and the London Palladium.

In addition to piano and double bass, Ben plays bass guitar and organ and also conducts and composes. Ben has been working with Jenny and Modality Voices since 2019.

Please come and start your run-up to the Christmas season in a friendly and convivial atmosphere!

Modality Voices will perform at Wanstead Library on 3 December from 8pm (tickets on the door; visitors: £12; members: £9). Call 07380 606 767. Redbridge Music Society is affiliated to Making Music.

Redbridge Council has appointed a new chief executive.

Claire Hamilton, a Redbridge resident who is currently chief executive at Dacorum Borough Council, will start her new role in March 2025.

The Leader of Redbridge Council, Councillor Kam Rai, said: “Claire’s extensive experience, proven track record of strong leadership and innovation, and understanding of the needs and aspirations of our community will be invaluable and made her the outstanding candidate for us to appoint.”

The Wanstead Society has announced it will close as of 1 February 2025.

“It is with deep sadness the Wanstead Society will close after almost three decades of seeking to protect and enhance the character of Wanstead. The Society has had a good run, but like so many local groups, we have struggled to find new committee members to help run events and undertake the work we aimed to do,” said Chair Scott Wilding.

The Society was first formed in 1997 to save the Evergreen Field from development.

A Christmas market will take place on Wanstead High Street next month.

Stalls will be open from 10am to 4pm on Saturday 14 December.

“It will be a family-friendly, joyful event, with an emphasis on bringing the community together, shopping local and bringing in much-needed festive cheer. There’ll be music, festive stalls, food and activities for children,” said market organiser Usman Karim.

The Christmas market will be in addition to the regular monthly market on Sunday 1 December.

Visit wnstd.com/market

The Wanstead Beer Festival – which was attended by over 730 people in October – has raised £4,000 for charity.

The money is being split between local charities Chaos, Reach Out, Christ Church and the Wanstead Fringe.

“It was a great day, with Wanstead once again showing how much it loves its beer. Thanks to everyone who helped make the day happen and everyone who came along,” said Paul Donovan. “Now it is onto the next one. The bar is rising, but everyone involved is determined to deliver an even better event next year.”

The Wanstead Village Directory has reached the finals of the Redbridge Social Value Award, a borough-wide category within the Ilford Business Awards that recognises businesses which excel in community engagement.

“I am extremely grateful to all those who voted for us. Regardless of the outcome, it has been wonderful to hear the appreciation our readers and advertisers have for the magazine,” said editor Lee Marquis.

The winner will be announced at an award ceremony in December. 

Recently, I met with a number of senior officials at Transport for London (TfL) to convey my constituents’ concerns about recent changes to the W12 and W14 bus routes.

In particularly, I was keen to stress the impact that the reduced frequency of service to the Nightingale Estate was having on residents; my concerns around access to the Whipps Cross Hospital estate, and the importance of stopping at Woodbine Place. I know as well that there has been concern over the accuracy of timetable information, both on apps and physically printed by bus stands, and I have raised that as well. Finally, I know there have been concerns in the community about the accessibility of the consultation process from TfL. 

I want to clarify TfL’s position on each issue, as they explained it to me, and then set out what I am doing going forward.  
 
TfL officials understand that the reduced service of the Nightingale Estate is causing issues for residents, and I have stressed that a number of my constituents feel stranded due to the change. Their defence of the decision rested on data showing relatively low usage from the estate, with an average of 80 passengers per day, many of which were return journeys. They take the view that where they have empty buses, they better serve passengers by reallocating them to busier routes and areas.  
 
Similarly, TfL officials understand that there is an impact on a number of residents accessing Whipps Cross Hospital, as the new route does not enter the estate, but instead stops at the Whipps Cross Interchange. Their position was firstly, that there wasn’t enough time in the schedule to extend the route into the hospital, and attempting to do so would seriously hinder the reliability of the service. They added that due to ongoing redevelopment work at Whipps Cross, there currently is nowhere to stand the bus on the estate. They pointed out that passengers can change buses at the Whipps Cross Interchange and access the estate directly every 3 minutes, on average.  
 
On Woodbine Place, officials understood that servicing that stop would be helpful for passengers, but as with Whipps Cross, they told me that the there is not enough time in the schedule to make that happen immediately. However, they have given some ground here. They will consider having the W14 stop at Woodbine Place, but this is subject to gathering enough data through the winter to show that the current schedule is running reliably. I do want to temper expectations here – if the W14 is to stop at Woodbine Place, we are looking into the new year – but it is a small victory and testament to the voices of the community, which have been powerful and clear.  
 
Regarding the accuracy of timetable information, officials have conceded that this has not been good enough. I know that since September, bus times on apps and printed on bus stands haven’t been accurate. As covered in the media, TfL suffered a cyberattack in September and this hampered their ability to share accurate data. Some good news on this front. I am told that as of Saturday 16 November, data sharing was back up to speed, and apps and websites should now show accurate timings. With regards to the printed timetables on bus stands, I am told that this should be completed in December.  

Finally, with regards to the consultation, I know that a number of residents have expressed concern over the openness and accessibility of it, and I have fed that back to TfL. They confirmed that their consultation process involved posting invitations to 22,000+ local addresses near the relevant stops, and engaging with local groups. They told me that they received 868 responses, including 17 from stakeholders (like Redbridge and Waltham Forest Councils), and remarked that this was broadly ‘par for the course’ for bus consultations in terms of numbers.  

Whilst I am pleased that there is the prospect of a concession on Woodbine Place, and that data sharing is back up and running, I remain concerned about the other outstanding issues, and I am disappointed that TfL has not taken meaningful steps to address the worries in the community.  
That is why I will be formally presenting a petition to Parliament to register my concerns officially. This petition does not require mass signatures and can be presented with just two members of the public. I do know that the Save Our Buses Campaign has garnered many signatures which they are kindly sharing with my office. I will present the weight of opinion from the community alongside the petition. 

I will also continue to engage with TfL officials and continue to press them on the clear upset in the community over the bus route changes.  
 
Going forward, it is important that I hear from constituents on this issue. I would sincerely encourage constituents to contact my office to register their feelings on this matter. The more voices I can speak to when I go back to TfL, the stronger the case will be. 

Readers can email me on calvin.bailey.mp@parliament.uk, post letters to me at Calvin Bailey MBE MP, House of Commons, Westminster, London, SW1A 0AA or call my office 0207 219 7417. Readers should include their full name, address including postcode and bus route number.

Wanstead Park ward has a new Labour councillor following a by-election last week.

Emma Shepherd-Mallinson was elected with a total of 934 votes, a majority of 585 over the Conservative candidate in second place

An Ilford Independents candidate was third, followed by the Green Party, the Liberal Democrats and Reform UK.

The by-election was triggered by the resignation of former councillor Bayo Alaba, who is now an MP.

Councillor Emma Shepherd-Mallinson joins Councillor Sheila Bain in representing the area.

Art Group Wanstead member Ruth Perry developed her artistic skills during the pandemic, and now finds inspiration in local nature

I’ve come quite late to art. Until I was about to turn 50 in 2020, I hadn’t really done art of any kind since school – and I didn’t do much there! I don’t even have an art O level. As part of a New Year’s resolution to try something different, I signed myself up to a beginners’ watercolour day at City Lit. It was scheduled for mid-April, but then the pandemic hit and we went into lockdown. 

Undeterred, I decided to see what I could teach myself using YouTube videos. It turns out quite a lot! I started watching videos by Alan Owen, an elderly Lancastrian with a love of classic English watercolourists like Edward Wesson and Ron Ransen. I also came across Karen Rice, an online tutor, who encourages experimentation with mark-making, using bubble wrap, clingfilm, sticks from the garden and credit cards. I liked combining watercolours – often thought of as a rather traditional ‘ladylike’ medium – with these more modern techniques. 

Finally, I found Lois Davidson, whose loose, atmospheric landscapes I found really appealing. Just as importantly, I liked the way she explained her process and her attitude to making art. Through Lois, I learned to enjoy being playful with watercolour as a medium, trying out different colour combinations, mark-making techniques and brushes. I learned it wasn’t important to always produce a painting; what mattered was to experiment, have fun and take some learnings from whatever happened during a painting session. This has been excellent advice that has seen me progress from an absolute novice to a hobby painter who actually sells her work.

When the pandemic ended, with hours of practice under my belt and a growing number of paintings cluttering up the house, I joined Art Group Wanstead just as they were planning their annual stand at the Wanstead Festival. Fellow group members – Donna Mizzi, in particular – were incredibly encouraging and offered me practical advice on framing and pricing. I sold six paintings at that first festival and since then, I haven’t looked back.

Wanstead is a great place to be an amateur artist. Last year, Allistair at Compassionate Funerals on Hermon Hill offered me a beautiful space for a solo exhibition. The Stow Brothers regularly invite Art Group Wanstead members to exhibit in their High Street office and this summer, I even had a solo exhibition there.

I am continuing to experiment, branching out into mixed media, combining watercolour with photography, oil pastels and lino printing. I also recently bought myself a gel plate, so who knows where that will lead?

I’m still finding my style as I try out lots of different approaches. But I’d say my work is generally characterised by a willingness to be led by the medium combined with a love of delicacy and precision. And much of it is inspired by local landscape and nature.

To view more of Ruth’s art, follow her on Instagram @ruthperryart

For more information on Ruth’s work, email ruthxperry@gmail.com 

We’ve heard the expression ‘it takes a village to raise a child’, but as someone who has had a beloved pet go missing, I know all too well that it takes a village to find them, says Wanstead resident Liz Hickson

The paradox of an increasingly digitised world is also increasing isolation – so, for many, pets play an increasingly important role. The PDSA’s 2023 Animal Wellbeing Report states that 94% of pet owners believe owning a pet makes them happy. 

So, when our pets go missing, for many of us, it will be a deeply upsetting time, with owners frequently experiencing grief, anxiety, stress, guilt and self-blame. According to pet microchip provider Petlog, almost 5,000 dogs and over 20,000 cats were reported missing between January 2023 to June 2024. Unfortunately, as I’m only too aware from my own recent experience, having a pet go missing is an extremely distressing experience, and one I wasn’t alone in given the various lost and found pet sites on which I posted details of my beloved cat, Harry. But there are a number of very simple ways our community can help owners when a pet goes missing:

• Pick up any abandoned dog and cat collars and contact the number given on the tag.
• Share posters to any local WhatsApp groups you are in. And if you live near the missing pet’s home, put a poster up in your window (a distraught owner will really appreciate it).
• Check doorbell and camera footage and look in your sheds, garages and gardens, and take your time to do so – a cat who is hiding won’t come out immediately. 
• If you knock a cat or dog over, please stop, and if you can’t find them to take to a vet, alert a local Facebook group of the details.
• Like, comment and share social media posts about lost pets to keep them front of mind. 
• If you see a bedraggled-looking pet on a doorstep, knock on the door it’s outside. It might just save its life.
• Get to know your local cats, and if you do see a cat you think may be lost, put a paper collar on it and post on local social media (pet owners will appreciate that you care).

Sadly, I don’t know what happened to Harry – I don’t know how, when or where my much-loved boy died, just that I found him mauled by foxes (possibly posthumously) on my doorstep. I do know that I have turned the various possibilities and my potential alternative actions over and over in my mind, thinking what I didn’t do and what I could have done differently to keep Harry alive. And, as I work my way through my very real guilt and grief, in my denial I still trawl lost and found pet sites, hoping there has been a dreadful mistake. I still turn up to potential sightings of him. But in my loss, if this article helps someone else’s pet to be found alive and well, then some good has come out of bad – and I think Harry would appreciate that.

If you are grieving a pet, help and support is available. Visit wnstd.com/pet