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Don’t only enjoy viewing the art achievements of others. Take delight in helping to produce some community artwork yourself, suggests Donna Mizzi, founder of Art Group Wanstead

Members of Art Group Wanstead are preparing to show their work at the Wanstead Festival on Christchurch Green on 14 September. But this year, they will also be reaching out to local festivalgoers of all abilities and ages to help create a new piece of community artwork they can all be proud of.

Local residents and visitors, including children, will be encouraged to each create their own small piece of art on blank postcard-sized paper to go with this year’s Art Group Wanstead theme: Colour Me Happy. Participants will be able to create art focusing on any subject using any materials in any colours or tones – do whatever makes you happy. Photos will be taken of each of the postcard artworks. Art Group Wanstead artists Theresa Hardy and Sharon Quinton, who formulated the idea, will carefully knit the artwork together digitally to create a ‘patchwork’ banner that can be displayed in and around Wanstead. The Stow Brothers estate agents will be helping to produce it.

“It’s thrilling to see your own art on display in public,” says Sharon Quinton. “Contributing to a community artwork that will be shown again and again will be particularly rewarding.”

These pages show some of the works local artists have been inspired to create by the ‘Colour Me Happy’ theme, which will also be displayed at the festival.

There will be free workshops and demos on the Art Group Wanstead area of the big event throughout the day, ranging from mosaic to botanical painting to calligraphy and collage. If you believe you lack the ability to paint, watercolour tutor Brenda Coyle will help instil confidence with her one-to-one ‘Painting for the Petrified’ mini-sessions. Students from her Wanstead House classes will also exhibit their work.

Many local residents will have viewed some of Art Group Wanstead artists’ work last month at a pop-up gallery on Wanstead High Street. Local artists are always looking to display work, and this much-appreciated shopfront space was generously made available by Alan Patient & Co accountants.

Wanstead Festival runs from 11 am to 6pm on 14 September on Christchurch Green.

For more information on Art Group Wanstead, visit wnstd.com/art

Live theatre is one of the main pillars of any fringe festival, and Wanstead is no different. Camille Leadbeater runs through some of the plays she’s looking forward to this September

This year’s Wanstead Fringe once again does, for theatregoers, two things: it continues to develop our local dramatic enterprises while bringing in a raft of creatives from out of town, transforming the neighbourhood. The programme at our two theatre venues – upstairs at The Bull and at The Wanstead Curtain on Hermon Hill – is bold, diverse, and brimming with unforgettable performances for all ages.

An Evening with Jack the Ripper reimagines the East End’s most infamous true-crime mystery for the stage, as award-winning broadcaster Steve Morgan leads audiences through the foggy streets of Victorian London in search of the elusive killer. Love and Human brings a chilling sci-fi twist to the programme, while in Quiet Light, a shipwrecked stranger and an eerie lighthouse keeper confront their pasts.

And for younger theatregoers, Myths, Maps and Monsters: Zeus’ Birthday Bash! promises high-energy, interactive fun as children race to save Zeus’s birthday by solving puzzles. Also at The Bull: Screwloose Improv returns with a five-star, prison-themed hit, fresh from a sell-out run at Colchester Fringe.

Over at The Wanstead Curtain, audiences can embark on an epic musical voyage with Resurrection: The Musical, an adventure inspired by The Buccaneers Legend trilogy. Families will also love The Magic Bookmark, in which panto dame and Britain’s Got Talent semi-finalist Mama G leads a lively and heartwarming mission to protect the world’s stories from vanishing forever.

Three local favourites are returning this year. Wanstead Theatre Co is staging a screening of its behind-the-scenes mockumentary once at City Place. At The Curtain, Baloney Theatre Company is also back with a must-see production, BuzzFest, an immersive and wickedly funny journey into the heart of British festival culture. Equal parts chaotic and heartfelt, it blends live performance, multimedia and razor-sharp character work to capture the highs and lows of a weekend in the fields – booze, bad decisions, awkward tent flings and all. But beyond the laughs and mud-splattered antics lies a deeper commentary on connection, mental health and community.

And following the success of Miss Julie at last year’s fringe, East London Theatre Company return with Constellations by Nick Payne, a brilliantly inventive and emotionally charged play that explores love, time and the infinite possibilities of choice. The company brings its signature clarity and intimacy to a modern classic, staged in the round for an immersive and emotionally resonant experience.

Wanstead Fringe 2025 proves yet again that local theatre can be daring, dynamic and endlessly inventive.

For more information on Wanstead Fringe events, visit wnstd.com/fringe

With real ale, real community spirit and really good causes, Wanstead Beer Festival returns this October with more brews, new names and a fundraising mission. Paul Donovan reports

The third Wanstead Beer Festival is set to return on 4 October. Bigger and better than ever, there will be more beers and ciders this time, topping the 50 mark. Gin, wine, prosecco and a selection of soft drinks will also be on offer. Our hosts, Christ Church, will again be offering their superb burgers and hot dogs.

Among the beers to look out for are Milestone Brewery’s Cromwell Best, a deep, slightly malty bitter. Then, there is the lighter East London Brewing Company favourite, the award-winning Cowcatcher. The always popular, champion-winning beer Captain Bob from The Mighty Oak Brewing Company will again be available. And those who like a dark beer can’t go far wrong with Brentwood Brewing Company’s stout Walrus of Love. Harvey’s Brewery’s Sussex Best will be on tap.

Among the ciders, there will be a good selection from Somerset-based Farmer Jim. Get in early for the tasty Rhubarb Bob.

The Wanstead Beer Festival is once again seeking to blend the local with national in the selection of beers. Among local breweries contributing are Brentwood, East London, Redemption, Neckstamper, Pillars, Pressure Drop, Mighty Oak and Pretty Decent. These are tough times for the hospitality sector, with pubs and breweries under pressure. Thousands of pubs are closing every year; it is a real case of use them or lose them. So, we all need to do our bit to support the sector.

Sadly, since last year, Walthamstow brewer Beerblefish has stopped trading. They were an early backer of the Wanstead Beer Festival. Whilst Beerblefish will be missed, we have a new brewery to add in Leyton-based Libertalia. It is hoped that among Libertalia’s offering will be the popular new bitter Private Eye.

Tickets are selling fast, so don’t miss out. Bought in advance, tickets cost £10, which includes the unique beer festival glass. This year, there is a new twist, with a bit of colour added. Tickets on the door will be £12 and we aim to keep drinks around £5 a pint.

Proceeds from the event are to be split between three charities: the Wren Wildlife Group, Wanstead Community Riding Stables and the Christ Church restoration fund. The funding for the stables will be going towards buying a big horse. “A horse that is safe, strong, kind, well-schooled and suitable for riders with disabilities,” said a member of the fundraising team.

Thanks go to all the local businesses who have sponsored the event and helped make it possible. The Wanstead Beer Festival is a real community effort all round.

The Wanstead Beer Festival will take place in the halls of Christ Church on 4 October from 1pm to 11pm. For more information and tickets, visit wnstd.com/beer

The Parish of Wanstead’s Heritage Lottery Fund bid to save Christ Church’s tower will be decided this month.

“The tower needs significant work to make it structurally sound. This will cost hundreds of thousands of pounds,” said Rev James Gilder.

As part of fundraising efforts, 70 people from Wanstead completed a sponsored walking pilgrimage to Canterbury in July, raising £13,000.

“We’re determined to ensure Christ Church remains a much-loved feature of the local landscape for years to come.”

Visit wnstd.com/inspire

The Wanstead Fringe returns this month, with 23 days of cultural activity in a range of local venues.

“Join us from 6 to 27 September for a plethora of events uniting the Wanstead community in a celebration of the arts. Our fabulous team of Fringe volunteers are working hard to take over Wanstead with music, theatre, cinema, comedy, author events, tastings, tours and talks,” said Fringe chair Giles Wilson.

Among the more than 100 events taking place across 13 different venues, highlights will include an open-air screening of Paddington in Peru in Christ Church gardens on 6 September, a jumble trail on 13 September and a family book day at the library on 20 September.

“Another highlight will be a tribute to Catherine Tylney-Long – the heiress of Wanstead House – on 12 September, which will be the 200th anniversary of her death. This will be an extraordinary evening of storytelling and music at St Mary’s Church.”

Visit wnstd.com/fringe

A public meeting to discuss the plans for permanent market stalls in Wanstead will be held this month.

“Local councillors are elected to represent our views and to protect Wanstead as best they can. It is important for them to hear from residents in a public forum and to have the chance to put their own views across,” said Colin Cronin, who has organised the event. The Leader of Redbridge Council and Wanstead Village councillors have been invited to attend.

The meeting will take place at Christ Church on 27 September from 4pm.

The City of London Corporation has assessed the impact of recent grass fires on Wanstead Flats.

It follows a 14-acre blaze in July and two smaller, consecutive fires in August.

“Our checks have, sadly, confirmed the loss of important areas of broom (Cytisus scoparius) and hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) and damage to grassland areas and to some oak trees… Thanks to the swift work of firefighters and forest keepers, burn depth is mostly shallow, giving the land a better chance to recover naturally,” said a spokesperson.

The Parish of Wanstead has been granted permission to restore the Wanstead War Memorial.

“Redbridge Council, which owns the memorial, has licensed us to commission a reputable firm to carry out as much work as funds allow. The priority is to clean the memorial and retouch the worn names. We’d also like to repoint the stone and repaint the base,” said Rev James Gilder.

Over £1,000 was raised at VE Day anniversary events in May.

It’s hoped the work will be completed in time for this year’s Remembrance Sunday parade.

From Edinburgh to Lagos, fringe festivals are about community, creativity and celebration. And that applies to Wanstead as well, writes Camille Leadbeater ahead of 23 days of cultural activity on our doorstep

In Edinburgh, the word ‘Fringe’ is practically part of the city’s identity and everyone knows it as the home of the world’s biggest arts festival. But what I hadn’t fully appreciated until recently is just how far that spirit has travelled.

There are Fringes popping up all over the world, and each one is a reflection of its own local culture and creativity. I recently had the chance to meet the founder of the Lagos Fringe. Suffice to say, the vibrant sprawl of Lagos, Nigeria couldn’t feel more different to the cold, cobbled streets of Edinburgh, yet the Fringe spirit thrives there just as powerfully.

In many ways, it’s the same grassroots, community-driven ethos, but shaped to reflect the voices, rhythms and realities of a completely different place. It was a reminder that while every Fringe looks and feels unique, at its heart, it’s always about giving people the space to tell their stories, in their own way.

A fringe festival represents the thriving pulse of a community; grassroots creativity taking centre stage, often in unexpected places, and always with the aim of connecting local people through experiences. Edinburgh hosted the OG Fringe, beginning in 1947 as an act of defiance; uninvited performers putting on shows in protest against exclusivity in the arts. Today, it is a global phenomenon, attracting thousands of artists and audiences alike. But the spirit of the fringe – unfiltered, community-driven and delightfully unpredictable – has taken root well beyond Scotland.

In recent years, cities across the globe have launched their own versions, celebrating local talent in theatre, music, dance and spoken word. These lesser-known fringes are no less vital; they are redefining how art is made and shared, making space for stories that often go unheard on mainstream stages.

The 2025 Wanstead Fringe is shaping up to be another joyful expression of local talent and imagination. Running from 6 to 27 September, this East London celebration will once again transform our neighbourhood into a buzzing hub of cultural activity. Things kick off with a much-loved eve-of-fringe tradition: the musical charivari hosted by Joe Walters on Friday 5 September. The next day, Nightingale Lane will come alive for The Duke street party, followed by the ever-enchanting open-air family Kinema in Christ Church gardens. Over the following three weeks there will be plays, author events, comedy, tastings, tours and more, and music everywhere, concluding with the Natural Voices choir on the final day.

As ever, our Fringe is powered by the people who live here. In the end, a Fringe is more than just a festival – it echoes the soul of a place. The full line-up will be unveiled soon. If you’ve got something to share or just want to be involved, drop the team a line.

For more information on Wanstead Fringe, visit wnstd.com/fringe

In the 13th of a series of articles looking at the redevelopment of Whipps Cross Hospital, Charlotte Monro explains why the Action4Whipps community campaign is needed now more than ever before

In January this year, the government decided our urgently needed new Whipps Cross Hospital will not be funded till 2032 to 2034. It could now be 11 years or more before the new hospital opens. Keeping the old buildings and equipment in a fit state for patient care over that time will cost at least £200m.

Five years ago, as a new hospital became a real prospect, people came together to make sure a new Whipps will be built to the highest standards to meet the population’s needs into the future. Action4Whipps community campaign has been having a significant impact, on the streets, submitting petitions and evidence and talking to NHS bodies, councillors and MPs. The need for campaigning is even greater now.

Hospitals serving our area are under huge pressure and facing budget cuts. We are continuing our fight to make sure valued services – like the excellent Margaret Centre providing palliative and end-of-life care, and the Connaught Day Hospital for older people – are secured for the future (neither were included in the new hospital designs).

Whipps A&E is at the sharp end of pressure with over half of patients who need to be admitted to hospital waiting for over 12 hours (2024/25 figures). Some 65% of all those who attend A&E have serious or life-threatening conditions.

Hospital staff do their very best to provide high standards of care, but conditions that too often prevail increase the risk of something going wrong. A recent coroner report showed tragic consequences for a 59-year-old woman whose death from sepsis could have been avoided had she been able to receive the right care. No beds were available in resuscitation; on that day, 25 patients were being cared for in corridors. Often, there are not enough staff.

Having worked at Whipps for many years, I remember a time when we looked back on 12-hour waits and trollies in the corridor as a shocking thing of the past. We must not accept that such conditions can be the norm. The planned physical upgrade of the current emergency department is welcome, but sufficient beds in the hospital and correct staffing are also crucial.

The UK has wealth, and the NHS should be a priority. But instead of the increase in nurses, doctors, therapists and new infrastructure so urgently needed, the government’s 10-year plan for the NHS, released last month, focuses on digital apps, shifting care to the community without clear plans or sufficient funding and expanding the role of the private sector. Worryingly, the few structures in which the community can influence decisions on health provision, for example, scrutiny committees, may be abolished.

For more information on the campaign, visit wnstd.com/a4w or email whipps.cross.campaign@gmail.com

In the second of a series of articles documenting the development of Wanstead’s Evergreen Field, Geoff Horsnell looks at the contractors’ breach of conditions that caused work to be halted. Photo by Geoff Wilkinson

When the Metropolitan Police first put the Evergreen Field up for auction in the late 1990s, a number of local residents clubbed together to try to submit a bid, which was ultimately unsuccessful. From this beginning, the Wanstead Society was formed.

The first matter on the agenda for the society was to try to preserve the Evergreen Field, perhaps as part of the adjacent Christ Church Green. On the whole, this action was successful until the latest application in 2023. This application – to build a residential block of 24 flats atop a ground-floor nursery – was approved in early 2024, subject to some 41 conditions. Earlier this year, a planning amendment (1759/23/01) was submitted, laying out the proposed plan of action and how the work would be staged. This was in response to condition 1 of the original approval.

Recent events have seen contractors on the site preparing the groundwork by clearing the undergrowth. We witnessed high hoardings being erected around the site with the inevitable graffiti following soon after. Unfortunately for the builders, the application approval came with a whole raft of conditions, some of which needed to be met before any work could begin. The Redbridge Enforcement team was alerted and sent a case officer to the site. He instructed the builders to stop all further work until outstanding conditions had been met. One of the actions had been to start felling some of the mature trees on the site and to pollard others in breach of condition 9 of the application approval.

At this point, I should point out that at least one of the mature trees on the site is a rare Holm Oak tree. This variety is unique in remaining in leaf all year round. For this reason, these oaks have the nickname ‘Evergreen Oaks’, seemingly giving the site its name in the process. A further complication is that the site lies within the Wanstead Village Conservation Area where all mature trees are automatically protected.

As a result of the condition requirements, the developers must now provide a number of written reports to the council. Currently, some five separate amendments have been submitted and have now been validated. The reports have been placed on the planning website for public scrutiny. Generally speaking, these amendments must then be approved before any work can restart. The target date for these amendments is 15 August.

There is also the matter of the mature trees that have already been felled or pollarded. Cutting down or pollarding a protected tree without permission can result in a substantial fine per tree. We can only wait and see if Redbridge Enforcement bite the bullet and go for financial remuneration for this breach.

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

Restoration work is underway in Wanstead Park, and the decision to add a supportive steel frame to the Grotto was not taken lightly, says Caroline Haines, Chair of the Epping Forest and Commons Committee

I’m delighted to update you on an exciting heritage project that’s now well underway in Wanstead Park – the restoration of the historic Grotto.

Many local residents will know the Grotto as a much-loved feature of the landscape, standing quietly at the edge of the Ornamental Waters. But this Grade II* listed building – one of the most historically significant in Epping Forest – has been on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register for some time, due to the condition of its structure. Now, thanks to funding from the City of London Corporation, as conservators of Epping Forest, vital restoration work is being carried out to stabilise the Grotto and preserve it for future generations.

Working in close partnership with Historic England, we’ve developed a careful plan that respects the heritage value of the site while addressing the practical issues that threaten its long-term survival. The work involves cleaning and repairing the brickwork, filling in cavities, removing vegetation and repointing areas that have weathered over time. From a distance, these changes may appear subtle, but they are critical to the structure’s integrity.

One of the most significant aspects of the project is the introduction of a new steel frame, which will be discreetly placed at the back of the Grotto. This decision was not taken lightly. The top of the Grotto is leaning, and without support, its condition could deteriorate further. After careful consideration, two options were proposed: to demolish and rebuild the original walls in solid masonry, or to stabilise the structure with a sympathetic internal frame. The steel frame was chosen as it preserves the original brickwork and minimises visual impact.

This phase of the project is expected to continue until the end of the year. While some nearby areas may be temporarily closed for safety reasons, we are doing all we can to minimise disruption and keep park users informed through signage and social media updates.

We also need your help. Recently, the contractor’s compound was accessed without permission, with fencing damaged and equipment interfered with. Thankfully, nothing was taken and it appeared to be a case of curiosity rather than criminal intent, but it’s important to remember this is an active construction site and entering it is dangerous. If you ever see someone inside the fenced area during evenings or weekends, please call us. Your vigilance helps protect this important heritage work.

Wanstead Park is a place of national heritage, and I know how deeply it is cherished by the local community. This project is a vital step in ensuring that the Grotto – one of its true jewels – remains part of that story for years to come.

For more information and to contact Epping Forest Keepers call 020 8532 1010