November 2025

In the first of a series of articles  presenting the work of Woodford and Wanstead Photographic Society members, Anuraj Theivendram delves into the group’s archives

Founded in 1893, the Woodford and Wanstead Photographic Society is one of the UK’s longest-running camera clubs, but there’s nothing old-fashioned about it!

Today’s members bring fresh perspectives, bold creativity and a shared passion for photography that spans genres, generations and skill levels. From street scenes to studio portraits, Woodford and Wanstead Photographic Society is where ideas spark, techniques evolve and great images come to life.

We welcome photographers of all ages (18 and over) and experience levels, from curious newcomers to confident hobbyists and lifelong enthusiasts. Whether you’re picking up a camera for the first time or refining your creative style, Woodford and Wanstead Photographic Society offers a welcoming space to learn, share and grow.

Looking to sharpen your skills, explore new genres or share your work in a supportive environment? We run workshops, provide mentoring and host lively discussions that inspire and connect. Monthly competitions, in both print and projected digital image formats, are a cornerstone of club life. They challenge members to refine their craft, experiment boldly and receive thoughtful critique from experienced judges. From wildlife to still life, each competition invites members to push their creativity and share their unique perspective.

Standout images regularly feature in regional exhibitions, where our group proudly represents our local community and showcases the vibrant photographic talent across Woodford and Wanstead.

This article marks the beginning of a new series celebrating the fantastic image-making of our members. Each feature will spotlight standout photographs and, we hope, spark your interest in joining us. If you’re passionate about photography, or simply curious, we invite you to reach out, visit, connect and be part of our evolving story.

For more information on the Woodford and Wanstead Photographic Society, visit wnstd.com/wwps

If you are a first-time buyer and wondering what you need to buy a house or flat, here are some handy tips from Daveena Seepaul of local solicitors Edwards Duthie Shamash

Before looking at properties, you need to have organised your deposit. As a general rule, you need a deposit of at least 5% to 20% of the cost of the home you would like. You should seek financial advice in respect of the mortgage; you may need to find out in advance how much you may be able to borrow.

You will need to budget for your disbursements, such as search fees, land registry fees and any mortgage valuation fee or arrangement fee that might need to be paid up front.

One of the first stages in the conveyancing process, after instructing your solicitor, is to provide them with your ID, both photo and proof of address. It is also a legal requirement that a buyer provides adequate proof of the source of their funds to their solicitor.

Your conveyancing solicitor will obtain the contract and title paperwork from the seller’s solicitor, who will send your solicitor the contract with a copy of the title deeds of the property, along with supporting documentation.

Your solicitor will also apply for the searches, including the local authority search, which reveals any rights over the property – public rights of way, planning permissions or notices, for example. Once you have paid for your search fees, your solicitor can start the search applications.

If you are not buying a new build and the seller is living at the property, they may have a related purchase that would need to complete simultaneously. You can only exchange contracts after your solicitor is satisfied with the searches, replies to enquiries, a formal mortgage offer has been received and arrangements made for the agreed deposit, payable on exchange. When you exchange contracts with the seller, you become legally committed to buying the property, and they are legally committed to selling it to you. At the point of exchange, the date is set for the legal completion. You are advised not to book a removals firm until you have a completion date finalised! If the date changes further down the line, it could cost you to cancel or rearrange.

You need to ensure you take out buildings insurance for the property from the date of exchange of contracts, as you are responsible for it from then on, unless the property is in a block of flats.

Completion is when you pay for the property and take ownership. On the day of completion, money is transferred and the deeds of the property are transferred, all dealt with by the solicitors.

Edwards Duthie Shamash is located at 149 High Street, Wanstead, E11 2RL. For more information, call 020 8514 9000 or visit edwardsduthieshamash.co.uk

With scones, stories and plenty of tea, local volunteers keep loneliness at bay for older residents by hosting monthly tea parties. Here, a local volunteer explains what makes those afternoons so special

It all started in 1965 when solicitor Trevor Lyttleton encountered a lonely, homeless woman and provided her with a meal. This soon developed into a national charity named Contact the Elderly, now re-named as Re-engage.

The aim of the charity is to combat loneliness in older people (minimum age 75) who live alone by providing them with an afternoon tea given by one of a network of volunteers. This is done on a monthly basis with the guests collected from and returned to their homes by volunteer drivers. Other benefits include occasional visits to places of interest.

Our local branch has seen us move away from official membership of the charity and, although we now operate under exactly the same rules, we are entirely independent. There are now nine local houses (with 20 volunteers) operating on a rota basis, where we give these monthly afternoon teas. We have eight regular guests on these occasions. We started approximately 12 years ago and, it is sad to say, none of our original guests are with us any longer. The volunteers have changed as well, with some of the originals now being replaced by younger members of the community. Probably more changes are afoot as one of our elderly guests is three years younger than a couple of our volunteer helpers!

But what guests we do have! The variety of our guests is practically up to Thursday Murder Club standards. Wide-ranging conversations have revealed one of our guests was an England netball international in her younger days before she became a sports teacher, while other careers include refrigeration engineer, several secretarial jobs and a university lecturer in physics. You can imagine the level of conversation that our eight guests can generate once settled in with tea and biscuits. One of our guests comes from Cornwall and woe betide anyone who puts cream on their scones before the jam, and it must be Cornish cream, of course!

The volunteers aren’t lacking in talent either, as several have proved themselves to be top-class cake-makers as well as being generous providers of all sorts of sandwiches, scones and pastries, traditional bread pudding and endless cups of tea and coffee. Naturally, the conversations often refer back to everyone’s childhood and ‘growing up’ years. Things like the games that were played in the (safe) streets; cricket, football, marbles and many other innocent pastimes. The not-quite-so innocent ‘knock down ginger’ or jumping on the backs of the (very occasional) lorry that came down the street and the outcries that were given to the rare car drivers for “interrupting our game”.

There’s always room for more groups similar to ours and lots of volunteering opportunities on the Re-engage website.

For more information on becoming a tea party volunteer, visit reengage.org.uk

Applications are open for residents to adopt the tree pits on their streets and plant them with wildflowers in 2026.

“This year, more than 300 residents adopted tree pits across the borough, boosting biodiversity and helping our streets bloom… We are committed to improving habitats for pollinators to reverse their rapid decline and recover nature,” said a Redbridge Council spokesperson

The scheme runs alongside year-round applications to remove entire roads from chemical weed control spraying.

Visit wnstd.com/treepits

Computer experts will be on hand at this month’s Wanstead Repair Café to assist residents with Windows 10 laptops.

It follows Microsoft’s withdrawal of free support for the operating system last month. “I hope this will help prevent more electronic waste because of software-driven obsolescence. We will also be offering the usual repairs of clothing, bikes and other portable electrical items for free,” said Kathy Taylor of Wanstead Climate Action.

The repair café will take place at Christ Church hall on 29 November from 10.30am to 1pm.

Donations are invited for this year’s Wanstead Community Christmas Gift Appeal.

“We know it’s a tough time for everyone and we really appreciate any help. We’ve put together an Amazon gift list for ideas, but unused secondhand items are also welcome,” said Suzi Robinson.

The gifts will be distributed to the homeless, victims of domestic abuse and other vulnerable people by local charities.

A drop-off event will take place on 29 November from 12 noon to 3pm at Wanstead Baptist Church, Wellington Road.

Visit wnstd.com/x25

Cakes and Carols – a Christmas event for the over-65s – will return to Wanstead United Reformed Church this year.

“We are looking for contributions from bakers and for families to volunteer to help on the day. We would also love some young musicians or any choirs to perform for our senior guests. If you can help in any way, please get in touch,” said Suzi Robinson, who has organised the annual event since 2014.

The free festive celebration will take place on 13 December from 1.30pm to 4pm.

Call 07917 670 664

Councillor Paul Donovan – who will not be seeking re-election for Labour in May – reflects on what has been good, bad or indifferent over the past eight years of serving as a Wanstead Village councillor

On the plus side has been the efforts to tackle the climate and biodiversity crises. Councillor Jo Blackman and myself brought the Climate Emergency Motion to the council in 2019. This was duly passed, leading to a new climate policy. On biodiversity, we were both on a Nature and Environment Scrutiny Task and Finish Group that set out a number of measures. Slowly, things have advanced on the environmental agenda. Things like tree pit adoption, grow zones and work around the River Roding have been encouraging.

Transport has been a thorny area. The extension of ULEZ and School Streets schemes have improved air quality for everyone. Controlled parking zones have handed streets back to the residents. Electric car charging provision has improved. The extension of cycle lanes has been encouraging, but Redbridge does lag behind neighbouring boroughs on things like cycle networks. And it has been frustrating looking back at how slow progress has been on transport.

We have not been bold enough with schemes like Low Emissions Neighbourhoods, restricting car movements and improving daily life. The rapid withdrawal of the few schemes deployed during the Covid crisis has to be a regret. It would be good to see more pedestrianisation of shopping areas, as has been seen with the Mini-Holland schemes in Waltham Forest. Redbridge does now have an active travel policy, but it has been slow to arrive. And things have not been made easier by TFL’s reordering of local bus provision.

Running local councils, though, is not easy, especially in these cash-strapped times. Redbridge has had more than £100m taken away by national government over the past decade. It is one of the worst-funded authorities per head in terms of the demands  that now exist. Statutory duties like adult and children’s care swallow up over 75% of the budget. Dealing with homelessness is another growing statutory demand. So, life is not easy, constantly trying to deliver more for less. It is something there could be a little more public understanding of when the council is looking for innovative ways to address the shortfalls.

Mostly, people become councillors for the right reason: to serve the community. They should not be expected to become lightning rods for people’s frustrations and anger. Yes, things go wrong or could be done better. People have the right to protest. But it increasingly feels like people just need something to get angry about. The rapidity with which a lynch mob mentality can develop via social media is alarming.

It has been great to serve the people of Wanstead for the past eight years. Much has been achieved but, given the resources, much more could be done. Above all, though, moving forward, let’s be nicer to each other.

Paul is a Labour councillor for Wanstead Village ward. Visit wnstd.com/donovan

Discover the creativity and community behind floral art with national demonstrator and Wanstead House manager Kathryn Stangaard, who will be presenting to the Woodford and District Floral Arrangement Group this festive season

For over 20 years, I have been incredibly lucky to be a part of the National Association of Flower Arrangement Societies (NAFAS). This has taken me to many places here and abroad as a national demonstrator, speaker, judge and teacher.

The world of floral art, which incorporates flower arranging and floristry, covers a huge range of art and craft techniques, environmental designs, period history and contemporary techniques from around the world. It is as diverse as the people involved.

In my time, I have arranged flowers at Westminster Abbey for both Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III, for services such as Armistice Day, Epiphany, RAF celebrations and Commonwealth Day. I have been involved with huge installations in Selfridges for Chelsea week and exhibited in some of the most prestigious venues in the country. Flower arranging really does get you into places you wouldn’t normally get to see!

Flower arranging is also know to be extremely therapeutic, relieving stress and anxiety, and is also very sociable. We run a class at Wanstead House Community Centre every Friday morning and this is a wonderful way to spend a couple of hours playing with flowers and socialising. Our class was recently involved with the flower festival at Christ Church for the Wanstead Festival and produced some fantastic exhibits around the theme of children’s books.

There are many different periods throughout the year when it’s a busy time with flowers for certain celebrations and holidays, but Christmas is usually one of the busiest. From swags, garlands and table centres to trees and door wreaths, it is the time when most people like to ‘have a go’ themselves, and you can always find classes and workshops locally.

Woodford and District Floral Arrangement Group meet on the third Monday of every month (except December and January), where we have different demonstrators each time who transform flowers and foliage before your eyes into wonderful designs that are then raffled off, so you could be lucky enough to go home with a beautiful arrangement.

This year, for our Christmas meeting, I will be demonstrating some of the latest ideas and techniques, but also showing you some traditional designs for your Christmas décor. So please do join us; all are welcome for fun and flowers, mince pies and a glass of something festive!

The Woodford and District Floral Arrangement Group Christmas event will take place at Wanstead Library on 17 November from 7.30pm (visitors: £9). For more information call 020 8508 9765

For more information on classes at Wanstead House, call 020 8989 3693

In the fourth of a series of articles documenting the development of Wanstead’s Evergreen Field, Geoff Horsnell revisits the entire development cycle, from initial application to the halting of work and design amendments

The current application for Evergreen Field was submitted in 2023. As the plan involved more than a single dwelling, the Redbridge planning department declared it a ‘major application’. To all intents and purposes, this meant greater care should be taken when processing the various plans and documents, or so one might believe.

The application attracted a large number of comments – both objections and letters of support – and it was not until April 2025 that a decision was reached to accept the proposal. Attached to this decision were a total of 41 conditions. Some of these conditions simply stated things such as “work should begin within three years of the decision date.” However, a number of these conditions required an answer before the site could even be cleared, let alone for building to commence.

Over the weeks and months since then, various amendments were submitted to address these primary conditions. Various surveys were undertaken by different specialist firms to detail the biodiversity of the site; how the drainage would be managed; which trees needed to be felled and which could remain, and so on. Some of these reports contained errors; others were better presented, so that, to date, only a small proportion of the amendments have been approved. At the same time, the developers started work before some of the reports had even been submitted, leading to Redbridge enforcement halting the site work in June. At the time of writing, work has still not restarted.

The latest amendment to be submitted (amendment 14) is the most worrisome of all. It consists of some 22 plans and documents with a covering letter that admits a number of standard building regulations have not been followed. In order to fully comply with these regulations, a significant amount of redesign has to take place. The 22 documents and plans are rather technical, but include things such as party wall thickness and window size and lay out the detail of the various changes required. Given this is supposed to be a ‘major development application’, it does not show the developers in a good or professional light. Indeed, not even the Redbridge planning department have emerged with a spotless track record here. For such a major development, the planning department should have spotted the document errors and incorrect rules and regulations and been more focused and aware when dealing with the developers, architects and builders.

Perhaps there is even more to come to light here. It’s a case of ‘watch this space!’

For more information on the Evergreen Field development plans and to view the full application, visit wnstd.com/field

Award-winning composer and local resident Simone Spagnolo will bring his part-concert, part-theatre show Mr Baldocci to Wanstead this month.

“What happens when a piano virtuoso, a reel of fragmented memories and an old answer machine collide on stage? The result is Mr Baldocci, a genre-defying show that reimagines identity in the age of post-truth,” said Simone.

Performances will take place at The Wanstead Curtain on 21 and 22 November before embarking on a European tour in 2026.

Visit wnstd.com/mrb

In the 48th of a series of articles, David Bird discusses the work of Redbridge Music Society and introduces David Silkoff and Margaret Macham, who will be giving a piano duo recital in Wanstead this month

Two essential aims of Redbridge Music Society are to bring high-quality, live recitals to Redbridge and to champion musicians who live or work within or near the borough. This month, at Wanstead Library, pianist Margaret Macham and local pianist David Silkoff will perform duo arrangements of music by Bach (chorale preludes including Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring), Dvorak (Slavonic dances), Ravel and Mozart; solo piano items will also be included.

David Silkoff studied piano with Lina Collins, a pupil of Mathilde Verne, who was a former pupil of Clara Schumann. He studied at the Royal College of Music under concert pianists Kendall Taylor and Cyril Smith, during which time he won a Martin Scholarship for those with exceptional musical talent. Later, he studied at the Royal Academy of Music, where he won the Lloyd Hartley prize.

His Wigmore Hall debut in 1975 was highly praised for his glowing technique and sensitive playing, and Benjamin Britten, on hearing David play Beethoven’s 3rd Piano Concerto, described his playing as “electrifying.” David has performed at many London concert venues, including the Southbank Centre, and hasperformed as a soloist and accompanist across Europe.

David has a very wide repertoire, ranging from baroque to contemporary classical and popular music. He entertains for corporate events and has played at many top London venues, including the Ritz Hotel and the Guildhall. He is highly sought after as a chamber accompanist, for auditions and for piano examinations. He also pursues a busy teaching career.

Margaret Macham began playing the piano at the age of six. Later, she was awarded the   Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music Gold Medal for Grade 7 piano, gaining the highest examination mark across all instruments in the UK.

Margaret won a Foundation Scholarship to the Royal College of Music studying under the renowned pianists and teachers Kendall Taylor, Bernard Roberts and Peter Wallfisch. At the Royal College of Music, she was a prize-winning student and performed regularly as a soloist and in chamber music ensembles. She has performed at Wigmore Hall, the Purcell Room, Blackheath Concert Hall, St James Piccadilly, Leeds Castle in Kent, the Holywell Room in Oxford and other major venues in the South East of England.

Please do come along and join us for this very special evening of piano duo music-making!

The recital will take place at Wanstead Library on 11 November from 8pm (tickets on the door; visitors: £12; members: £9). Call 07380 606 767. Redbridge Music Society is affiliated to Making Music.